#WrestleElJadida

African Championships preview: Oborududu chases record 11th title

Friday, May 13, 2022 - 16:57 By Vinay Siwach

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EL JADIDA, Morocco (May 13) -- Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) has spent around nine months off competition. A heartbreaking loss in Tokyo meant that she missed out on a medal at her second straight Games. But with African Championships and Commonwealth Games scheduled within three months, the World silver medalist is back for the continental tournament beginning next week in El Jadida.

As she is coming back after a break, the five-time African champion is jumping up to 59kg for the tournament. While she has nothing to prove at the competition, it will be a warm-up before she goes for her title defense at the Commonwealth Games in August.

Along with Adekuoroye, Nigeria will pin hopes on Blessing OBORUDUDU (NGR) to guide the country to defend their team title. The Tokyo Olympic silver medalist will be looking for her 11th straight African title.

Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR)Odunayo ADEKUOROYE (NGR) will be eyeing her sixth African title. (Photo: UWW / Martin Gabor)

Oborududu, unlike her younger compatriot Adekuoroye, wrestled at the World Championships in Oslo after the Olympics but lost early. But she began the 2022 season with a gold medal at the Ranking Series in Istanbul in February.

That victory included a win over world champion Meerim ZHUMANAZAROVA (KGZ) in the final. Oborududu had defeated her in the quarterfinal of the Tokyo Games as well.

Nigeria has entered nine wrestlers out of ten weight classes as it has missed the 62kg. It may prove tricky as its biggest challenger Tunisia has entries in all 10 weight categories.

It will be a close battle between the two nations for the title as Tokyo Olympians Sarra HAMDI (TUN), Siwar BOUSETA (TUN), Zaineb SGHAIER (TUN) and Rio bronze medalist Marwa AMRI (TUN) are leading the charge for their country. Also in the mix is young star Khadija JLASSI (TUN) at 65kg.

Adekouroye and Bouseta will clash head-on at 59kg and that may prove to be crucial in deciding which country finishes at the top.

Samar HAMZA (EGY)Samar HAMZA (EGY) will be the favorite to win the 76kg weight class. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

Usually, at continental championships, freestyle and Greco-Roman styles highlight the competition but that is not the case for African Championships.

Apart from Nigeria and Tunisia, Egypt will also be banking on making a good run at the tournament.

Its first-ever world medalist and defending champion Samar HAMZA (EGY) will be competing at 76kg and at her fifth continental championships. Ever since she began competing at the senior level in 2016, she is yet to lose a bout.

So when wrestling begins Saturday, all eyes will be on these stars who are chasing continental glory before the World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia in September.

Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA)Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA) will be making his senior African Championships debut. (Photo: UWW / Kadir Caliskan)

In freestyle and Greco-Roman, a few names stand out that fans need to follow.

Algeria is the favorite to defend their freestyle team title from 2020 and two-time African champion Abdelhak KHERBACHE (ALG) is jumping up to 61kg and will be looking for his third title and first at the new weight.

At 57kg, Tokyo Olympian Diamantino IUNA FAFE (GBS) will be eyeing his first African title after missing out on one in 2020 when he finished with a silver medal. His biggest challenge will be Salah KATEB (ALG) who is competing at the senior African Championships for the first time. He won the junior title in 2017.

Fateh BENFERDJALLAH (ALG) at 86kg will be a star attraction as the youngster chases his first gold at the tournament after missing out in 2020. The experience at the Tokyo Olympics will also be beneficial for him to negotiate the challenge of his opponents.

Junior world bronze medalist Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA) will be the favorite to win the 97kg weight class but Abderrahmane BENACHA (ALG) will be a big name to overcome.

U23 world silver medalist from 2018 Youssif HEMIDA (EGY), who trains in the USA, will be the favorite to win the three-man 125kg bracket.

With Tokyo bronze medalist Mohamed EL SAYED (EGY) giving the tournament a miss, Egypt wrestler will have a challenging road if it wants to win the team title. The race may come down to Algeria and Tunisia as these two nations are the only ones with 10 wrestlers entered.

The U17 and U20 African Championships will also be held in El Jadida. The U17 tournament begins Tuesday, U20 begins Thursday and the senior will begin Saturday with women's and Greco-Roman. Freestyle will close out the tournament on Sunday.

Live action and highlights from all the three competitions will be on uww.org.

#development

Indonesia learns tricks of the trade in refereeing, coaching and IT

Thursday, June 29, 2023 - 14:49 By United World Wrestling Press

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JAKARTA, Indonesia (June 29) -- The Indonesia Wrestling Federation recently hosted three comprehensive courses ahead of its national championships in Jakarta. From June 21 to 25, these courses took place at the Gedung Olahraga Universitas Negeri Jakarta.

Conducted in collaboration with United World Wrestling, Olympic Solidarity, Indonesia NOC, and the Indonesia Wrestling Federation, the courses covered different areas of expertise. Vincent AKA led the coaching course, Zach ERRETT conducted the referee course, and Youssef BOUAZIZ organized the IT course.

The Level 1 Course (Introduction to Coaching and Safety), a technical course for coaches, had a total of 42 participants, consisting of 35 men and seven women. Throughout the course, the coaches delved into various topics, including discovery games, introducing new techniques, coaching skills, providing feedback, risk management, and understanding age and developmental stage characteristics. The coaches actively practiced and honed their skills through practical evaluations, establishing a solid foundation for effective coaching methods that can be implemented in their respective provinces.

"The coaches and referees came together to work as a team," Aka said. "We tried to provide the skills that they need to be successful in their jobs and as a federation. Now, it needs to keep moving forward."

Hadi Rizky HANAFIAH, one of the participants, shared his newfound confidence as a coach.

“As a young coach, I feel more confident in managing my athletes and helping them to be the better wrestlers," the West Java coach said. "Hopefully UWW will be able to come to Indonesia so all Indonesian coaches can have valuable knowledge in the future."

IndonesiaParticipants during the Introduction to Referee course in Jakarta. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

The Introduction to Refereeing Course had 19 participants, including 15 men and four women. The course focused on the fundamental aspects of being a referee, covering athlete safety, hold evaluation, referee mechanics, positioning, and bout control. Zach ERRETT commended the referees for their hard work and improvement throughout the course.

“The course went very well," Errett said. "The referees worked hard and showed improvement by the final day. The group was eager to learn and very receptive to feedback. It was great to watch them apply their skills successfully during the competition," he said.

The IT Course, attended by 20 participants, provided insight into the workings of the UWW's IT system during international competitions and continental championships. The participants gained knowledge about BlockChain draw, streaming tools, and the dissemination of public information. They also had the opportunity to design an IT setup for a simulated competition.

"This was my second course as an IT Educator in Southeast Asia," Bouaziz said. "There are many young people around the world, especially in SEA, who want to learn and work in event management. The participants asked many questions about the details of the programs and their functionalities. I was delighted that there were 20 participants in the course and I hope that we can conduct more courses to prepare the next generation for wrestling's future technological advancements."

IndonesiaParticipants of the three courses implementing their skills during the U20 National Championships in Jakarta. (Photo: United World Wrestling)

Following the courses, the Indonesia Wrestling Federation organized the U20 national championships, attracting 157 participants who competed in 200 bouts. This competition provided coaches and referees with the opportunity to apply their newly acquired skills. The IT course participants took the lead in organizing the competition system.

“The IT course will help the Indonesia Federation IT Division," Ronny GUNAWAN, IT Chairman of IWF, said. "We were able to share and learn about the latest developments in IT. Sharing knowledge in Indonesia can be challenging because we live in various provinces spread across islands. Hopefully, we can have future courses with UWW to further enhance our capabilities."