The national karate team still has two weeks left to decide whether it will compete at the 2021 World Karate Championships next month in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Richard Lim, president of the Karate Pilipinas Sports Federation Inc., bared that the organization is having "second thoughts" on sending a delegation for the world championships to be held November 16 to 21 due to lack of training amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The national karate team members have just resumed training camp in Baguio City under a bubble setup.
"We we're requesting for this bubble since June. Unfortunately, nagkaroon ng Olympics, nagkaroon ng ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) so hindi naasikaso (The Olympics happened, there were declaration of ECQs so the bubble training was not arranged properly," said Lim in an interview with Radyo Pilipinas' PSC (Philippine Sports Commision) Hour program Friday, Oct. 1
"There are so many things na nangyari na hindi naman nating puwedeng sisihin kung sino man kasi we are all facing this pandemic. Pare-pareho tayo (But no one or nothing is to blame since all of us are facing this pandemic. We're all the same)."
Lim, however, explained that with a shorter span in their preparations, the karatekas may suffer "psychological disadvantage" once they compete in the world championships.
But the chances of 2019 Southeast Asian Games gold medalist Junna Tsukii representing the Philippines anew are high due to her continuous training in Japan.
Tsukii, fresh from back-to-back medals in the Karate 1 Premier League, is also in constant communication with Turkish coach Okay Arpa.
"I don't see any reason why she (Tsukii) can't compete," added Lim.
That said, the Baguio bubble training will serve as a long-term preparation for the team's participation in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) in Thailand and the Asian Games in China next year.
The 2021 AIMAG, its sixth edition, was reset to March 2022 while the 2022 Asian Games will be held in September.
"Our target is to win a gold in the AIMAG and to win -- eventually winning the gold medal in the Asian Games. Talagang naka-set kami roon (We really set out sights for the gold)," said the PH karate team chief.