Obituary

Hall of Fame Greco-Roman Wrestler Andersson Passes Away

Monday, September 10, 2018 - 14:51 By United World Wrestling Press

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Hall of Fame Greco-Roman wrestler Frank Andersson of Sweden, a 1984 Olympic bronze medalist and three-time world champion, passed away on Sunday after complications from heart surgery. He was 62.

Andersson was born in Trollhatten, Sweden, in May 1956. He competed mostly in Greco-Roman, but also had success in freestyle. Andersson represented Sweden at three Olympic Games, competing at 90kg. At the Montreal Games in 1976, he placed fifth in Greco, and seventh in the freestyle competition. In 1980, Andersson placed fourth in Greco at the Moscow Games. In his final Olympic competition, Andersson eared a bronze medal in 1984 at the Los Angeles Games. 

In addition to his Olympic medals, Andersson won five world medals, including world gold medals in 1977, 1979 and 1982. He was a world silver medalist in 1978 and 1981. He was also very successful at the European Championships, claiming gold medals in 1976, 1978, 1979, and 1981, and silver medals in 1977, 1980, and 1982.

Following his amateur wrestling career, Andersson embarked on a professional wrestling career, then starred in several TV shows. 

In 2006, Andersson was welcomed into the World Amateur Wrestling Hall of Fame.
 

UWW hosts IS Referee Seminar with 117 participants

Friday, January 20, 2023 - 02:18 By United World Wrestling Press

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ANTALYA, Turkiye (January 23) -- The United World Wrestling and the Turkish Wrestling Federation hosted the IS Referee and Instructors seminar in Antalya, Turkiye last week.

A total of 117 IS referees and instructors attended the semifinal which ran from January 19 to 21 in the coastal city for a symposium focused on educating on a wide variety of wrestling-related topics. 

The IS category is the highest and most prestigious in international wrestling and the group in Turkiye included referees from each continent.

Planned by the UWW Referee Commission and UWW Sports Department, referees were instructed in theoretical and practical wrestling situations, goals for 2023, improvements as a refereeing group and what to expect at UWW events on the road to Paris Olympics 2024.

RefereePractical demonstrations of skills at the Is Referee Seminar. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

The participants were provided with guidelines for the pathway to selection for the Olympics, and an understanding of the current wrestling rules and referee body regulations. Mat training exercises, meant for a better understanding of the common wrestling tactics, scoring maneuvers and execution, were also delivered.

Olympic coaches Radoslav VELIKOV, 2006 world champion from Bulgaria and Greece's Amiran KARDANOV, bronze medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, were also present to help and offer critical advice during practical training.

Special instructions and presentations regarding conflict resolution and the alternative style of Grappling were also administered.

Special thanks to the Turkish Wrestling Federation for planning social and cultural events to further develop comradery among the referees, above and beyond their hosting duties.