Obituary

Zhaksylyk Ushkempirov, First Kazakh to Win Olympic Gold, Dies at 69

Monday, August 3, 2020 - 12:49 By United World Wrestling Press

Share this article

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (August 3) -- Zhaksylyk Ushkempirov, who won Olympic gold for the U.S.S.R  in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Moscow Games in 1980, has died. He was 69.

Ushkempirov was the first ethnic Kazakh to win an Olympic gold in wrestling and became a national star following his performance. To honor his achievements, there is an international Junior Greco-Roman wrestling tournament named "Zhaksylyk Ushkempirov" held annually in the nation of Kazakhstan. He was also inducted into the UWW Hall of Fame in 2014.

In addition to his Olympic gold, Ushkempirov was a 1981 World champion, 1980 European silver medallist, USSR Champion (1975,1980), and Honored Master of Sports of USSR (1980). 

Ushkempirov also received the Labor of Kazakhstan award as well as the honors of "Barys", "Badge of Honor", "Parasat".

Ushkempirov

Istanbul, Buenos Aires to host next two U17 Worlds

Friday, May 27, 2022 - 13:32 By United World Wrestling Press

Share this article

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 25) -- For the first time, the U17 World Championships will be held in South America after the capital city of Argentina, Buenos Aires, was chosen as the host of the 2024 edition.

The announcement was made after the meeting of the UWW Bureau Monday, where host cities for a few continental competitions in 2023 and 2024 were finalized.

The beautiful city of Istanbul, Turkey, which recently hosted the Yasar Dogu Ranking Series event, will be the venue for the 2023 U17 World Championships. In the following year, the U17 World Championships will be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a step that will boost the development of wrestling in South America.

The 2021 U17 World Championship, held in Budapest, saw Georgia claim the Greco-Roman team title, finishing just ahead of Ukraine, while the USA won the women’s team title. India went home from that tournament with its first-ever freestyle team title.

The Bureau Members also allocated the 2023 U17 European Championships to the Albanian capital Tirana.

Meanwhile, a request from the organizers of the 2023 Oceania Championships to change the dates of the tournament was approved as well. The championship will now take place in Sydney, Australia, in August, with the exact dates to be finalized in the coming weeks.

The 2024 Veterans World Championships – meant for wrestlers between 35 and 60 years, who will be divided into five age categories – will be held in the Croatian coastal town of Porec.

For a full list of United World Wrestling's events, please visit uww.org/events