#UWWAwards

'21 Breakthrough Performances of the Year: Geraei, Zare and Focken

By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 7) -- Mohammadreza GERAEI (IRI), Amir ZARE (IRI) and Aline FOCKEN (GER) have been named United World Wrestling’s Breakthrough Performance of the Year award winners.

Geraei came into 2021 without having a world or Olympic medal on his resume. The 25-year-old, known as ‘The Iceman,’ defied all expectations and claimed Olympic gold in Tokyo and closed out his improbable ’21 campaign with a world-title run in Oslo.

Zare, at just 20-year-old, had a colossal year. He collected an Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo before upsetting three-time world champ Geno PETRIASHVILI (GEO) and Olympic gold medalist Taha AKGUL (TUR) en route to gaining heavyweight supremacy at the Oslo World Championships.

Aline Focken picked the perfect time to retire. After missing out on the ’12 London Olympic Games and a ninth-place outing in Rio, the 12-year-veteran ended her career with an upset victory over five-time world champion Adeline GRAY (USA) in the 76kg Olympic finals.

2026 U17 European Championships

Watch U17 European Championships Live Streaming: Results, Brackets, Videos

By United World Wrestling Press

SAMOKOV, Bulgaria (May 11) -- The U17 European Championships will be held in Samokov, Bulgaria from May 11 to 17. How to watch the wrestling live stream of tournament?

To watch the U17 European Wrestling Championships, subscribe to UWW+ on uww.org here.

UWW Plus

Full Schedule: 2026 U17 European Wrestling Championships

May 11 (Monday)

Greco-Roman Qualification Rounds (10:30 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg
Greco-Roman Semifinals (18:00 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg

May 12 (Tuesday)

Greco-Roman Repechage (10:30 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg
Greco-Roman Qualification Rounds (10:30 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg
Greco-Roman Semifinals (17:00 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg\
Greco-Roman Finals (18:00 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg

May 13 (Wednesday)

Greco-Roman Repechage (10:30 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg
Women's Wrestling Qualification Rounds (10:30 onwards): 43kg, 49kg, 57kg, 65kg, 73kg
Women's Wrestling Semifinals (17:00 onwards): 43kg, 49kg, 57kg, 65kg, 73kg
Greco-Roman Finals (18:00 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg

May 14 (Thursday)

Women's Wrestling Repechage (10:30 onwards): 43kg, 49kg, 57kg, 65kg, 73kg
Women's Wrestling Qualification Rounds (10:30 onwards): 40kg, 46kg, 53kg, 61kg, 69kg
Women's Wrestling Semifinals (17:00 onwards): 40kg, 46kg, 53kg, 61kg, 69kg
Women's Wrestling Finals (18:00 onwards): 43kg, 49kg, 57kg, 65kg, 73kg

May 15 (Friday)

Women's Wrestling Repechage (10:30 onwards): 40kg, 46kg, 53kg, 61kg, 69kg
Freestyle Qualification (10:30 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg
Freestyle Semifinals (17:00 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg
Women's Wrestling Finals (18:00 onwards): 40kg, 46kg, 53kg, 61kg, 69kg

May 16 (Saturday)

Freestyle Repechage (10:30 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg
Freestyle Qualification Rounds (10:30 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg
Freestyle Semifinals (17:00 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg
Freestyle Finals (18:00 onwards): 48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, 110kg

May 17 (Sunday)

Freestyle Repechage (16:30 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg
Freestyle Finals (18:00 onwards): 45kg, 51kg, 60kg, 71kg, 92kg

Download the UWW+ app from App Store | Play Store.

For brackets, results, highlights, live match order and team rankings, follow United World Wrestling.

BRACKETS | LIVE MATCH ORDER | WATCH LIVE | ENTRY LIST | NEWS | PHOTOS | RESULTS | TEAM RANKINGS 

Join the conversation around 2026 Pan-American Championships

United World Wrestling on Instagram: @unitedworldwrestling

United World Wrestling on Facebook: @unitedworldwrestling

United World Wrestling on X: @wrestling

United World Wrestling on YouTube: @unitedworldwrestling

United World Wrestling on TikTok: @unitedworldwrestling