Obituary

Olympic champion Macha passes away

Wednesday, May 31, 2023 - 09:40 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 31) -- Olympic champion and United World Wrestling Hall of Fame member Vitezslav MACHA (CZE) passed away on May 29 aged 75.

Macha, born in 1948, was the only Olympic champion from the country as he won the gold medal in Greco-Roman 74kg weight class at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games. He had defeated Petros GALAKTOPOULOS (GRE) in the final bout. At the next Olympics in 1976, Macha won a silver medal at the Montreal Games to become a two-time Olympic medalist.

In World Championships, Macha stood on the top of the podium twice -- 1974 in Poland and 1977 in Sweden. His European Championships record includes a gold medal at the 1977 edition and four other medals -- two silver and two bronze.

Macha last competed at the 1980 Olympic Games, finishing sixth, before moving into coaching and even holding the post of President of the Czech Wrestling Federation.

UWW expresses its deepest condolences to the Macha family.

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UWW steps up for 2028 LA Olympic cycle with new Refereeing Commission

Monday, March 10, 2025 - 01:15 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (March 10) -- As the new Olympic cycle kicks off, United World Wrestling has announced a new set of Refereeing Commission and appointed an independent group to maintain the standards of officiating in matches.

UWW's aim is to enhance the efficiency and performance and continuous improvement in officiating in wrestling. Taking a step in that direction, UWW has appointed an independent refereeing group to assess the standards of the officials and the officiating. The group will directly refer to the UWW President and UWW Bureau Members.

The three-member group will consist of Antonio SILVESTRI, Kamel BOUAZIZ and Arsen JULFALAKYAN. Former world champion and Olympic silver medalist Julfalakyan will provide valuable expertise as an athlete and a different perspective from that of a referee.

UWW has also reinvented the Refereeing Commission with headed by Levent SEN. The new commission will retain the same functions and responsibilities and ensure high level of officiating across all competitions.

Additionally, it will be responsible for training new referees and equipping them with the necessary knowledge to progress in their roles. The Commission will work closely with the Development Department to establish the referee education pathway and content.

For referee education and training, UWW has set up theoretical training through online content on UWW Academy, Nearpod and webinars. All the training material is available on the UWW website (uww.org). Ibrahim CICIOGLU will be in charge of the education in close collaboration with the Development department and provide expertise and advice to all parties.