On April 1, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov made a welcoming speech at the opening ceremony of the 11th International Karate Tournament named after Twice Hero of the Soviet Union, cosmonaut Victor Gorbatko. The tournament was held in the Moscow region of Lyubertsy. This is the largest competition participated by athletes from hero cities and cities of military glory.There, FIDE president met with the honorary president of the national association of karate Tanaka Takenori (Japan). Incidentally, as Tanaka Takenori told Ilyumzhinov, this is his 162nd visit to our country. A memorable photo of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and Tanaka Takenori was taken at the stand dedicated to the International Cosmonautics Day. At the stand, which aroused great interest among the participants and guests of the tournament, one could see the originals of old Soviet newspapers with articles about first space missions of Soviet cosmonauts.
During the competition, Kirsan Ilyumzhinov met and warmly communicated with the head of the Lyubertsy district of Moscow region Vladimir Ruzhitsky. The meeting of FIDE head with the legendary commander of Alpha Group, the hero of the Soviet Union Major General Gennady Zaitsev was also most interesting.
