On April 30th, the National Karate Championship (CNU) was held, organized by the Academic Federation of University Sports (FADU) and the Academic Association of the University of algarve (AAUALG). The competition took place at the Penha Municipal Building, in Faro. On behalf of the Association of Técnico Students (AEIST) three athletes competed in this modality: João Coimbra, in Kata Male, Pedro Antunes, in the category of – 67 Kg and Alexandre Sequeira, in the category of – 84 Kg, who won the Silver medal in the competition.

Student of third-year at the Integrated Master’s Degree in Physical Engineering (MEFT), the athlete trains at Sporting Clube de Portugal (SCP) and has been practicing the sport since he was 7 years old. “I was supposed to have competed the year I came in. However, because of Covid there was no championship”, a situation that was repeated in the last year, which is why Alexandre Sequeira could only compete in 2022.

Asked about the environment in competition, the athlete says that “the people were calm at that day. The atmosphere was very good in the competition. Although we normally compete for our clubs, we end up being more or less the same going to the competitions. So, I already knew most of the people who were in my ranks,” he explains.

As a student, Alexandre Sequeira says that “it’s always important to have an extracurricular activity, so that it is not just studying. Not thinking for a while about the study is already an advantage “, he explains.

As for expectations about the future in his academic career, he says he still has time to reflect, as he is still in his third year, but it is a matter of giving his best and “see how things go”.