Jamaica kickboxers eye sweep of medals in Vienna

JAMAICA, one of the most dominant countries in tatami kickboxing at the International Sport Kickboxing Association Amateur Members Association (ISKA AMA) World Championships, are ready to launch an attack on Vienna 2024, starting on Wednesday.

Jamaica’s squad of ISKA world-record holder Akino Lindsay, Richard Stone, Akeem Lawrence, Nicholai Reid, and Sharic Bowen is aiming at 10 gold medals at the World Championships, which ends next Sunday.

Last year, coach Jason McKay hailed Stone, Nicholas Dusard, and Lindsay as “undoubtedly the best tatami kickboxers in the world” after the Jamaicans each won double individual gold medals – in addition to Nicholai Reid’s silver in light-heavyweight points-sparring and bronze in continuous sparring - ensuring that Jamaica left Munich, Germany, with eight medals.

McKay, also president of ISKA Jamaica and winner of Jamaica’s first ISKA world medal at Holland 2012, believes that the Jamaicans are capable of a sweep.

“There are only two world championships, in any sport, that Jamaica is expected to dominate: the sprints at the World Athletics Championships and the tatami events at the ISKA kickboxing world championships.

“There is, of course, the Olympics, but I am being specific to the sports’ actual World Championships,” McKay explained, adding, “the pressure is tremendous”, pointing out that “the most successful athlete in the tournament’s history is Jamaica’s Akino Lindsay, followed by Richard Stone, so it’s an abnormal responsibility on their shoulders”.

Lindsay will have additional motivation when he takes the mat. Before the 29-year-old faces his first opponent, ISKA Europe will present him with a special award during the opening ceremony, recognising his world record of eight consecutive individual gold medals.

“Akino Lindsay’s feat of winning eight consecutive gold medals in two disciplines at the ISKA AMA World Championships, 2017-2023, is an ISKA world record,” wrote Paul Hennessy, president, ISKA, Europe, in a correspondence to ISKA Jamaica.

Lindsay will be gunning to break his own world record, aiming at a third straight double-gold performance after winning points and continuous sparring titles in 2018, 2022, and 2023.

Renowned for his strength and speed, Lindsay, an iconic figure in ISKA tatami sparring, won his first two ISKA gold medals in continuous sparring at Portugal 2015 and Greece 2017.

Lindsay first completed the double on home soil in 2018 at the Montego Bay Convention Centre at which he also won team gold in continuous sparring.

Having missed 2019 and the COVID-19 years of 2020 and 2021, Lindsay returned with a vengeance for Turkey 2022 and Germany 2023, establishing an ISKA world record.