The Cypriot Government made a decision that the contestants from Kosovo they cannot perform under their flag, and in case one of the karatekas from that country wins the title, the national anthem will not be sung.

This happened on The European Karate Championship for Cadets, Juniors and Junior Seniors, and the Karate Federation of Kosovo (which had 45 members for this event) immediately reacted to such decisions.

The participants wanted to withdraw because their appeals were not accepted, and the president of the Karate Federation of Kosovo, Avni Gashi further explained his position.

- We were accepted by the European Karate Federation, so far we competed with others, but they did not allow us in Cyprus. We were told that the competitors can only perform as representatives of the Karate Federation and that instead of the flag there is an inscription "Kosovo Karate Federation". They also told us that there will be no singing of the national anthem if our competitor wins gold - said Gashi.

A complaint to the World Karate Federation followed, but it was rejected, so the Karate Federation of Kosovo decided not to perform at the European Championship.

– The executive committee met in Larnaca and after that we were told that they cannot change the decision of the Government of Cyprus and that we can only compete under those conditions. We did not accept. We unanimously decided that we will not perform there - these are the words of Gashi and he added that over 30 karateka from Kosovo were supposed to participate in the continental gathering.

🇨🇾The Kosovo* Karate Federation refused to compete in the European Under-21 Championship in Cyprus after the Cypriot government banned their flag from being displayed. pic.twitter.com/D3df1xRuVU

- Sam Street (@samstreetwrites) February 3, 2023