#WrestleBirmingham

Commonwealth Games prove pivotal for women referees

By United World Wrestling Press

BIRMINGHAM, England (August 11) -- Under the leadership of Edit Dosza and Antonio Silvestri, wrestling at the 2022 Commonwealth Games broke barriers and continued to push United World Wrestling's objective to achieve gender equality. 

The two-day competition at the Games was an important stage in UWW's continued development of women officials. It was a pivotal moment in herstory, as it was the first time female referees were the majority at a wrestling competition.

Of the 21 officials in attendance, 16 female referees participated in Birmingham, seven of which have the highest category (IS). At the same time, nine were participants from the first women‘s course which was held in in Antalya earlier this year.

The Commonwealth Games were a great success for female referees and an excellent experience for everyone involved. The matches went smoothly, giving a lot of hope for the future of female referees. The Games have undoubtedly inspired future girls and women to find their path in wrestling as an official.

The next step for the female referees of the women‘s developmental program is the World Championships. Next year, the work will continue, and the schedule will be published soon.

Jamalov undergoes shoulder surgery, faces six-month recovery timeline

By Eric Olanowski

MUNICH, Germany (December 11) — Razambek JAMALOV (UZB) underwent surgery on his right shoulder yesterday in Munich, Germany, and will miss the first half of the 2025 season.

Jamalov, the 26-year-old native Russian who garnered Uzbekistan citizenship before the 2024 season, ran through a gauntlet of four former Russians -- Magomedkhabib KADIMAGOMEDOV (AIN), Tajmuraz SALKAZANOV (SVK), Chermen VALIEV (ALB) and Viktor RASSADIN (TJK) -- before pinning Daichi TAKATANI (JPN) in the 74kg Paris 2024 finals, becoming Uzbekistan's first freestyle Olympic champion since Athens 2004.

Jamalov is in good spirits after the operation and is healing well in Munich. "[My shoulder] doesn't feel too bad, but I'm mentally exhausted from the surgery," said Jamalov. "The support of my family is giving me strength."

He reinjured his shoulder before the Olympics but adapted his style to put less stress on that shoulder.

"I [reinjured] my right shoulder before the Olympics, which was already unstable that it would dislocate. But I tried to put less strain on that shoulder during competitions," he said.

Looking at the 2025 calendar, and with this being Jamalov's second surgery on the same shoulder since May 2023, he expects to be out until at least June.

"Yes, this is my second surgery on this shoulder so the rehabilitation will take 5-6 months," he said. "I do think about returning to sports and want to come back, but for now, I'm not sure which competitions I'll be able to participate in." 

With the six-month timetable that Jamalov provided, he's expected to miss the Asian Championships, Zagreb Open, Muhamet Malo, and Mongolian Ranking Series events. However, he has the potential to come back for the Hungarian Ranking Series event in July.

If not in Budapest, we could see Jamalov back for the Senior World Championships on September 13-21 in Zagreb, Croatia, nine months post-op.

While we won't have the chance to see Zhamalov on the mat for a while, here are nearly ten minutes of his highlights.