#UWWLIVE

UWW LIVE: Helen Maroulis (USA), Rio Olympic Champion

Tuesday, November 24, 2020 - 16:35 By United World Wrestling Press

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In 2016, Helen MAROULIS (USA) became the first American woman to claim an Olympic gold medal in wrestling by defeating three-time Olympic champion Saori YOSHIDA (JPN) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Maroulis has also won two world titles along with world silver and bronze medals. She returned to competition in 2020 and now has her sights set on the Tokyo Olympics.

Maroulis joined Eric Olanowski to talk about her history-making Olympic gold medal run in Rio and her quest at becoming the third woman to claim two Olympic gold medals. She also gave her thoughts on America's chances at dethroning the Japanese women at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
 

2026 World Championships

Astana Announced as Replacement Host for 2026 World Championships

Friday, May 22, 2026 - 13:06 By United World Wrestling Press

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CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, Switzerland (May 22) -- Astana, Kazakhstan will host the 2026 World Championships from October 24 to November 1.

United World Wrestling Bureau met on Friday and after careful consideration of the current geopolitical situation, particularly the ongoing uncertainty and impact on international travel, it decided to change the host for the 2026 World Championships.

Manama, Bahrain was scheduled to host the World Championships as it was awarded the tournament in Zagreb last year. UWW and Bahrain released a joint statement on Friday, announcing the postponement of the same.

After successful site visits and inspections, the Kazakhstan Wrestling Federation was chosen as a replacement host and Barys Arena was selected as the venue.

World Championships 2026

The announcement marks the return of the World Championships to Astana, a city which successfully hosted the 2019 World Championships. Close to 1000 wrestlers participated in 2019 edition, making it one of the most attended tournaments.

As seen in 2019, full attendance is expected at the the Barys Arena for the nine-day event.

UWW remains committed to assisting National Federations and the schedule for the 2026 World Championships in Astana will be communicated soon. For details of events, visit uww.org/events.