Kazakh karateka Sofya Berultseva won a gold medal at the Asian Games 2026 in Japan. In the final of the over-68 kg weight category, she defeated Manivan Butsuwan of Thailand. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
Path to victory
Berultseva started the competition from the quarterfinals, where she faced Dina Mostafa of Saudi Arabia. The Kazakh athlete won the bout 9:6 and advanced to the semifinals.
For a place in the decisive bout, Berultseva competed against Africa Gurun of Nepal. The match ended in victory for the Kazakh athlete – 2:1.
Kazakhstan's fourth gold
For the Kazakhstan national team, this gold became the fourth at the Asian Games 2026. The champions of the Games were cyclists Rinata Sultanova and Alexey Lutsenko, as well as karateka Zholaman Bigabyl.
Berultseva is a bronze medalist of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. In 2021, she took third place in the Olympic kumite tournament.
About the Asian Games 2026
The XX Summer Asian Games in Japan officially opened yesterday, September 19. In the multi-sport competition with athletes from 45 countries, 460 sets of medals will be awarded. 217 – among men, 204 – among women and 39 – in mixed categories. The tournaments will be held in 68 disciplines of 41 sports. The Kazakhstan national team at the Asian Games 2026 will include 559 athletes.