Karate champions from Canada, the US, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Honduras, Bahamas, Trinidad & Tobago, have arrived to participate in the XII Karate Pan-American Games that open 1 May in Santiago de los Caballeros. Competitions will be held all throughout the weekend. Williams Mullerson, President of the Pan-American Federation of Karate; engineer Angel Acosta, president of the Dominican Federation of Karate and doctor Sabino Báez, president of the organizing committee, will lead the opening ceremonies. President Leonel Fernández is expected to be present. The tournament serves as qualifying round for the Pan Am Sports Games of Winnipeg, Canada in 1999 and for the world karate tournament scheduled to be held this year in Brazil. For the city of Santiago, the second largest in the Dominican Republic, this event is the most important sports international event since the celebration of the XV Central American and Caribbean Sports Games in 1986.
