Takedown Report

International Wrestling News (2021) – # 2

TDR Editor’s Notes ; As it has been 3 weeks since looking at the news of International wrestling the news shared below is mostly from last month. Yet there is looking ahead to the coming year in which the delayed 2020 Olympics are scheduled to be held in 2021.
E-mail us at the Editor’s office at martinkfleming@gmail.com
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1 } – Five things you didn’t know about Olympic freestyle wrestling champion Taha Akgul
The 125kg grappler became a hero in Turkey after winning his nation’s only gold medal at Rio 2016, but did you know he barely ate anything before his final bout? More on that below!
Taha Akgul has a big presence in Turkey, in every sense of the word.
Standing at 1.92m (6ft 4in) and weighing 125kg (276lb), he cuts a formidable figure. But it’s his exploits as a freestyle wrestler that have won him so much acclaim. At the Rio 2016 Olympics he won Turkey’s only gold medal, dominating Iran’s Komeil Ghasemi in the final 3-1. But at the end of 2019, shortly after winning his seventh European Championships, Akgul was struck down with a serious shoulder injury that kept him out of the sport for a year.
As wrestling prepares to make its return from the coronavirus delay in Belgrade, December 12-18, the 30-year-old is nearing full fitness and is determined to retain his Olympic crown at the Tokyo Olympics.
But how well do you know the Turkish wrestler? … rest of story at _{^{https://www.olympicchannel.com/en/stories/features/detail/five-interesting-facts-wrestling-turkey-taha-akgul/?mc_cid=6c7e360412&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

2 } – WCL Conducts Safe Sport Town Halls
WCL would like to thank all the participants who attended one of the Safe Sport Town Halls in late November. Four sessions were held with officials, athletes, coaches and PTSOs & clubs with the goal of collecting additional feedback on the content and implementation of the Safe Sport Policy Manual. The discussions were open, insightful, respectful and advanced our shared goals related to Safe Sport.
Dr. Frank Fowlie, WCL’s newly appointed Complaints & Appeal Officer, participated at the start of each town hall to introduce himself and explain his role. He provided clarity on how a complaint will be handled and talked about his independence and impartiality. For more information on Dr. Fowlie’s role visit our Safe Sport page. https://wrestling.ca/safe-sport/
Steve Indig, a lawyer with the Sport Law & Strategy Group, talked about the broader context … rest of story at https://wrestling.ca/wcl-conducts-safe-sport-town-halls/?mc_cid=c2c44a5110&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b
WCL seeks bids for 2022-2024 Canadian Wrestling Championships and Canadian Wrestling Trials .. story at _{^{https://wrestling.ca/wcl-seeks-bids-for-2022-2024-canadian-wrestling-championships-and-canadian-wrestling-trials/?mc_cid=065f8820b6&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

3 } – Cuban Wrestling Gala this Friday and Saturday at the Sports City
Havana, Dec 10.- With the completion of 30 fights in two days, the Pedro Val In Memoriam Fight Gala will be held in this capital, on the 11th and 12th of the current month, in what promise to be two days with much rivalry and emotions. To discuss this and other issues, federation, coaches and wrestlers met with the press this Wednesday at the Cuban Sports Hall, located inside the Ciudad Deportiva coliseum, to address what happened in a year marked by Covid-19 and new projects.
Luis de la Portilla, national commissioner of that discipline, expressed that despite the little competitive activity due to the pandemic, the Cuban gladiators took advantage of their participation in the pre-Olympic tournament in Ottawa, Canada, in March, to obtain 10 tickets to the Tokyo summer date. … rest of story at _{^{http://www.cadenagramonte.cu/english/show/articles/31671:cuban-wrestling-gala-this-friday-and-saturday-at-the-sports-city?mc_cid=afaeddd782&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

4 } – Individual World Cup Entries
CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 9) — Abdulrashid “The Tank” SADULAEV (RUS), the four-time world champion and Rio Olympic gold medalist, headlines the entry list for the Individual World Cup (December 12-18) that will feature 505 wrestlers from 51 different countries. Sadulaev is one of 31 returning world medalists — including five world champions from 2019 — who will take the mat in Serbia next week. Freestyle and Greco-Roman each include 11 medal winners from Nur-Sultan, while women’s wrestling welcomes 9 from the last world championships.
World Medalist By Style
Freestyle: 3 gold, 2 silver and 6 bronze = 11
Greco-Roman: 1 gold, 3 silver and 7 bronze = 11
Women’s Wrestling: 1 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze = 9
Freestyle (’19 world champions listed in BOLD) … rest of story at _{^{https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/individual-world-cup-entries?mc_cid=372ecbefe1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}
International wrestling returns at ‘Individual World Cup’ in Belgrade
This competition replaces the 2020 World Championships, but will still take place in the Serbian capital from 12-18 December.
It wasn’t the event we originally expected, but wrestling will finally return this week at the Individual World Cup in Belgrade, Serbia. The 2020 World Championships were initially scheduled for those dates, but the non-participation of several top nations due to coronavirus concerns meant that the event was reborn as an individual World Cup competition in the same location. Fans will be able to enjoy all three categories of senior wrestling: freestyle, Greco-Roman and women’s. … full story at _{^{https://www.olympicchannel.com/en/stories/news/detail/wrestling-individual-world-cup-preview-belgrade/?mc_cid=d179f0f753&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

5 } – 2020 UWW Individual World Cup: The Biggest Names & Best Weights
SHARETWEETSHAREEMAILCOMMENTS
Following months of speculation, anticipation, confusion — and eventually, optimism — United World Wrestling’s attempt at concluding the calendar year on a high note has finally arrived. The 2020 UWW Individual World Cup, to be considered as an inaugural event should it continue in the future, begins Saturday morning live from Belgrade, Serbia offering Greco-Roman fans an opportunity to catch some of the sport’s most prominent competitors in action without traditional team concerns on the line.
What is on the line for wrestlers, save for pride and an earnest surge of confidence prior to the last leg of the Olympic training block, is money. 300,000 SF (Swiss francs) is set for division among all 30 weight categories (including men and women’s freestyle). Therefore, the financial incentive and general format of the Individual World Cup bring to mind a popular event from the recent past, Azerbaijan’s Golden Grand Prix. … rest of story at _{^{http://www.fivepointmove.com/greco-wrestling-news/2020-uww-individual-world-cup-preview/?mc_cid=afaeddd782&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}
International wrestling to return in Belgrade with UWW Individual World Cup
More than 500 wrestlers from 51 countries are set to compete at the United World Wrestling (UWW) Individual World Cup in Serbian capital Belgrade. The event serves as a replacement for the cancelled World Championships, which Belgrade had been due to host. After countries including Japan and the United States pulled out over coronavirus concerns, UWW called off the World Championships as a threshold for entries had not been met.
The Individual World Cup will also be the first international competition since the beginning of the global health crisis. With COVID-19 countermeasures in place, 505 competitors are set to battle it out across 30 freestyle, Greco-Roman and women’s weight divisions over the next seven days. … full story at _{^{https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1101889/uww-individual-world-cup-belgrade-2020?mc_cid=afaeddd782&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

6 } – Individual World Cup Results
Maskevich, Korpasi, & RUS Own The Story On Day 1 Of Individual World Cup
What transpires in Belgrade, Serbia from now until Monday is different from a typical World event — though for the most part, the results coming out of Saturday’s action were, indeed, typical. That’s because the Russian Federation has a finalist in four of the first five contested weight categories, and Hungary’s Balint Korpasi (72 kg, world #5) has once again guaranteed himself a spot on a major podium. … rest of story at _{^{http://www.fivepointmove.com/greco-wrestling-news/individual-world-cup-day-1/?mc_cid=1d3b41c6e1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}
Olympic champion Štefanek retires following defeat at UWW Individual World Cup … full story at _{^{https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1101931/uww-individual-world-cup-d1?mc_cid=1d3b41c6e1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}
Russia Claims 4 More Gold Medals to Cap Dominant GR Performance … story and photos at _{^{https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/russia-claims-4-more-gold-medals-cap-dominant-gr-performance?mc_cid=2646a1a5c8&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}
Chamizo Storms into FS Finals, Russia Advances 3 … full story at _{^{https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/chamizo-storms-fs-finals-russia-advances-3?mc_cid=4edc48d477&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

7 } – Bureau Announces Change of Dates and Locations for 2021 Championships and Qualifiers
CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 22) – The United World Wrestling bureau held a virtual meeting Tuesday to discuss several topics, including an update to the dates and locations of competitions in 2021.
Citing limited interest in a January competition, the bureau voted to move the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series tournament from mid-January to March 4-7.
To help with costs and coordination the bureau also voted to combine the Asian Championships and Olympic Qualifier to Almaty, Kazakhstan with the tournaments set to run back-to-back April 9-17. Similarly, the African & Oceania Qualifier and African Championships are scheduled to be held back-to-back in El Jadida, Morocco from April 2-11. Due to travel concerns surrounding COVID-19 the Oceania continental championships have been cancelled.
Given the large number of expected participants, the European Championships and European Olympic Qualifier will remain at separate locations with the Qualifier scheduled March 18-21 in Budapest and the Championships April 19-25 in Poland. … rest of story at _{^{https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/bureau-announces-change-dates-and-locations-2021-championships-and-qualifiers?mc_cid=f9e49e1788&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

8 } – QUALIFYING PROCEDURES SET FOR 2021 SENIOR WORLDS, 2021 PAN AM CHAMPIONSHIPS AND 2021 ROME RANKING EVENT
USA Wrestling has finalized and posted the Qualification and Procedures in all three Olympic disciplines for three major Senior-level international events in 2021.
These events include:
• 2021 Senior World Championships, Oslo, Norway, October 2-10
• 2021 Pan American Championships, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, May 27-30
• 2021 Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series event, Rome, Italy, January 14-17
Each of these documents were developed by the appropriate Sport Committees (Men’s Freestyle, Greco-Roman, Women’s Freestyle) and have been approved by USA Wrestling’s Executive Committee.
All nine of the procedures can be viewed on TheMat.com, in the Team USA section at:
https://www.teamusa.org/usa-wrestling/team-usa/team-selection-criteria
2021 Senior World Championships summary
In all three styles, any 2020 Tokyo Olympian who wins a medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in August 2021, will have the right to compete at the 2021 World Championships at the same weight class. The 2021 Olympic medalist must declare their intent to compete by August 15, 2021. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/December/16/Procedures-posted-for-2021-Worlds-Pan-Ams-and-Rome-Ranking-events?mc_cid=4edc48d477&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

9} – Wrestling breakdown: Razambek Zhamalov knocks off two-time World champion Frank Chamizo
The 2020 Russian National champion cemented his status as world #1 at 74 kg with a win over a perennial elite.
After the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo were delayed, United World Wrestling scrambled to organize a world-level tournament for the year. Impressively, they were able to secure a venue in Belgrade, Serbia and produce what could have been an official World Championship. Unfortunately, major international players like the United States and Japan declined to send their teams to Serbia.
Without full buy-in from key members of the wrestling world, UWW downgraded the event from the World Championship to the “Individual World Cup,” more or less the exact same format as worlds, without the title. Even participating nations like Iran and India held back pound-for-pound talents such as Hassan Yazdanicharati and Bajrang Punia, but the Olympic weights were stacked nonetheless. … rest of story at _{^{https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2020/12/25/22187999/wrestling-breakdown-razambek-zhamalov-knocks-off-two-time-world-champion-frank-chamizo?mc_cid=0d946e15c0&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

10 } – Monday Roundup: European C’Ships Clarification; Revamped Schedule
Voting is now open for our end-of-year awards, which for 2020 is limited to Athlete of the Year and Outstanding Individual Performance. As reported in last week’s Roundup, Impact Performer is unfortunately unavailable due to the fact that there simply was not a large-enough pool of American athletes who competed in international/overseas events, nor were there enough events, period, from which to glean amenable candidates.
Athlete of the Year and Outstanding Individual Performance are different, however. There most certainly were several wrestlers whom despite the lack of competition managed to achieve meaningful milestones and deserve to be recognized for their efforts — hence why AOTY is being offered. In addition, Outstanding Individual Performance is our “snapshot” award, as it isolates one athlete’s standing at one event and is supported by contextual value. … rest of story at _{^{http://www.fivepointmove.com/greco-wrestling-news/european-cships-clarification-revamped-schedule/?mc_cid=c19dc39a02&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

11 } – USA WRESTLING TO SEND 33 TOP SENIOR ATHLETES TO HENRI DEGLANE GRAND PRIX IN FRANCE NEXT WEEK
USA Wrestling is expecting to send a 33-athlete delegation to the Henri Deglane Grand Prix, which is set for Jan. 15-17 in Nice, France. The squad includes nine women’s freestylers, 10 men’s freestylers and 12 Greco-Roman athletes. The tournament will start Jan. 15 with women’s freestyle, followed by men’s freestyle on Jan. 16 and wrapping up with Greco-Roman on Jan. 17. Among the USA’s entrants, there are two Olympic champions, four World champions and five World medalists. 2016 Olympic champions Helen Maroulis and Kyle Snyder will be competing in Nice. Both are also two-time World champions. Maroulis, who was the first woman in USA Wrestling history to win an Olympic title, last competed at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier in March, where she earned gold and qualified the U.S. at her weight, 57 kg, for the 2021 Olympics. Snyder, the youngest Olympic wrestling champ for the USA … rest of story at _{^{https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2021/January/04/Henri-Deglane-roster?mc_cid=ea644fcb33&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

12 } – Top Ten Stories from 2020
1. President Statement on Tokyo 2020 and Next Steps
Dear Athletes and Members of the Wrestling Community,
Coming from the Joint Statement of the International Olympic Committee and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, I would like to inform you that the Tokyo2020 Games will be postponed to no later than Summer 2021. This decision was made after accounting for the health of the athletes, those involved in the Olympic Games, and the international community at-large. The decision to delay will have a significant impact on our athletes and the remaining qualification process. Like other federations and stakeholders, we are waiting to receive more detailed guidelines from the IOC Sports Department concerning the qualification process and will provide an update as soon as possible.
2. Who’s In? Freestyle Wrestling Olympic Qualifiers
In response to the IOC’s decision to postpone the Tokyo Olympic Games until the summer of 2021, United World Wrestling has announced that all Olympic qualification spots already earned will continue to be honored. Russia crowned four world champions and one bronze medalist in Olympic freestyle weight categories at the 2019 World Championships in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, to qualify five weight categories for the Tokyo Olympics. The only weight category not yet qualified for Russia is 125kg. … rest of story at _{^{https://unitedworldwrestling.org/article/top-ten-stories-2020?mc_cid=afb669e366&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b}}

January 22, 2021 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized