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Julfalakyan re-elected as UWW Athletes' Commission President

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (October 1) -- Arsen JULFALAKYAN has been re-elected President of the United World Wrestling Athletes’ Commission, securing a second term from 2025 to 2029.

The London Olympic silver medalist, who first took office in 2021, was the sole candidate for the position following the Athletes’ Commission elections held during the World Championships in Zagreb.

As President of the Commission, Julfalakyan will serve as the voice of wrestlers and represent their interests at the UWW Bureau and Congress. He will also represent athletes at the IOC Athletes’ Forum, WADA, and other international organizations.

"I am grateful to the entire wrestling community for trusting me with the privilege of representing them in the UWW Bureau and on the world stage," Julfalakyan said. "I’ll do my best to carry out this mission with dignity and ensure your voice is heard worldwide.

“Special thanks to UWW President Nenad Lalovic, Bureau members, and all national federations for their support. I would also like to take this opportunity to strongly encourage wrestlers to stay actively engaged with the UWW Athletes’ Commission.”

The elections for the Athletes' Commission were held during the World Championships in Zagreb from September 12 to 20 in which nine members, including four women, were elected. These nine members are:

Arsen JULFALAKYAN (ARG)
Yui SUSAKI (JPN)
Tamas LORINCZ (HUN)
Aisuluu TYNYBEKOVA (KGZ)
Hassan YAZDANI (IRI)
Maria PREVOLARAKI (GRE)
Abdellatif MOHAMED (EGY)
Jessica LAVERS-McBAIN (AUS)
Nicolaas DE LANGE (RSA)

Following the election, UWW called for candidates for the presidency. As the sole applicant, Julfalakyan was elected unopposed and will continue as President of the Athletes’ Commission. UWW congratulates Julfalakyan on his re-election.

For any queries regarding the election or the functioning of the Athletes Commission, please contact UWW Secretariat.

#UnitedWorldWrestling

UWW issues statement on Wrestling Federation of India

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 30, 2023) -- For several months, United World Wrestling has followed with great concern the situation in India where wrestlers are protesting over allegations of abuse and harassment by the President of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). It has taken due note that the WFI President has been put aside at an early stage and is currently not in charge.

The events of these last days are even more worrying that the wrestlers were arrested and temporarily detained by the police for initiating a march of protest. The site where they had been protesting for more than a month has also been cleared out by the authorities.

UWW firmly condemns the treatment and detention of the wrestlers. It expresses its disappointment over the lack of results of the investigations so far. UWW urges the relevant authorities to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into the allegations.

As it has already done since the beginning of this situation, UWW will hold a meeting with the wrestlers to inquire about their condition and safety and reconfirm our support for a fair and just resolution of their concerns.

Finally, UWW will request further information about the next elective general assembly from the IOA and the Ad-hoc Committee of the WFI. The 45-day deadline that was initially set to hold this elective assembly shall be respected. Failing to do so may lead UWW to suspend the federation, thereby forcing the athletes to compete under a neutral flag. It is reminded that UWW already took a measure in this situation by reallocating the Asian Championship planned in New Delhi earlier this year.