LEWISTON, Maine -- Jennifer Yanoff, a sophomore at Bates College, has been selected to represent the United States in karate's most prestigious international tournament of the year, the World Games, to be held Nov. 6-11 in Sun City, South Africa.

Yanoff, a native of Swampscott, Mass., won the gold medal at the United States National Championships in Seattle this past summer. She then spent a week with three other top competitors in her weight class in a series of trial in Colorado Springs, wher e she was selected to represent the United States. As a karate competitor for the past 12 years, this is the first time that the 19-year old Yanoff is eligible under international rules to compete in the World Games, which features competitors from over 7 0 countries. She has won 19 U.S. national championships in her career in both fighting and forms, though she now concentrates solely on the fighting competition.