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Sri Lankan Wrestling Federation Hosts National Referee Course

Tuesday, October 25, 2022 - 15:20 By United World Wrestling Press

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (October 25) – The Sri Lankan Wrestling Federation and Sri Lanka NOC organized an Introduction to Referee Course around their U20 National Championships. The course was held from 15-17 October and the competition was on 16 October.  Sri Lankan Wrestling Federation took an active part to make the course successful. Mr. Sarath Hewavithrana, president of Sri Lankan Wrestling Federation was present himself throughout the course.  Mr. Gopinath and Mr, Dinesh, both from Sri Lanka NOC, were also present during course.

The Introduction to Refereeing course was conducted by Mr. Ashok Kumar – UWW Educator, IS and Olympic Referee.  This course had 16 participants (14 men and 2 women).  Each day they had a theoretical session from 09h00 to 13h00 and a practical session form 14h30 to 18h00.  The referee participants focused on skills that would provide a solid foundation as a referee.  The areas they focused on were evaluation of holds, starting and ending matches, referee mechanics, positioning, safety of the athletes, and controlling the bout. During the course, they were asked to referee simulated matches before and after the competition.  All of the candidates took part in the U20 National Competition. These activities allowed the referees to apply the skills that they learned directly from the course. “The candidates were very enthusiast to under this course. All participants were happy to learn the course information.” said Mr. Kumar.

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UWW Organizes International Training Camp Before African Championships

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 - 09:38 By United World Wrestling Press

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ALEXANDRIA, Egypt (May 11) -- United World Wrestling hosted a international training camp before the 2026 African Championships in Alexandria from April 20 to 26.

The camp, organized with a focus on performance, technical exchange, and sporting cooperation, brought together coaches and wrestlers from across the continent with participants from Burundi, the Central African Republic, Cape Verde, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tunisia, Guinea, Namibia, Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, and Zambia.

One of the major highlights of this edition was the historic participation of Zambia, which took part for the first time in a continental wrestling activity. The participation symbolizes the steady expansion of African wrestling into new nations and confirms the growing development of the sport across the continent. The Zambian delegation included wrestler Martin JERE (ZAM) and Stephen FULANGANI (ZAM), accompanied by their coach Eugine CHIPOKOLO.

Alexandria

Throughout the week, wrestlers took part in specialized sessions combining standing and ground techniques, upper and lower-level attacks, targeted defense drills, technical combinations, aerobic preparation, acrobatic exercises, and individual training. Coaches would also use this gathering as an opportunity to exchange training methods and share their expertise within a high-level international environment.

The camp will bring together several experienced athletes and international competitors in Freestyle, Women’s Wrestling, and Greco-Roman. Among the participating nations were also several Sub-Saharan African countries that continue to strengthen their presence on the continental stage through increasingly strong participation.

Beyond the sporting aspect, the program also included awareness sessions focused on environmental protection in sport through the “Wrestle Green” initiative, as well as workshops dedicated to anti-doping education and athlete protection.

Alexandria

Participants also received dedicated camp equipment, including sportswear, “Wrestle Green” materials, and training accessories intended for daily practice sessions.