As discussed with PTSO representatives at the recent Summit, Karate Canada has, following a recommendation from its High Performance Committee, adopted a new rule whereby Canadian Senior National Team Roster athletes who hold a high standing in the WKF World Rankings (top 50) will be given the opportunity to be exempted from the (normally) mandatory participation in the 2018 National Championships so as to be able to focus on and compete at one or more WKF Karate-1 Premier League competition(s) in the few weeks preceding or following these National Championships, so as to enable them to pursue Olympic qualification without being penalized nationally. You may click here in order to read the document outlining this new Rule, which is also being communicated to all our National Team Roster athletes and member Provincial / Territorial Association contacts. While only a small pool of athletes will be eligible to take advantage of this new rule, it may impact the relative value of ranking points earned by other National Team Roster athletes and by medalists at the 2018 National Championships, and may therefore consequently impact future National Team Roster selection (for the 2018-2019 season) in some divisions.