#development

UAE aims for wrestling boost

By United World Wrestling Press

ABU DHABI, UAE (March 10) -- The United Arab Emirates Wrestling Federation has launched a new development program to promote the sport of wrestling in the country, with the help of United World Wrestling.

The initiative kicked off with the hosting of the 'Maritime Heritage Festival 2023' in Abu Dhabi, which featured the traditional wrestling form known as Mutaraha.

The UAE Wrestling Federation has outlined a long-term strategy to develop the sport of wrestling in the country, which includes increasing participation in the sport among young people, promoting training and education programs for coaches and athletes, and organizing international competitions.

UAE
The winners of the Maritime Festival 2023.

With a rich history of traditional wrestling, the UAE wants to engage the youth in Mutaraha in which the two wrestlers face each other in a circular ring on sand that is approximately six meters in diameter. The objective of the game is to force the opponent to touch the ground with any part of their body other than their feet, without using any striking or kicking techniques.

The partnership with UWW is a major step towards achieving these goals, as it will provide the necessary resources, expertise, and support to help the UAE Wrestling Federation implement its development program. With the 'Maritime Heritage Festival 2023', the UAE has taken a significant step towards promoting the sport of wrestling and raising its profile in the region.

#WrestleZagreb

Wrestling Calendar 2025: World, continental championships live on UWW+

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (January 7) -- The 2025 wrestling season for United World Wrestling will kick off with the 1st Ranking Series event -- Zagreb Open -- in Croatia. The event will be the first of the four Ranking Series scheduled this year.

The season-opening Zagreb Open will be held from February 5 to 9 at the Arena Zagreb, the venue for the senior World Championships later in September. The second stop of the Ranking Series will be in Tirana, Albania. The Muhamet Malo tournament will be held from February 26 to March 2.

The focus will shift to championships after the first two Ranking Series events and kicking off the continental tour will be Oceania Championships in Pago Pago, American Samoa from March 20 to 22. The Asian Championships will be held in Amman, Jordan from March 25 to 30.

April will see the European Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia from April 7 to 13 before the tour continues for African Championships in Casablanca, Morocco from April 29 to May 4. Pan-American Championships will be held in Monterrey, Mexico from May 8 to 11, marking and end of the senior continental championships.

The Ranking Series will return in May, with Mongolia as the third stop. The Ulaanbaatar Open will be held from May 29 to June 1 in the Mongolian capital. The final stop will be the prestigious Polyák Imre, Varga János & Kozma István Memorial tournament from July 17 to 20. As is the norm, it will be held in Budapest, Hungary.

The World Championships calendar will begin with the U17 World Championships in Athens, Greece from July 28 to August 3. The championships is returning to Greece after seven years. Close to a month later, the U20 World Championships will be held in Sofia, Bulgaria from August 18 to 24. The same tournament was held in Sofia in 2022.

The mega event for 2025 -- World Championships -- will be held in Zagreb from September 13 to 21 at the Zagreb Arena in the capital city of Croatia. This is the first time that Croatia will be hosting the big event.

Budapest, Hungary will host the Veteran World Championships from October 7 to 12 and the season's final World Championships will be the U23, to be held in Novi Sad, Serbia from October 20 to 26.

Apart from these events, the UWW calendar will see the age-group continental championships, beach wrestling events and numerous other international tournaments throughout 2025.

All Ranking Series, continental championships and World Championships will be live and exclusive on UWW+.

For a detailed calendar, visit uww.org/events