Around 400 athletes from 26 countries are due to compete at the tournament, scheduled to take place from May 30 to 31.

The field includes a list of stellar names including home favourite Douglas Brose, world champion in the men’s kumite under 60 kilograms category, and World Junior kumite male under 61kg champion Breno Teixeira.

Other stars to make the journey to Sao Paulo are 2011 Pan American Games gold medallist Ana Josefa Villanueva of the Dominican Republic, who also won bronze at the 2012 World Championships in Paris in the under 50kg kumite division, and American Brian Ramrup.

European kata female Champion Sanchez Jaime Sandra of Spain will also be present at the intense two-day competition.

Many karatekas are set to use the fourth WKF Karate1 Premier League spectacle in their preparations for the eagerly-anticipated Pan American Games, which run from July 10 to 26, with karate competitions scheduled for July 23 to 25.

The Karate1 Premier League series is making its debut this season with eight events scheduled throughout the year.

It represents the first competition which sees the sport’s governing body award prize money to the winners.

The debut event took place in the French capital of Paris before the series moved to Almere, The Netherlands.

The last Premier League competition was held in the Egyptian capital of Cairo and after Sao Paulo plays host for the first time, Istanbul will welcome the world’s top karatekas on September 5 and 6.

Coburg, Germany plays host to the sixth competition before it switches to Salzburg, Austria, concluding in Okinawa, Japan on November 28 and 29.

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