Development

Wrestling Delivers Referee Courses in DPR-Korea and China

Monday, June 4, 2018 - 12:38 By Tim Foley

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY (June 4) – United World Wrestling, under the expertise of Prof. Dr. Halil Ibrahim CICIOGLU - 1s-ranked referee and member of the Referee Commission - held a series of courses this month in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and China.

The courses were part of the “Referee Education Pathway” a program started last year as an effort to educate and develop future generations of referees worldwide.

“I had an excellent educational opportunity in the DPRK and China,” said Mr. Cicioglu. “I was very happy to serve the people who wanted to improve the sport of wrestling in their countries and was impressed with their excitement to learn. We look forward to seeing more of these referees at future international competitions.”

The referee course in the DPRK was the first such event organized by the nation’s national federation and met or exceeded all requirements. Last year the federation hosted a Level One Coaches Course, which was received with equal praise. The small nation produced an impressive number of referees and coaches with 16 referee candidates and a coaching seminar with 78 attendees.
 

Among the refereeing candidates was Mrs. Choe Jong Bok, was former medalist at the Asian Championships who was eager to learn more about a career as a referee. Should Mrs. Choe continue her education and become a referee she would be the first female from the DPRK to fill that role.

The referee seminar in Beijing was also a major success with more than 100 referees from around the country in attendance. The Chinese Wrestling Federation, who hosted an Olympic Qualification tournament in 2012, held the event at the National Training Center in Beijing.

Later this month the Chinese Wrestling Federation will also be hosting the China Open, a United World Wrestling Ranking Series event, in Taiyung, China. The women’s wrestling event will be held on June 22 and June 23, with a short women’s wrestling development camp to precede it starting June 17.

For more information on refereeing courses and opportunities please see below:

https://unitedworldwrestling.org/sites/default/files/wrestling_referee_brochure_eng.pdf

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Wrestling for schools: UWW, ISF take steps to encourage students

Thursday, December 14, 2023 - 13:51 By United World Wrestling Press

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LAUSANNE, Switzerland (December 14) -- United World Wrestling and International School Sport Federation entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate and facilitate collaboration between ISF and UWW for the promotion of wrestling and beach wrestling in schools.

The two federations will strive to establish wrestling and beach wrestling as recognized sports among National School Sport Federations and strengthen overall cooperation and partnership between the two organizations and their members.

UWW President Nenad LALOVIC and ISF President Laurent PETRYNKA, along with other representatives from both organizations, met in Lausanne during the International Federation Forum to ink the cooperation.

"Wrestling is a sport that prepares you both physically and mentally," Lalovic said. "It is a sport that transcends the lessons learned on the mat to those needed through life. This is why it is important to have the opportunities the sport of wrestling provides embedded in the school curriculum."

UWW and ISF will now work on similar lines and look to bring wrestling into education at both local and international levels, attracting school-age enthusiasts of the sport and fostering cooperation between UWW and ISF with local authorities.

"Wrestling provides a pathway that can uniquely prepare the youth of tomorrow by building their confidence, improving their self-esteem and sense of belonging, and creating mental and physical discipline from a young age," Lalovic added. "Wrestling is a sport that continues to stand the test of time and I am confident the more people who wrestle the more we prepare youth to have a bright future."

The focus will also be on promoting girls' school sports and encouraging students of all genders to practice wrestling, on the mat and the beach.

The cooperation will extend to the field of play as well and both organizations will work to identify and implement synergies, establish a training and assessment unit for International/National Technical Officials, promote sustainability, the principles of fair play and integrity, and join the fight against all forms of racism in sport.

School wrestling can be used as a development platform for experimenting with new rules and formats or any other innovation as well.

Off the mat, both UWW and ISF will work to organize workshops, seminars, and other educational events for technical officials and teachers, especially PE teachers and a Technical Officials Education Program, specifically targeting youth, will be developed and implemented. This program will aim to ensure the future participation of youth officials at various events.

To help countries that suffer from a lack of school sports, UWW will provide experts for teaching and coaching sessions for the School Sport Foundation to promote wrestling in such countries. It will also define an educational calendar with ISF before the ISF competitions to provide experts to deliver education courses.

The partnership is a step towards taking wrestling to a wider sphere, especially at the school level.