#BeachWrestling

Beach Wrestling named a core discipline for 2023 & 2025 ANOC World Beach Games

Friday, August 20, 2021 - 12:01 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (August 20) -- The Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) has named wrestling, with the specific discipline of Beach Wrestling, as one of nine sports to its core program for both the 2023 and 2025 ANOC World Beach Games.

We are proud to announce that during the Olympic Games in Tokyo, the president of United World Wrestling (UWW), Nenad Lalovic, has signed an agreement with ANOC’s Secretary General, Gunilla Lindberg, for Beach Wrestling to be part of the mandatory events of the ANOC World Beach Games sports program for the 2023 and 2025 editions of the event.

“We are delighted to sign a MoU with ANOC and solidify Beach Wrestling for the World Beach Games in 2023 and 2025. ANOC organized world-class Games in Qatar and I am very pleased we will continue to grow beach wrestling and the Beach Games together,” states UWW’s president Lalovic.

Part of the 10 core sports, Beach Wrestling is planned to continue with the same format as in 2019 with 8 categories, 4 men and 4 women. 80 athletes in total, with 64 under qualification process established by the UWW plus 16 invitations.

Beach Wrestling was part of the first ANOC World Beach World Games, held in Qatar in 2019. The inclusion as a core sport for the upcoming two editions represent a major development for the UWW’s fastest growing discipline, as ANOC is an important organization with ties to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the various international federations of Olympic sports (IF), in addition to serving the National Olympic Committees.

All further details will be announced in due time!

Find out all about the Beach Wrestling World Series and watch the competitions live at www.beachwrestling.org

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UWW Lifts Restrictions on Belarus, Russia Wrestlers

Friday, May 15, 2026 - 03:02 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 15) -- United World Wrestling will allow Belarusian and Russian wrestlers to compete without restrictions at upcoming UWW competitions with immediate effect.

Under the updated participation guidelines, wrestlers from Belarus and Russia will compete under their respective national flags at all age-group levels, including senior. Athlete and staff uniforms may now bear the country initials “RUS” and “BLR,” while the national anthems of both countries will be played during medal ceremonies at UWW events if their wrestlers win gold medals or a team wins a championship.

All other standard UWW competition protocols will remain in effect in accordance with international wrestling rules.

In January, UWW had approved the participation of all wrestlers from the two countries up to the U23 age-group level under their respective national flags following an IOC recommendation that youth athletes holding Belarusian or Russian passports should no longer face restrictions on participation in sports events, including team competitions.

UWW first issued a statement on the geopolitical situation surrounding Ukraine in March 2022 and aligned with measures recommended by the IOC. At the time, UWW decided that wrestlers and officials belonging to affiliated and associated federations in Belarus and Russia would not be invited or allowed to participate in international competitions on the UWW calendar.

In April 2023, UWW formed an independent panel to verify the eligibility of wrestlers from Belarus and Russia based on the IOC’s recommended conditions of participation. At the same time, UWW approved wrestlers in the U15 and U17 age categories to compete as neutral athletes in international competitions.

UWW issued another update to the eligibility criteria for Belarusian and Russian wrestlers in September 2024. In February 2025, UWW announced that all eligible wrestlers from Belarus and Russia would compete under the UWW flag, removing the “Individual Neutral Athletes” designation. However, UWW did not authorize the use of national anthems or references to the flags, symbols, or coats of arms of Belarus and Russia.