A post accompanying a video of an athlete taking down his opponent with just one kick in a karate match is being shared with a claim that the video shows a Pakistani athlete taking down his Israeli opponent in Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Video of a Pakistani athlete taking down his Israeli opponent in a Karate match in Tokyo Olympics.
Fact: The video is an excerpt from the European Karate Championship which was held in the month of May 2021. The athlete who fell down represents Montenegro, whereas the other athlete represents Russian Federation. Further, as far as Tokyo 2020 Olympics are concerned, there is no representation from both Pakistan and Israel in the field of Karate. Hence the claim made in the post is FALSE.
This video actually shows a Karate match between Russian Federation and Montenegro during the European Karate Championship which was held in the month of May 2021, much before the start of Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Google search with relevant keywords yielded the full video from which the viral excerpt is extracted. This video is available on World Karate Federation official YouTube channel. As per the description, the video shows European Karate Championship.
In the YouTube video between 1:46:10 to 1:46:26 duration, we can spot the same visuals shared in the viral post. However, as per the details overlaid on the video regarding the countries these athletes represent, the athlete who fell down represents Montenegro, whereas the other athlete represents the Russian Federation.
Further, according to the information provided on the official website of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, there is no representation either from Pakistan or from Israel as far as Karate is concerned. Further, Pakistan has representations only in 6 categories and Karate is not one of those. Details of the athletes representing both these countries in different categories and the schedule of the events can be seen here and here. Hence, this information confirms that the viral video has nothing to do with either Pakistan or Israel.
To sum it up, an excerpt from European Karate Championship is passed off as Pakistan defeating Israel at Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
