[Tony_photoplus]

The only way to assess your camera as Rob says is to read the spec. All digital cameras are little computers and it is important to understand the software and how it can be used to the best advantage in any given situation. Is the camera adjustable on ISO settings, because I presume this event will be taken indoors. As there is some speed involved I would set my ISO to 400, but the nice thing is you can see your result these days on the spot, so if that fails you can take more. I don't know how far the ISO goes but if needed go higher as you want to capture speed. But be careful as the higher you go the more noise you get. Most cameras are set on auto white light settings so lighting shouldn't be a problem as I suspect flashes would put the karate players off. If you see others doing it and the referees don't mind then see if it improves the picture.

The best thing with any camera is go out there and experiment. Go to the local park and take photographs of kids running around. Go and use your camera to the limits and experiment with different settings so take it off auto! Thats the best advice I can give.