#UnitedWorldWrestling

Lalovic attends 100th anniversary of Bulgarian Olympic Committee

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 20) -- United World Wrestling President and International Olympic Committee Executive Board Member Nenad LALOVIC visited Sofia on May 17-18 on the occasion of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee.

Lalovic met IOC President Thomas BACH during the celebration which also saw the presence of European Olympic Committee President Spyros CAPRALOS and EOC Secretary General Raffaele PANGNOZZI.

Nenad LALOVICNenad LALOVIC, right, with IOC President Thomas BACH in Sofia.

"I want to congratulate the Bulgarian Olympic Committee on its 100th anniversary," Lalovic said. "Bulgaria has a rich tradition in the Olympic program. Tonight was a night to celebrate the success of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee, the Bulgarian Wrestling Federation and the 71 wrestlers who brought their nation pride by winning a medal at the Olympic Games.

"In 1956, Nikola STANTCHEV (BUL) became Bulgaria’s first-ever Olympic medalist with his gold at the Melbourne Olympic Games. Since that gold 67 years ago, and with the belief of the BOK, Bulgarian athletes have become a staple on the Olympic podium, winning 70 medals.

"Bulgaria should continue to express the highest confidence in their Olympic Committee and be proud of their Olympians and national heroes."

During his stay in Sofia, Lalovic had an official meeting with the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, Rumen RADEV and attended the official ceremony to commemorate the NOC Centenary.

Nenad LALOVICNenad LALOVIC was presented the Commemorative medal of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee.

During the ceremony, he was presented with The Commemorative medal of the Bulgarian Olympic Committee by the NOC President Stefka KOSTADINOVA.

Lalovic, who is Doctor Honoris Causa of the National Sports Academy, Sofia visited the newly created Olympic Educational and Study Center at the academy and was awarded the Honorary Badge with Ribbon by the Rector of the Academy.

The UWW President attended the Opening of a Commemorative Photo Exhibition and the Ceremony of validation of a postage stamp to mark the celebration.

#development

Croatia Takes the Next Step in Coaching education

By United World Wrestling Press

POREC, Croatia (28 May) – The Croatian Wrestling Federation organized a weeklong coaching course in Porec to help develop their newer coaches. This was their second course in as many years, and they built off the foundations established a year earlier in the Level 1 course. The Level 2 Course (Introduction to Practice Planning) was conducted on May 8-12 in the beautiful city of Porec and was done in conjunction with Olympic Solidarity and United World Wrestling.

The course was led by UWW Educator Mr. Martin HAUCK (USA). During the course, the 28 participants learned the basics of designing a practice plan and how the practice plan fits within a series of plans. The coaches also gained knowledge on performance analysis, nutrition and weight management, mental development of wrestlers and safeguarding. “I am extremely satisfied with the seminar and the lecturer; I gained new knowledge and experience,” said Dinko Kremic. “During the seminar, you could feel that the educator cared for us and wanted us to do well. Mr. Hauck’s knowledge and how he passed it on to use was amazing,” said Petar Gluhak.

The Croatian Wrestling Federation also hosted a competition during the course. This allowed the coaches to practice learned skills and get direct feedback to improve. They also had a small session on cornering (coaching during the break) during that session. “The course and competition went very well. Participants were very engaged and active in both the theoretical and practical portions of the course. Their questions and ideas were in line with the topic that was being discussed and worked on to further their understanding in that content area.” said Mr. Hauck. 

Comments from Coach Participants:
“The course was very encouraging and innovative. Cooperation with all trainers and exchange of experiences helps in quick learning.”  - Filip Verčević

“This course was very useful because it allowed me to learn a lot of new things about the training and provided me practice exercises for those subjects, and it was a very good experience.”  - Luka Sunara

“The course itself was awesome. We had to learn from Marty Hauck, the most interesting and enthusiastic coach and mentor to learn from!” Ivica Florjanić