UWW Academy

UWW Academy Launches Three New Programmes

Sunday, September 26, 2021 - 03:39 By Eric Olanowski

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (September 22) – United World Wrestling’s IT and Development Departments launched three new programmes on UWW Academy, the official educational learning platform for coaches, referees and athletes. 

The United World Wrestling Academy is an integrated online learning portal designed to provide information, tools and resources in order to support and enhance the knowledge and value of the discipline of wrestling. 

Periodization in Planning, Coaching Philosophy and Programme Development are the three programmes that launched in English on Wednesday morning.

“The IT and Development Departments of UWW are very excited to launch these additional programmes on the UWW Academy” said UWW’s Development Director, Deqa Niamkey. “The wrestling community worldwide has shown great interest for the platform, and therefore, we must continue to pursue these developments to further expand wrestling knowledge worldwide.”

‘Periodization in Planning’ looks at the basics of implementing periodization into training. It covers the benefits of periodization, different methods for periodization, and covers key points and questions regarding the implementation of this planning. 

‘Coaching Philosophy’ will help coaches develop their coaching philosophy.  It is an interactive course where coaches will learn and answer questions regarding their philosophy.  The coaches will learn about three areas: self-awareness, their purpose, and the different types of leaders.  Then, they will use their answers to draft their coaching philosophy statement. 

‘The Programme Development' course focuses on the key concepts on how a coach would develop their program or team. The course begins by helping them develop a plan and set goals.  It then extensively covers how to develop and implement a training plan.  The course also helps coaches develop a vision statement, budget and financial strategies, use social media for promotion, and create a risk management plan. 

Outside of the newly-released Periodization in Planning, Coaching Philosophy and Programme Development programmes, other helpful UWW Academy resources and courses included: 

 Courses:
- Ready to Wrestle
- UWW Online Rules Test 
- Introduction to Coaching and Safety   
- Introduction to Practice Planning  
- Introduction to Refereeing 

Resources: 
- Wrestle4Fun
- United World Wrestling Coaching Pathway
- United World Wrestling Referee Pathway 
- Anti-doping and WADA Programs 
- IOC Programs 
- E-Journals and Performance Analysis for UWW Competitions 

For more details on the educational courses and resources that the UWW Academy has to offer, please visit www.uwwacademy.org.

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Cuba’s Trujillo Diaz honored with IOC Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award

Tuesday, November 25, 2025 - 09:29 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (November 24) — Wrestling coach Raul TRUJILLO DIAZ (CUB) received the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award on Monday during a ceremony at the Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The award was presented by IOC President Kirsty COVENTRY and Sergii BUBKA, Chair of the IOC Athletes’ Entourage Commission.

Trujillo Díaz has been one of the key figures in the inexorable rise of Cuba as one of the leading nations in Greco-Roman, with more than 52 years of coaching experience. He coached the Cuban and Portuguese national teams across five editions of the Olympic Games.

Cuba

“I am very honoured to receive this extraordinary recognition, Trujillo Diaz said. “I would like to thank the IOC, all the athletes I have coached over the past 50 years, the other wrestling coaches and people who worked tirelessly behind the scenes in the sport to which I have dedicated my life. All were my motivation and example. I also want to take the opportunity to thank United World Wrestling (UWW). And a big thank-you to someone very special who has always been with me – my family – for their great support.”

One of the legends he has trained is five-time Olympic champion Mijain LOPEZ (CUB), who at Paris 2024 became the first athlete in any sport to win five consecutive Olympic gold medals in the same event. Others who have been trained by Trujillo Diaz are Rio 2016 champion Ismael BORRERO (CUB) and Luis ORTA (CUB), the 60kg champion at Tokyo 2020.

As well as introducing training innovations that have helped lead his nation to success, Trujillo Díaz has published numerous research papers and articles on wrestling science and pedagogy. He has also worked widely for UWW across Latin America as an educator, bringing the breadth of his knowledge and experience to new generations of athletes and coaches.

Alongwith Truillo Diaz, volleyball coach Lang PING also received the IOC Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award.

"It's really special to be here with all of you and to celebrate our two coaches for their incredible commitment and their lifetime of work in serving their athletes to become the best athlete, but also the best humans that they can be," said IOC President Kirsty Coventry during the ceremony. "So many of us who compete in sport know and understand that the lessons that we learn in sport will guide us in our everyday life after and this is where the role of coaches is so important,” she added.