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Turkish kickboxer Berat Önal wins junior world title in Italy
Turkish kickboxer Berat Önal won the gold medal after winning six bouts at the Junior World Championships held in Italy from September 18 to 26. Önal, who has won more than 60 medals over 13 years, is targeting an unbeaten senior title.
Turkish athlete Berat Önal, 18, who started kickboxing at the age of about 5, won six bouts at the Junior World Championships in Italy to claim the world title.
Önal won the gold medal at the event held from September 18 to 26, fulfilling his dream of becoming a world champion. He has won gold medals at all 10 championships he has entered in Türkiye and has earned more than 60 medals during his 13-year career.
Numerous achievements in a 13-year career
Önal has never lost in competitions he entered in Türkiye. His career includes a world championship silver medal and a European title in the cadet division, as well as three World Cup titles, a European title and a world bronze medal in the junior division.
Önal prepared for the world championships for about a year and a half by training six days a week with his coach, Emre Şahin. The Turkish athlete said his goal is to maintain his success and win new titles in senior competitions.
“I promised that I would become world champion”
Berat Önal said he started playing sports at his family’s encouragement and had been kickboxing for about 13 years. He said he had not initially expected to join the national team or achieve such results, but that his titles gradually motivated him to work harder and focus on his goals.
Önal said he joined the national team in 2023, became European champion in his first year and won a world bronze medal in 2024. He said that result led him to promise himself he would become world champion, adding that he fulfilled his goal by winning six bouts in Italy.
Önal said the preparation process for the championships was difficult, with intensive training six days a week, and described the final bout at the world championships as the toughest fight of his career. He said winning the world title was a source of pride and honor for him.
Önal said he would compete in the senior division and that his goal was to win titles without suffering a defeat. The Turkish athlete said the senior division was more difficult than the junior division and that the world and European titles among his more than 60 medals were his most special achievements.
Şahin: Berat worked consistently toward his goal
Emre Şahin, coach of the national kickboxing team, said he had worked with Berat Önal for about 13 years. Şahin said Önal reached the world title through his confidence, patience and determination, as well as his talent.
Şahin said Önal never missed training and completed the exercises assigned to him during the preparation period, adding that the Turkish athlete had never lost in Türkiye. He said Önal suffered defeats at international events in 2024 and 2025 but became world champion in the junior division in 2026.
Şahin said Önal’s next goal was the senior division. He said Önal would face stronger opponents in that division and expressed his belief that the athlete could succeed by adding strength and experience to his existing talent.
Source: Anadolu Ajansı
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