#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.

#UnitedWorldWrestling

UWW Appeal Committee concludes investigation into Olympic qualification match

By United World Wrestling Press

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 29) -- The United World Wrestling (UWW) Appeal Committee has reached a decision regarding the appeals filed against the UWW Disciplinary Chamber's ruling dated April 23, 2024, concerning the officiating of Match 266 (ITA vs AZE) at the European OG Qualifier in Baku, Azerbaijan.

After carefully considering the statements from the refereeing officials involved (Alexei Bazulin, Roman Pavlov, Ibrahim Cicioglu, Kamel Bouaziz, and Casey Goessl), the reports of the two review panels, and the opinions of impartial refereeing experts, the Appeal Committee concluded that there was no indication of bias in the officiating of the match. The issues identified were determined to be related to refereeing errors and technical aspects of officiating.

To ensure a fair and proportionate outcome, the Appeal Committee has referred the case back to the UWW Disciplinary Chamber for reconsideration. The Disciplinary Chamber has been instructed to reassess the appropriate sanctions, if any, based solely on the refereeing errors and technical officiating issues in accordance with the relevant UWW rules and regulations.

Considering the above, the Disciplinary Chamber revisited the case and issued the following decision:

Considering the above, in particular, that the appeal panel found that “there is no indication of bias amounting to a breach of the fundamental principles of integrity and fair play in the officiating of Match 266” and that “since this case is about the refereeing errors and questionable decisions of a technical nature”, pursuant to the UWW Regulations and rules the Disciplinary Chamber renders the following revised sanction:

  1. The suspension against the refereeing delegates (Mr. Bouaziz, Mr. Cicioglu, Mr. Goessl) is reduced until 31 May 2024; notwithstanding the foregoing, the refereeing delegates are reinstated in the selection for the Olympic Games and may be considered, subject to the final selection by the Refereeing Commission and the UWW Bureau, to officiate only as mat chairmen during the Games.
  2. The suspension against Mr. Bazulin is reduced until 31 May 2024; notwithstanding the foregoing, Mr. Bazulin is reinstated in the selection for the Olympic Games and may be considered, subject to the final selection by the Refereeing Commission and the UWW Bureau, to officiate as referee during the Games.
  3. The suspension against Mr. Pavlov is reduced to the same period as the judge’s, i.e. until 30 September 2024.

The UWW remains committed to upholding the integrity of the sport and ensuring that all competitions are conducted fairly and in accordance with the rules and regulations.