“I proudly raise this flag with triumph. I am the new world no. 1 eKata player,” De Los Santos posted on his Instagram.

“After 7 months of competing in so many tournaments on a weekly basis, the hard work has paid off; it is now official. I am the No.1 in the e-Kata World Ranking,” he added.

The Filipino karateka superstar tops the e-kata with 8,950 points followed by his rival and former no. 1 Eduardo Garcia of Portugal with 8,575 points, and Silvio Cerone-Biagioni of South Africa with 4,585 points.

De Los Santos accumulated a total of 15 gold medals during his campaign that started at beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

His breakthrough was when he bagged the Mitad Del Mundo Hatamotokai E-Tournament Ranked Event gold, thus a comeback from his 10th place in the previous tourney.

“When I hit the number two spot back on August 6, I was behind by nearly 3000 points to number one. I thought to myself, ‘Wow that’s a big gap. How am I ever going to reach that?’ I was discouraged at first, but my kata coach Masa Saito reminded me to take it one tournament at a time,” De Los Santos stated. 

“I’m really glad. We proved nothing is impossible. The path so far isn’t always easy. But we never give up and we climbed up to the top,” coach Saito commented. 

“I am so happy that I’m sharing this moment with this amazing karateka James. I’m grateful for the support we had from our family and friends. I’m so lucky to coach such a talented player,” he continued. 

After the grand win, De Los Santos’ goal is to secure his throne atop the standings. 

“My new goal is to maintain the no. 1 spot throughout the year. This is a much bigger challenge, as there will be other eKata players who want the no. 1 spot as well. But this will keep me grinding and motivated.” 

“Mabuhay, Mga Atletang Pinoy Makapunyagi,” he ended.