The Paris Open is one of the standout fixtures on the karate calendar and will be staged for the 20th time, with a leading field of athletes expected to participate across the three days of competition.

Japan's reigning world champion Kiyou Shimizu will once again be the woman to beat in the female kata discipline, while male compatriot and defending world gold medallist Ryo Kiyuna will also be in action.

Turkey’s world champion Serap Oczelik headlines the women’s under 50kg kumite category, with teammate Enes Erkan, winner of the men’s over 84kg kumite gold at the 2014 World Championships in Bremen, also due to compete.

Italian Luigi Busa, the world silver medallist in the men’s under 75kg kumite discipline, will be hoping to better his performance from the 2015 Paris Open, where he failed to secure a podium finish.

He is set to be sternly tested by Azerbaijan’s European champion Rafael Aghayev, a winner here four years ago. 

Busa’s compatriot Sara Cardin is also out to prove a point as the women’s under 55kg kumite competitor has not managed a medal since the Karate1 Premier League tournament in Sharm El Sheikh in February.

French hopes will be pinned on the likes of Alizee Agier, the current women’s under 68kg kumite world champion, as the home team aim to impress in front of local support.

Brazil’s Douglas Brose, world champion in the men’s under 60kg kumite event, will attempt to get his campaign off to the perfect start in his first Karate1 Premier League appearance since the competition on home soil in São Paulo last March.

Morocco’s Achraf Ouchenseen, seen as a rising star in the men’s over 84kg kumite category, is another name to watch out for after he triumphed at under-21 level at the World Cadet, Junior and Under-21 Championships in Indonesia.

The 2016 Paris Open has attracted over 1,000 entries and the WKF will be hoping it can set the tone for a crucial year ahead for the sport.

Karate is one of five shortlisted sports for potential inclusion at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, along with baseball softball, sport climbing, surfing and skateboarding, with the International Olympic Committee due to make a decision at its Session in Rio de Janeiro in August.

Following what could be an historic moment for the sport, which has never been a part of the Olympic programme, Linz in Austria will play host to the 2016 World Championships from October 25 to 30.

Action is scheduled to begin at the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium, originally built in 1937 for the Universal Exposition, with individual and team kata events tomorrow.

Kumite eliminations and repechages come to the fore on Saturday (January 23) before all finals are held the following day.