Development

OlympAfrica Hosts Largest Ever Wrestling Event in Ivory Coast

Wednesday, May 16, 2018 - 20:23 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY (May 17) -- United World Wrestling has partnered with OlympAfrica in Ivory Coast to host that nation's largest ever wrestling event. The two-month program includes more than 2,000 students from Soubré, Meagui and Okrouyo who are taking part in various camps and competitions until June 23. 

United World Wrestling development officer Vincent AKA, who was born in Ivory Coast and wrestled for France, is also leading a Level 1 coaching course in the country.

OlympAfrica is a foundation that has sport development centers in over 46 African countries and works in collaboration with the National Olympic Committees. It was founded based on an idea expressed by the late Juan Antonio SAMARANCH, former President of the International Olympic Committee. 

The foundation is owned by the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa and supported by the International Olympic Committee, United World Wrestling and other partners, for the development of sports at a recreational and grassroots level in many African countries.

OlympAfrica has set up centers dedicated to sports activities, workshops, HIV prevention, coaching education and much more. The aim of these centers is to involve the youth in sports and activities that are good for their future development once they have finished their day at school. It's an excellent talent identification tool, particularly with the introduction of the Youth Olympic Games in the Olympic program.
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UWW to continue tests for Greco-Roman tie-breaker rule

Thursday, June 19, 2025 - 11:18 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (June 19) — The Technical Commission of United World Wrestling has decided to further test the tie-breaking rule for Greco-Roman bouts that end with a 1-1 score.

UWW had announced in March that it would test a new Greco-Roman rule at the European Championships in April. This rule awarded victory in a 1-1 Greco-Roman bout to the wrestler who scored the first technical point.

Testing at the European Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia yielded positive results. However, to fully evaluate the rule, the Commission agreed to conduct further tests at more events.

Beginning with the U15 European Championships in Caorle, Italy from June 25, all future events till the 2025 World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia will be conducted under the new rule which awards the victory to the wrestler who scored the first technical point if the match ends 1-1. This means that the 2025 World Championships in Zagreb will be part of the testing.

The change comes after it was unanimously acknowledged that the existing rule, which awards victory to the athlete who scores the last point, may unintentionally encourage passivity at the start of the bout. Wrestlers could strategically aim to secure a passivity point in the second period, ultimately winning the match without demonstrating consistent engagement throughout.

UWW once again stresses that the modification will be implemented exclusively for Greco-Roman and will apply only to matches that end with a 1-1 score. For all other score scenarios, the existing wrestling rules will remain in effect.