Delos Santos bucks illness, cops 23rd online karate gold

MANILA, Philippines – World No. 1 James delos Santos battled sickness in topping the Golden League Karate e-Tournament and snaring his 23rd gold medal Tuesday.

The 30-year-old delos Santos bested Alfredo Bustamante of the United States, 25.7-24.3, to rule the event that ensured his place in the apex of the world online karate rankings until the end of the year.

The two-time Southeast Asian Games bronze medalist performed his routines despite being under the weather and showed relief after testing negative for the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I have to admit that I was feeling under the weather during the finals. I’m glad I was declared negative after my COVID-19 test results came out,” said delos Santos.