EKF

EKF may refer to:

European Karate Federation

The European Karate Federation (EKF) is the governing body of competitive karate in more than 50 countries across Europe. The EKF's stated goal is to promote, organize, regulate, and popularize the sport of karate. It is one of the five continental federations recognized by the World Karate Federation. Since 1966, it has organized the European Karate Championships. Additionally, it now organizes Junior, Cadet, and Under-21 Championships.

History

On 31 March 1961, a karate teacher named Jacques Delcourt was elected President of the French Karate Federation (which was a member of the French Judo Federation). In 1963, he invited the six other federations in Europe to come to France for the first international karate event in history. Of the six federations - which hailed from Italy, Great Britain, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, and Spain - only Great Britain and Belgium accepted the invitation.

On 15 December 1963, the French, British, and Belgian federations gathered in Paris for the first European Karate Congress. They sought to improve and organize karate tournaments between their respective countries. The European Karate Union (Union Européenne de Karaté) was officially founded on this day.