Antonio Espinós

Antonio Espinós
Antonio Espinós Ortueta, president of the World Karate Federation and the European Karate Federation
Born (1947-10-13) 13 October 1947
Bilbao, Spain
Nationality Spanish
Alma mater Madrid University
Occupation Sports Administrator

Antonio Espinós Ortueta (born 13 October 1947) in Bilbao, Spain, is the current President of the World Karate Federation and of the European Karate Federation. Former member of the Spanish Karate National team and former President of the Spanish Karate Federation, Antonio Espinós Ortueta has headed the WKF since 1998 [1] and the European Karate Federation since 1997.[2] He is regarded as the major force in the inclusion of Karate in the sports programme of the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Early life and education

Antonio Espinós Ortueta was born in Bilbao,Spain. Upon completing his elementary school education at the German School Madrid, he graduated in Civil Engineering in 1973. Following his degree in Civil Engineering from Madrid University, Mr. Espinós earned an MBA from the EOI. Since his graduation until 2014, he has spent his working life holding managing positions in the private sector. He speaks fluent Spanish, English, French and German.

Karate career

His lengthy involvement with Karate started as an active practitioner of the martial art. Antonio Espinós earned his Black Belt 1st Dan in 1973, and from 1971 to 1974, he was a member of the Spanish National Karate Team participating in major national and international competitions.

After ending a 3-year-period as a high-level competitor, he focused on his professional career as a civil engineer, combining his profession with the activity of Karate teacher. He obtained the 4th Dan degree in 1993. In 2014, he was honored by the Spanish Karate Federation with the 6th Dan degree in recognition of his achievements and contributions to the sport of Karate.

Sports administration

In 1984, Antonio Espinós was elected president of the Spanish Karate Federation [3] He headed the National Federation for twelve years until 1996, in a period marked by the growing popularity of the martial art in the Iberian country.[4]

During his time leading the Spanish Federation, Mr. Espinós also initiated his career in international sports administration. In 1994 he was elected first Vice-president of the WKF, and one year later he was also designated first Vice-president of the EKF.[5] After finishing his tenure as the head of the Spanish Karate Federation, Antonio Espinós was elected President of the European Karate Federation in 1997. The continental sports organization has been driven by Mr. Espinós to the present, and he was re-elected as current incumbent of the position, for an additional six-year term, in the last elections of the institution, which were held in 2017 in Koçaeli, Turkey[6]

One year after taking office as the chief of the EKF, Antonio Espinós was also appointed the top official of the World Karate Federation. Mr. Espinós has prevailed in the last four elections of the organization; he earned the re-election as president of the WKF for an additional six-year term in the elections which were held in Linz,Austria in 2016.[7] Antonio Espinós is the third president of Karate’s international governing body, taking the position after Ryoichi Sasakawa (1970-1992) and Jacques Delcourt (1992-1998).

In addition to his career leading the EKF and the WKF, Antonio Espinós has held senior positions in many international sports institutions. The Spaniard was appointed member of the ARISF Council from 2002 to 2005, and from 2007 to 2015 Espinós was added to the SportAccord Council. He acted as Vice-President of SportAccord from 2013 to 2015. Since 2016, he is the Chairman of the GAISF Membership Commission.

As recognition of his active involvement in the progress of sports both in his native country and all around the world, Antonio Espinós has been distinguished with top honors at high sports institutions. He is the Honorary President of the Spanish Karate Federation, has also been granted Spain’s gold medal for sporting merit and he has received the Olympic order of the National Olympic Committee of Spain in 2010. Member of the Spanish Olympic Committee since 1984, Antonio Espinós has also been recognized with the World Fair Play Trophy by the International Fair Play Committee.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "WKF President's welcome message". World Karate Federation.
  2. ↑ "Structure of the European Karate Federation". European Karate Federation.
  3. ↑ "Presidentes de la RFEK".
  4. ↑ "Historia de la RFEK". rfek.es.
  5. ↑ "WKF Executive Committee - Antonio Espinós CV" (PDF).
  6. ↑ "EKF Congress re-elects Antonio Espinós as President" (PDF). European Karate Federation.
  7. ↑ "Antonio Espinós re-elected as WKF President for six-year term". World Karate Federation.
  8. ↑ "WKF President Espinós receives fair play award". Inside the Games.
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