WWC ORGANISER SCRAPPING JUNIOR CATEGORY TO SEEK GREEN LIGHT

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8 (Bernama) -- The organiser of the Warzone World Championship (WWC) has officially excluded the 'Junior' category from the combat ring, in compliance with the new circular from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, which prohibits exponents under age 15 from participating in combat sports competitions.

The organiser of the combat sports event, Yusuf Azmi, said he has submitted an official letter to the Sports Commissioner for registration purposes and hopes the application for the event scheduled for Dec 6 and 7 will proceed smoothly and receive approval soon.

"For your information, WWC initially listed a special (Junior) category that did not involve high-risk physical matches, but instead focused on the disciplinary aspects of martial arts and techniques. Evaluation was to be based on technical skills, discipline, and sports ethics, not on winning a match.

bootstrap slideshow

"We want to emphasise that WWC rejects any form of exploitation or excessive exposure of children to risky activities," he said in a press conference today.

Yesterday, Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh stressed that all combat sports event organisers are prohibited from involving kids under 15 in full-contact combat sports without protective gear, and must adhere to the regulations of their respective national governing bodies.

Hannah stated that participation by exponents under 15 in combat sports such as MMA, Muay Thai, kickboxing, and boxing is only allowed in official tournaments organised by National Sports Associations or State Sports Associations registered under the Sports Development Act 1997 (Act 576).

The ministry previously confirmed that the WWC tournament did not receive its approval.

Accordingly, the WWC organisers have been given 30 days to submit an official application to the ministry for assessment of whether to approve or reject the tournament.

-- BERNAMA