#DigitalTransformation

‘Now is the right time to do this’: Delivering wrestling’s first digital World Championships

Saturday, September 3, 2022 - 12:50 By United World Wrestling Press

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COSIER-VEVEY (August 30) --- Our decision to undergo a digital transformation at United World Wrestling (UWW) can be dated back to as early as 2014 – a year after the federation was reinstated into the Olympic Program. As is the nature of digitalization and the importance of getting the timing and product launch just right, we’ve now entered year one of a new digital era at UWW following the launch of our very own mobile app, organic video hub, and customer relationship management (CRM) tool, in time for the Wrestling World Championships (10th to 18th September). 

The vision to revolutionize the sport was first tabled by our president Nenad Lalovic, who, since taking up the presidency in May 2013, has advocated change to the makeup of international wrestling and how we look to engage new fans and stakeholders. By putting digital transformation at the heart of our modernization, we are in the midst of the biggest transition our sport will experience in modern times and will certainly enhance the offering we provide to our fanbase, to our athletes, and to our national federations.

Now is the right time to do this. Why? There are many industries that have already gone through this process and is something we are seeing more across the sports industry. This is not something that can wait another five years before we look to instigate change. By then, it might be too late. As the Olympic Movement attracts new audiences, we have to stay ahead and modernize with the industry, in order to set new goals, and not to shy away from doing things differently.

The pandemic shone a light on the challenges that we faced as an international federation and some of the changes we needed to make. For example, we implemented distance-learning and webinars that brought our community closer together during trying times. This at large is how we plan to continue – to provide digital solutions, not only as a digital transformation “check-box”, but to help our national federations grow and bring about positive change to the sport of wrestling.

The exciting thing about digitalization is that it offers infinite possibilities. We can certainly provide a broader offering for our audience, but for our sponsors, national federations, and the grassroots of our sport, too. There are many different tools that will allow us to move forward and offer new opportunities to stakeholders. Digital transformation expands our ability to adapt to new trends and to leverage customer data that will influence how we distribute content. 

UWW IS EXPANDING ITS DIGITAL FOOTPRINT

With the proliferation of D2C technologies, our fans have naturally spread across so many different platforms. In the past, we didn’t pay too much attention to what the individual consumer wanted. So, without a digital portfolio, we have been unable, until now, to stay connected with our growing fanbase. 

This observation has formed the basis for UWW’s  digital transformation and is already reaping rewards. Our investment strategy covers three key areas – mobile, video, and data capture – all of which are designed to bridge the relationship with our core and newcomer fans and the sport of wrestling. 

Without the means for a direct relationship with our audience, UWW has until recently been unable to engage fans retrospectively, nor have we been able to build their connection with our sport at a level of engagement we hope to achieve via our new mobile application and the video hub. By expanding our digital footprint, and taking ownership of customer data these platforms will collate, we can explore more easily our relationship with our audience via the CRM and tailor the D2C experience to the individual fan.

Before the launch of our latest products, in the past year, we have seen increased engagement from the followers of our sport. In the year leading to the 2022 World Championships, UWW social channels grew by 21 percent to more than 2.25 million followers, according to research carried out by Redtorch, including 78,500 new followers between April and June of this year. Going forward, by taking this direct-to-consumer (D2C) approach, we will be able to build audience engagement ahead of our flagship events, establish trust during the championships, and continue to build loyalty among our growing fan base.

The way we’re trying to operate today – not only as a service, but also as a video content provider – is to communicate directly with people, and extends to our partners, too. As well as serving fans who watch wrestling from their homes, our digital approach also enables us to provide more dynamic packages for sponsors, more content for broadcasters, and therefore richer, more entertaining, video content tailored for our audiences. 

This is UWW bringing that vision we laid out over the past decade to fruition. By improving the experience, we will provide a more consolidated, one-stop shop capable of delivering everything a passionate wrestling fan is going to be pleased with. Going forward, this will help us to engage new fans based on their interactions with our digital products and customize their experience from the moment they begin watching the sport and one that builds a rapport between UWW and its audience. This will serve us well for many years to come.

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION REQUIRES EXPERT SUPPORT

Before we began our digital transformation, we set out a roadmap to ensure that our end-goal was clear. In year one, we’re focusing on our mobile app, video hub, and the CRM. But that’s just the beginning of the journey. By moving our operations to the cloud, it will allow us to scale our production without upsetting the quality for our subscribers. 

We want to attract larger audiences. Whereas, in the past, we haven’t been equipped to meet greater demand from the wrestling community, our digital transformation will unite our athletes, coaches, and stakeholders into an efficient, paperless ecosystem, whereby our national federations will be able to communicate ideas and solutions via a centralized home for wrestling. 

While exciting from the outside, I must be honest about our journey so far and the value we’ve drawn from external consultation. Digital transformation is certainly not something that organizations can take on alone. There needs to be resources in place and experts you can work with to set the right structure and roadmap in place to deliver on our transformation targets. 

In order to achieve our goals, we have been working alongside N3XT Sports since last year, and the team continues to provide the soundboard for building new ideas for digitalization and to identify the challenges and opportunities it will present us in the future. The entire working group at N3XT Sports – from the consultants, to the project manager to the designers and engineers – provide expert advice and know-how when it comes to understanding the long-term journey for digital transformation. 

From the moment we put ideas down in writing, through to the execution and delivery of our new digital portfolio, the entire working group has demonstrated the basis of change-management inside an international federation like ours. It’s important for a whole organization – and not only a handful of departments – to contribute to the project. In return, this helps align our vision as the global governing body with the realities of our regional partners, coaches, and athletes.

In doing so, we have learnt that digital transformation is a long-term commitment. Having taken the first and most important step on our journey, N3XT Sports and our strategists continue to envision how the decisions we make today will impact and open up new opportunities for the sport of wrestling in the future. This level of detail is vital if we want our digital transformation to be a success in the decades to come. We are very excited to be on this journey and look forward to inviting you to join us.

#WrestleParis

Paris 2024: Lopez closer to historic Olympic gold; Fumita, Elor enter finals

Monday, August 5, 2024 - 22:01 By Ken Marantz

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PARIS (August 5) -- Mijain LOPEZ (CUB) continued his quest for an unprecedented place in Olympic history, swatting aside all in his path on Monday. The last man standing in his way is a former compatriot who has already made history of his own.

Lopez earned a chance to become the first-ever athlete in any sport to win five gold medals in the same event at the Summer Olympics when he advanced to the Greco 130kg final on the opening day of the wrestling competition at the Paris Olympics.

"Very happy, very proud," Lopez said. "It's been a sacrifice for a career lasting so many years, and it's beautiful for the next generations so that they have something to aspire to."

Meanwhile, Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) earned a chance to make up for his disappointing silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics at Greco 60kg -- and gained revenge in the process -- while young Amit ELOR (USA) looks poised to complete the "Golden Grand Slam" of titles by making the women's 68kg final.

Lopez, competing for the first time since winning his fourth gold at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, set up his date with destiny in Tuesday's final by defeating 2016 Rio Olympic bronze medalist Sabah SHARIATI (AZE) 4-1 in the semifinals at the Champs de Mars Arena.

The 41-year-old Lopez got the first chance in par terre and made the most of it with a well-executed gut wrench to go up 3-0 in the first period.

Put on the bottom in the second period, Lopez went beyond just putting up stiff resistance. The Iranian-born Shariati, a veteran himself at 35, managed to lift the Cuban off the mat, but when he tried to force a roll, Lopez nimbly stepped over and gained control for a 1-point reversal.

Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI)Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI) confirmed Chile's first-ever Olympic medal in wrestling by reaching the 130kg final. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

Lopez, who has not lost a match since falling to long-time rival Riza KAYAALP (TUR) in the final at the 2015 World Championships, will face Cuban-born Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI) for the gold medal.

"It will be beautiful, special, not only for me but for the whole world," Lopez said of facing Acosta. "It's going to be a final between two Cubans, it's going to be spectacular. A result that the world will enjoy but particularly my brothers in Cuba."

Acosta assured Chile of its first-ever Olympic medal in wrestling when he outlasted Lingzhe MENG (CHN) 1-1 on last-point criteria in the other semifinal.

Acosta got the second of the two passivity points awarded, after which neither was able to turn the other. Meng was given a second chance in par terre with a minute to go but was unable to get any points off a front headlock.

Lopez expressed his joy that Acosta has clinched a medal after coming up just short in Tokyo by placing fifth.

"We've always been brothers, we've always been friends in wrestling, it's going to be beautiful for him, to win an Olympic medal and for me," Lopez said. "He deserves a medal. Chile has asked him to win that medal, and they have given him the support and the chance to compete."

Kenichiro FUMITA(JPN)Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) returned to the final after beating Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ). (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kadir Caliskan)

At Greco 60kg, Fumita advanced to the final by defeating nemesis Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), using a masterful 4-point throw to score a 4-3 victory over the two-time reigning world champion.

The victory avenged a loss to Sharshenbekov in the final at last year's World Championships in Belgrade, when the Kyrgyz star prevailed 11-6 in a thoroughly entertaining throwfest that uniquely featured no passivity points.

On Monday, Fumita, a two-time former world champion himself, held tough on the bottom of par terre to go into the second period trailing 1-0. Early in the second period, he locked onto Sharshenbekov's right arm and hit an elegant back suplex for 4.

Sharshenbekov, who had not lost since June 2022 and had put together a streak of 10 consecutive tournament titles, went on the offensive and used a nice duck under for a takedown to cut the gap to 4-3.

But Fumita stood his ground and conceded nothing to clinch the win and earn a chance to make up for his devastating loss in the Tokyo Olympic final to Luis ORTA (CUB) and become Japan's first Greco gold medalist since Atsuji MIYAHARA (JPN) in 1984.

For Fumita, winning an elusive gold in Paris would be particularly special. "Paris is a special place because I won my first world title here in 2017," he told the Japanese media.

"I think that the wrestling gods are telling me that by making the final, I have to win the gold. I have one more match and I will give everything so that it will be said that Fumita is indeed strong."

Facing him in the final will be world bronze medalist Liguo CAO (CHN), who scored an exposure at the buzzer for a stunning 3-3 win on last-point criteria over Asian Games bronze medalist Se Ung RI (PRK).

Ri appeared headed to a 3-1 victory after getting a gut wrench from par terre in the first period and holding out on the bottom in the second. But Cao managed to get behind from standing in the waning seconds and, with Ri keeping a solid base and his knees off the mat, Cao pulled him back and over for a 2-point exposure just as time expired. In the final, Cao will look to avenge a 3-1 loss to Fumita in the quarterfinals in Belgrade.

Elor stormed into the women's 68kg final with a 10-0 victory over teenager Sol Gum PAK (PRK) as she looks to join Yui SUSAKI (JPN) as the only wrestlers to add an Olympic gold to titles on all four age-group levels at the World Championships.

Elor, a two-time world champion at 72kg who moved down to the Olympic weight, used a snapdown to get behind Pak for a takedown, then applied a lace lock and reeled off four rolls to end the match at 1:44.

"I've been training a lot with my coach to make sure that after I get a takedown, I don't overlook the thought of getting a turn," the 20-year-old Elor said. "Turns make a huge difference, and I think a lot of times, I'll get a takedown and I'll think, 'Oh, no no, let's just go back to our feet.'

"But it makes a huge difference, and you saw that in a match like that. One takedown, four turns, and the match is over. My immediate thought was, bring her legs together, you have to get at least one lace. And it worked for me."

Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ)Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ), blue, defeated Nonoka OZAKI (JPN) to enter the semifinal at 62kg. (Photo: United World Wrestling / Kostadin Andonov)

Looking to stop Elor will be Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ), who won a clash of Tokyo Olympic medalists in the other semifinal to move one win away from becoming Krygyzstan's first-ever Olympic gold medalist in any sport.

Zhumanazarova scored a second-period takedown, then fended off a late attempt by veteran Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) to score a 3-1 victory. That avenged a 3-2 loss to Oborududu in the quarterfinals in Tokyo, where the Nigerian went on to take the silver medal and Zhumanazarova came home with a bronze.

Earlier, Zhumanazarova pulled off a major coup by defeating two-time world champion Nonoka OZAKI (JPN), building up a 6-0 lead before holding on for an 8-6 win.

Elor said she had prepared to face any opponent. "I like to focus on one opponent at a time, but before this competition, I thoroughly watched and analyzed all of my opponents," she said. "I honestly think that each and every opponent has their own challenges, and so however the bracket came out, I knew that I was ready for anybody."

Day 1 Results

Greco-Roman

60kg
SF 1: Kenichiro FUMITA (JPN) df. Zholaman SHARSHENBEKOV (KGZ), 4-3
SF 2: Liguo CAO (CHN) df. Se Ung RI (PRK), 3-3

130kg
SF 1: Mijain LOPEZ (CUB) df. Sabah SHARIATI (AZE), 4-1
SF 2: Yasmani ACOSTA (CHI) df. Lingzhe MENG (CHN), 1-1

Women's Wrestling

68kg
SF 1: Amit ELOR (USA) df Sol Gum PAK (PRK) by TF, 10-0, 1:44
SF 2: Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) df. Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) 3-1