United World Wrestling facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
United World Wrestling

Abbreviation	UWW
Formation	1912; 112 years ago (1912)
Type	Sports federation
Headquarters	Corsier-sur-Vevey, outside of Lausanne, Switzerland
Membership	Representatives from 176 national federations
President	Nenad Lalović
Revenue (2017)	US$5.12 million
Expenses (2017)	US$8.89 million
Website	UWW.org

United World Wrestling (UWW) is the international governing body for the sport of amateur wrestling; its duties include overseeing wrestling at the World Championships and Olympics. It presides over international competitions for various forms of wrestling, including Greco-Roman, Freestyle, Grappling, and others. The flagship event of UWW is the World Wrestling Championships.

The UWW was formerly known as FILA prior to assuming its current name in September 2014.

Disciplines

As of 2016, UWW sets rules and regulations and holds international competitions in the following wrestling styles:

Olympic styles

• Greco-Roman wrestling
• Freestyle wrestling (Men's & Women's)

Associated styles

• Grappling (Gi and no-Gi)
• Beach wrestling (recognized by the FILA Congress in 2004)
• Amateur pankration (recognized by the FILA Congress in 2010)
• Traditional wrestling
  • Senegalese wrestling
  • Alysh belt wrestling (recognized by the FILA Congress in 2008)
  • Kurash belt wrestling
  • Pahlavani wrestling

Adaptations to the international regulations set by UWW are usually made by each national federation for all national and regional competitions.

Events

Wrestling Championships held:

Presidents

• Einar Råberg (1921–1924)
• Alfréd Brüll (1924–1930)
• Viktor Smeds (1930–1952)
• Roger Coulon (1952–1971)
• Milan Ercegan (1971–2002)
• Raphaël Martinetti (2002–2013)
• Nenad Lalović (2013–present)

Events, activities, and honors

Former FILA logo.

UWW is the body responsible for supervising Olympic wrestling, and so competitions for freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling take place every Summer Olympiad.

Besides the Summer Olympics, there are also various international competition such as the Commonwealth Games, the Pan-American Games, etc. that have wrestling as an official sport. Also, the Continental Championships and Continental Cups usually take place annual and are regulated by each Continental Committee. Then, there are World Championships that usually take place among the various nations every year (for the senior age category, every year except the year the Summer Olympics are held), and many international tournaments that take place between countries and among wrestlers of the same country (such as the United States Nationals in freestyle and Greco-Roman).

These tournaments encompass a wide variety of age categories and also both genders, but can also take place separately for each gender or for each age category (schoolboys or schoolgirls, cadets, juniors, and seniors).

UWW also sponsors training for athletes in the various wrestling styles at training centers, currently located in Finland, France, Italy, Japan, Spain, Turkey, and the United States. The International Wrestling Hall of Fame, located in Stillwater, Oklahoma awards individuals with honors in Greco-Roman wrestling, freestyle wrestling, women's wrestling, and officiating.

Organization and governance

UWW, Corsier-sur-Vevey.

UWW is now based in Corsier-sur-Vevey, outside of Lausanne, Switzerland. The official languages are English and French. UWW is governed by a congress made up of representatives from each of the 176 national wrestling federations (the nation's governing body for wrestling). National federations that at least govern the two Olympic wrestling styles are admitted as affiliate members. Those national federations that exclusively govern traditional wrestling and other styles can be admitted as associated members. Up to three representatives from each federation may attend the conference, and only one may vote. The congress meets at least every two years, usually during the Olympic Games or during the World Championships that meet between Olympic Games. The UWW Congress in turn elects members of the UWW Bureau and the UWW President.

The bureau serves as the directing and administrating body of UWW. The UWW Bureau is composed of the president, four vice presidents, the Secretary General, 12 other elected members (with two seats reserved for women), the presidents of the five Continental Committees, and an Honorary President who advises but has no vote (currently, Milan Ercegan). Honorary members are also in turn elected to the bureau but do not vote. The President, the Vice presidents, and the Secretary General make up the Executive Committee. Each of the members represents himself or herself personally and has an individual vote in the Congress. No two members represent the same nationality (exceptions may be made for the president, the two female members, the Continental Committee presidents, and the Honorary President).

The UWW President manages the day-to-day affairs of the organization. The president represents UWW at international meetings, before the International Olympic Committee, and before the general public. The current interim President of UWW is Nenad Lalovic from Serbia who has served in that role since 2013. Bureau members and the President serve for six-year terms and can be reelected. Usually one third of the Bureau members are up for reelection every two years.

A Secretary General is chosen by the bureau for six years and is the secondary director of UWW behind the President, serves as secretary of both the Bureau and the Congress, and maintains healthy communication between the national federations, the Continental Committees, the Commissions, and all the departments of UWW. The current Secretary General is Michel Dusson from France.

There are also auxiliary bodies of UWW. One group of auxiliary bodies is the Continental Committee, made up of each of the national federations on each continent (currently Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe, and Oceania). The Continental Committees are directed by an executive bureau composed of a president, vice president, and three other members who all serve for a term of four years. Continental Committees meet at least every two years in the year following the Summer Olympics, in which there is usually the Continental Championship.

Other auxiliary bodies include commissions, which are made of a president, vice president, secretary, and four other members who all serve for four years. Commissions include those dealing with Technical issues; Officiating; Medical Safety and Anti Doping; Promotion; and for Athletes. The members of the commissions are nominated and financially supported by the national federations that they originate from and are generally specialists in the field that the commission supervises.

Hall of Fame

The UWW International Wrestling Hall of Fame is located in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum. It contains a Hall of Honors and the Hall of Fame.

See also

In Spanish: United World Wrestling para niños

• Wrestling World Cup
• World Wrestling Championships
• World Wrestling Clubs Cup
• World Beach Wrestling Championships
• List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (freestyle)
• List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (Greco-Roman)
• List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (women)
• List of World and Olympic Champions in Greco-Roman wrestling
• List of World and Olympic Champions in men's freestyle wrestling