Karate may not have a future at the Summer Games

TOKYO – American karateka Tom Scott spent 12 minutes competing in the Olympics here on Friday, and his medal hopes rested on fractions of a second. With a helping hand. At the speed of a kick. On a video review.

Scott led a crucial third bout of a 1-0 pool round with less than a minute to go. He lost it 2-1 with just 3.6 seconds to go. He stepped out of center stage here at Nippon Budokan with his hands on his hips, and with dreams of glory sure shattered.

Dotted for now and forever.

It was Scott’s first Olympic opportunity at 31, and he had cherished every moment of it.

But it was, due to uncontrollable circumstances, probably also his last.

Scott never dreamed of fighting in the Olympics when he started karate at the age of 8, because at the time, karate had never been an Olympic sport. This was still not the case when Scott started competing in international competitions and winning medals at the Pan American Games. It became one in 2016, when Tokyo organizers added it to the schedule for 2020.

But that was under a new Olympic rule that allows host cities to choose a few new sports for their Games and Games only. The inclusion of karate therefore came without any guarantee of future inclusion. And indeed, in 2019, Paris 2024 did not select it. Insiders also don’t expect him to be on the Los Angeles 2028 roster.

So here on Friday in the men’s 75 kilogram kumite division was Scott’s single shot.

In 2016, he and adults and children of all ages threw a party at their karate school in Texas to celebrate the official announcement of the Olympics. “It was phenomenal,” Scott said. “It was a good time.” He had devoted a large part of his life to this sport; to the competition; to teach it. He dreamed of having the chance to bring him to the Olympic stage.

And the actual experience of last week in Tokyo “has lived up to the [to the vision] all over the place, ”he said. “It was amazing. In all aspects. He met some of his heroes. He relished the honor of representing his country. “A medal would have been great,” he said. “But I’ll leave that to another day.”

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But when will that day come?

The Paris 2024 decision “deeply saddened” karate officials at the time, and here in Tokyo, it turned athletes into defenders. Scott spent part of a post-competition interview evangelizing, advocating for the sport to be reintroduced to the Games in 2028.

“As an American, and being here right now, it’s my obligation and my duty to the sport to campaign, to push it,” he said. “It’s a great sport. And he deserves to be at the Olympics.

But to be clear, he’s also campaigning for himself.

“Hell yeah, this is for me,” he said.

“Of course,” he wants another chance at a medal.

This one disappeared too quickly, in this third of the four fights of the first round, against the Ukrainian Stanislav Horuna. The whole experiment, Scott said, “was a blast, it was a rush.” He walked back and forth in his white robe and loose pants, a blue belt around his waist. In two of his four fights, he attacked eagerly and won.

And then, with a bow, his Olympic career probably ended.

He has his eyes on LA28 and is determined to exert his influence. First, he will go home and take a few days off.

But then he’ll prepare for the world championships this fall. “I like what I do,” he says. “I am not retiring here. I wasn’t supposed to be here. It was quite a gift. And I will anticipate future gifts.

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