Webinar

Webinar: Terry Steiner – Training Plan Development Webinar

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (June 1) -- Terry Steiner, USA Wrestling's Head National Coach Women’s Freestyle coach, joined Zach Errett, UWW's Education Manager, to discuss training plan development and periodization.  

Click the link below to download the Coach Steiner's Powerpoint presentation.

UWW Periodization Plan Presentation - Coach Steiner - USA WFS

Breakdown of the Webinar
0:01:58 – Introduction
0:06:40 – Start of his presentation
0:06:51 – Why do you need a plan?
0:08:04 – Why do we need a plan? Athlete perspective
0:10:04 – Important to have Openness and Transparency in Planning
0:10:35 – Biggest Job as National Team Coach
0:12:08 – Challenging the plan is a good thing
0:13:24 – Challenging and rewarding journey
0:14:16 – Job is helping the athletes see the value in the plan – showing the vision and including them in the process
0:14:57 – How do you start making the plan? (Things to start with)
0:16:15 – Story on Helen Maroulis
0:18:16 – How do we learn and develop the qualities? 
0:20:00 – What are you going to get the most return on your investment?
0:20:53 – Basis of his 4-year plan
0:21:09 – Year 1 – Filling the Backpack
0:22:34 – Year 2 – Process Oriented
0:23:54 – Year 3 – Starting to Focus on Results
0:25:59 – Year 4 – Performing 
0:27:00 – Overview of 4-year plan – Competitions and Camps
0:27:49 – Developing a Yearly Plan – Basic Process and Thoughts
0:29:52 – Science and Art in Planning
0:30:39 – Phases of the yearly plan
0:30:44 – Phase – Break time – Getting away
0:31:24 – Transition – time after the break
0:31:39 – Preparation – team focus
0:32:04 – Competition – more individual focus
0:32:34 – Peaking – rest and recovery
0:33:47 – Yearly Plan – Spreadsheet
0:36:02 – Challenge – quantifying volume and intensity
0:37:01 – Managing intensity and volume for peaking
0:38:19 – Developing a Competition Plan – last 45 days
0:38:50 – Struggle area as a young coach
0:39:21 – Story on Adeline Gray – Including in the planning process
0:41:59 – What he learned from working with Adeline Gray
0:42:49 – Managing intensity and volume during the Competition Plan
0:43:46 – Post Competition Reflection
0:44:26 – Reflection – Athlete Perspective
0:44:49 – Reflection – Coach Perspective
0:45:22 – Reflection – Data Analysis
0:46:49 – Important Data – Points by minute in a match
0:47:37 – As a coach, we need to realize it is their career
0:48:42 – Start of Q & A
0:48:52 – Can you inform the group about training load during competition phase?
0:51:22 – Is there any effects on a women’s monthly menstruation cycle?
0:53:41 – What type of information are you trying to get or asking for input when developing their training plans?
0:57:35 – How do manage to monitor athletes when they are not conducting training camps and do you perform any technical test under
these conditions?

0:59:41 – What are the strategies for nutrition planning on competition days?
1:02:53 – How do you work the emotions during training and competitions?
1:06:05 – Do you arrange any fitness testing before camps and competitions?
1:07:14 – How do you measure the intensity during a macrocycle (example during pre-competition/competition phases)?

#UWWAwards

UWW Most Dominant Wrestlers 2025: Amouzad, Motoki, Esmaeili

By Eric Olanowski

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (December 24) -- There were several dominant performances in 2025 on the wrestling mat. But it was three wrestlers who remained at the top of their weight classes and racked up dominant wins one after another. Two were Olympic champions while one was an Olympic silver medalist. All three became world champions in Zagreb.

Freestyle Most Dominant Wrester: Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI)

- 14–0
- Rank 1 at 65kg 
- 58,000 RS points 
- Outscored world and Olympic medalists 42–4
- World Championships, Tirana RS and ISG golds

Rahman AMOUZAD (IRI) was about as perfect as you could be in a season, returning to prominence with title-winning efforts at the World Championships, Islamic Solidarity Games and Muhamet Malo Ranking Series event and finishing the season as the No.1 ranked wrestler in the world at 65kg with 58,000 Ranking Series points.

The Paris silver medalist, collected an unblemished 14-0 record in 2025 -- with five of those wins coming against top-level opponents who have world or Olympic medals on their resumes in Olympic champion Kotaro KIYOOKA (JPN), Umidjon JALALOV (UZB), Taiyrbek ZHUMASHBEK UULU (KGZ) and Real WOODS (USA). The craziest part about those five matches against the world’s best, Amouzad outscored 42-4.

But without a doubt, the highlight of Amouzad’s season came in Zagreb when he finally got his long awaited rematch, beating Kotaro KIYOOKA in a revenge match from the Paris 2024 Olympic finals.

The scariest part about Amouzad’s dominance -- he’s only 23 years old and he’s still getting better.

Women's Wrestling Dominant Wrestler: Sakura MOTOKI (JPN)

- 9-0
- Five pins, two technical superiorities
- 45,000 RS points 
- 8/9 bouts finished before regulation
- Completed Golden Grand Slam (U17, U20, U23, Senior World and Olympic gold)

Coming into the 2025 season, Motoki made her goals crystal clear -- become the third wrestler in history of the sport to win wrestling’s Golden Grand Slam -- and for those who don’t know, that is gold medals at the U17, U20, U23, Senior World Championships and the Olympic Games.

The only two missing from the Olympic champ's resume were the U23 and Senior World golds.

At the 2025 U23 and senior World Championships, Motoki showed that she’s in a league of her own, as she went 9-0, with eight  matches finishing before time expired. She scored five falls and two technical superiority wins.

Her win in the final of the World Championships will be one that will be talked about for ages as the most dramatic win of the season. Motoki scored a buzzer-beating takedown against Ok Ju KIM (PRK) with a 10-second flurry that consisted of a head outside single, arm throw, over-under knee pick, before head locking Kim with four tenths of a second left to keep her history making hopes alive.

In the end, Motoki’s heart and courage under fire helped her close out the year as the third wrestler to complete the Golden Grand Slam and she did it with a level of dominance we may not see again for a very long time.

Greco-Roman Dominant Wrestler: Saeid ESMAEILI (IRI)

- Rank 1 at 67kg 
- 58,000 RS points  
- 11–0 Record
- World Championships, Asian Championships and  ISG golds

In a 2025 campaign that saw him become a world champion, Esmaeili's season was immaculate, as he cemented his place among the sport’s top pound-for-pound wrestler with a season full of titles, stacking gold-medals at the World Championships, Asian Championships and Islamic Solidarity Games, rounding out the season ranked No. 1 in the world at 67kg.

The Paris Olympic champion remained unbeaten in 2025, winning all 11 bouts of his bouts in dominant fashion -- scoring eight shutout wins, with seven technical falls -- including a pair of 9-0 win against world champions Aytjan KHALMAKHANOV (UZB) and Sebastian NAD (SRB). The reigning Olympic gold medalist also collected two victories over Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medalist Hasrat JAFAROV (AZE), one in the world final and one in the Islamic Game gold-medal match, where he tossed his Azeri opponent for four as time expired to rob his rival of the title.

His opponents should not ease up because at just 22 years old, Esmaeili is still sharpening his tool set and leveling up his skills.