#Tokyo2020

Nenad Lalovic: A Message to the Wrestling Community

Friday, March 6, 2020 - 17:35 By United World Wrestling Press

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Dear Wrestling Community,

 

With the recent outbreak of COVID-19 the worldwide wrestling community has been asked to accommodate a number of adjustments to their competition schedules, including changes to the dates and locations of important Olympic Qualification events.

 

While the developments remain out of control; our staff, bureau members, national federations, and continental leadership are working to find reasonable solutions. Our top priority is to protect the health of our athletes while also ensuring that qualification events for Tokyo 2020 are being planned in a way that respects their training regimens. It is of the utmost importance that the qualifying for Tokyo2020 takes place on the field of play. Wrestling is proud to boast the world’s toughest athletes and there is no question that these recent developments will only strengthen our community’s resolve.

 

Bureau Members, Executive Board members, staff and I are in continuous communication with our partners at the International Olympic Committee and we are dedicated to creating solutions that preserves our qualification system and keeps the public’s health in consideration. We are completely aligned with the IOC heading to Tokyo with confidence.

 

For up-to-date information about our response to the global outbreak of COVID-19 and its impact on our events, please be sure to consult our website homepage and our various social media channels listed below. The IOC has also opened up its athlete portal Athlete365 for updating information about Tokyo 2020 and the impact of global travel restrictions.

 

I want to thank our millions of athletes, fans, and coaches worldwide for their patience and understanding during these past few months. Together we will get past these complicated times and once again enjoy the world’s Oldest and Greatest sport in the leadup to Tokyo 2020.

 

Nenad Lalovic

President, United World Wrestling

Executive Board Member, International Olympic Committee

 

 

Athlete365: https://www.olympic.org/athlete365/

#WrestlePontevedra

Wrestling legend Medved, three-time Olympic champion, passes away aged 86

Monday, September 2, 2024 - 09:36 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (September 2) -- Aleksandr MEDVED, the most successful Freestyle wrestler with 10 Olympic and World Championships gold medals, died on Monday aged 86 years.

Medved made his international debut at the 1961 World Championships, where he won bronze in the 87kg weight class. A year later, he jumped to 97kg and won the gold medal at the World Championships.

Barring 1965, Medved won all the World Championships gold medals from 1962 to 1971, majorly competing in the +100kg. He was considered small for the weight class, yet he dominated it for more than a decade.

Apart from winning seven gold medals, Medved also won a silver medal (1965) and a bronze medal (1961) at the World Championships.

Aleksandr MEDVEDAleksandr  MEDVED as a referee in a wrestling bout. (Photo: IMAGO / ITAR-TASS)

"The passing of Aleksandr saddens us," United World Wrestling President Nenad LALOVIC said. "He was an ambassador of our sport and his achievements show that the world regarded him as the best."

"It's a great loss to the wrestling world and we are with the Medved family in this time of grief."

Medved won his first Olympic gold medal in 1964 at the Tokyo Olympic Games in the 97kg weight class. He repeated as the Olympic champion in the +97kg at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, beating Osman DURALIEV (BUL). The two met in the 1972 Munich Olympic Games in the +100kg final and Medved defeated Duraliev again to win his third Olympic gold medal.

He also has three European Championships titles as well.

After retiring from the sport, Medved was actively involved in coaching. He was inducted into the UWW Hall of Fame in 2003.

United World Wrestling expresses its condolences to the Medved family.