Bureau 2020

Candidates Announced for 2020 Bureau Elections

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (July 9) – The official candidacies for the 2020 United World Wrestling Bureau elections have been received and confirmed.

There are seven positions up for re-election in 2020, including six seats on the Bureau and the position of UWW President. Five incumbents have submitted their candidacy for re-election while nine new candidacies have been received for Bureau positions. Successful candidates serve a six-year term on the Bureau.

Incumbent President Nenad LALOVIC (SRB) will be running un-opposed for re-election. The election will be his second six-year term as President.

Elections were scheduled to be held on 6 September 2020 during the Ordinary Congress planned on the eve of the 2020 Junior World Wrestling Championships in Belgrade. Due the pandemic, different options are examined for this year’s congress. An announcement will be made later when the calendar is consolidated.

Present incumbent:

DI BUSSOLO PELLICONE, Marina (Ms) (ITA)

GAMA FILHO, Pedro (BRA)

MAMIASHVILI, Mikhail (RUS)

MESKOUT, Fouad (MAR)

RUZIEV, Akhroldjan (UZB)

New candidates:

CANEVA, Lucio (ITA)

IGALI, Daniel (NGR)

KARSNAK, Jan (SVK)

KHARENKO, Dina (Ms) (UKR)

KORPELA, Marko (FIN)

MACHAIDZE, Edisher (GEO)

RYAN, Don (CAN)

SORYAN, Hamid (IRI)

ZAMBRANO, Johnny (ECU)

The end of the term of the late Mr. Tzenov was this year. A new candidate - with regards to his term as Continental Council President - the Bureau approved Mr Theodoros Hamakos (GRE), Vice-President of UWW-Europe to act as interim President of  the European Council until next year when all Continental Councils hold their elective assemblies to renew all positions.

#development, #WrestleBirmingham

UWW-KIMBA partnership helps Ahinsa win Sri Lanka’s first CWG medal

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (August 17): The Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, which concluded on August 8, saw some thrilling wrestling action, with athletes from 10 countries finishing on the podium. New rivalries were established in the process and history was rewritten, the latter being true in the case of one wrestler in particular.

Nethmi AHINSA (SRI) won the bronze medal in the women’s freestyle 57kg category, sharing the podium with Hannah TAYLOR (CAN), who also won a bronze, silver medal winner Anshu MALIK (IND) and gold medallist from Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR).

For Ahinsa and her country, though, the medal will hold a special significance. The bronze, after all, was Sri Lanka’s first medal in wrestling at the Commonwealth Games. And Ahinsa, only 18 years old, was the youngest to win a medal.

Ahinsa’s medal is also a testimony to the success of the UWW’s developmental programs.

Ahinsa had been a part of the Crysbro Next Champ Program, which is run by the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka. As a part of the program, the schoolgirl from the country’s North Western Province was sent to Hungary, where she got exposure to training and competing with some of the top-level athletes.

AHINSANethmi AHINSA (SRI) won a bronze medal in the 57kg weight class in Birmingham.

The UWW funded and supported her three-month training program at its partner center in Hungary, the Kozma István Hungarian Wrestling Academy (KIMBA), in collaboration with the NOC of Sri Lanka, which expressed its gratitude towards UWW and KIMBA.

The partnership between UWW and KIMBA came to fruition during President Lalovic’s visit to Budapest, Hungary, last year in December. During his trip, a partnership was initiated with KIMBA for the global development of the sport. Under the agreement, it was decided that KIMBA would host several international wrestling events, training camps, seminars and other programs.

The positive impact of the collaboration is for all to see, and Ahinsa’s medal at the Commonwealth Games underlines the importance UWW places on such developmental programs.