Ainsley Walters, Freelance Writer

Umpire Kurt Ottesen of Canada issue last-minute instructions to the competing teams ahead of the Continental World Championship, contested by Jamaica's Combined Martial Arts Team, New Zealand, England and the United States at the International Sports Karate Association (ISKA) United States Open at the Coronado Springs Resort at Disneyland, Orlando, Florida last weekend. Jamaica, captained by Jason McKay (second left), won the championship, beating the United States in the final. - Photo by Ainsley Walters

CORY SCHAFER, president of the International Sports Karate Association (ISKA) which hosted the first Busta Continental World Championship at the US Open recently, says he would love to make the event a tournament fixture each year.

Schafer was on hand to watch Jamaica's Combined Martial Arts Team - the Busta Fighters - representing the Pan-Am region, top champion teams from the United States, New Zealand and England in the tournament's curtain-opener.

New Zealand, which had four gold medallists from their recent International Taekwon-Do Federation's (ITF) World Championship team, represented the Pacific-Asia region and England competed for the United Kingdom, whereas hosts United States stepped into the spot made vacant by Africa."We would be more than pleased to have the Continental World Championship welcomed every year," said Schafer.

"Jamaica's performance here has been exemplary in every way. Having been to Jamaica and seen their martial artists perform, I am impressed not only with their skills, but their behaviour as martial artists, which is very important," he added.

3-1 win

Jamaica topped the inaugural Continental Championship after getting past England in the semi-final. The trio of Alrick Wanliss, Kenneth Edwards and veteran Arthur Barrows afterward put on an impressive display to give Jamaica a 3-1 win in the five-man team fighting championship. Schafer said he was also impressed with the format of the championship.

"I liked it a lot," he remarked. "One of the things I liked most was the format. It was very strict and I find that attractive."

The Continental Championship had six officials, one handling the match and four sitting judges reporting to a head table.

The bout was presided over by Kurt Ottesen, a Canadian, who is the head of the Pan-Am ITF Referees Commission.

Ottesen said the competition was intense among teams ranked in the world's top 10.

"There was no easy match," he said. "This was no one-sided affair as Jamaica, New Zealand, England and the United States are all teams from the top 10 in the world," he pointed out.