FILA President Lalovic to Run Unopposed for Six-Year Term

By Tim Foley

CORSIER-SUR-VEVEY, SWITZERLAND - FILA President Nenad Lalovic, who stepped to the forefront of Wrestling’s battle to stay in the Olympics last year, is the sole candidate for a six-year term to lead the federation through the next two Olympic Games.

In a recent FILA Bureau meeting in Dubrovnik, it was determined that Lalovic, from Serbia, will run unopposed on September 7 during the FILA Congress at the World Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. 

Lalovic became Acting President in February 2013, after the IOC’s Executive Committee omitted Wrestling from the Olympic Programme. He was elected President at an Extraordinary Congress in May in St. Petersburg, Russia, to serve the rest of the term of Raphael Martinetti who resigned his presidency after the IOC decision. 

In addition to the presidency, the Congress will vote on seven FILA Bureau seats. Six members will be vying for six-year terms and one will be to fill the remaining two-year term of Dr. Matteo Pellicone of Italy, who passed away earlier this year. 

The FILA constitution states that women must fill three of the seats on the 23-member Bureau. Since two are already serving, one woman will be named to the group that leads the federation in September.

Current female members are Rodica Yaksi, of Turkey, and Natalia Yariguina, of Russia.

A new draft of the Constitution will also be presented to the 177 national wrestling federation members at the Congress. 

The Bureau also approved the 2013 balance sheet and the 2014 budget as well as finalizing the 2015 competition schedule, which will be announced in the coming months. 

Revisions to the January version of the wrestling rules were also approved. Most were clarifications of existing rules, as well as details concerning the administration of the competitions. The new wrestling rules with the included revisions will be distributed shortly to all NFs and published on the FILA website.

A final list of nominees for the 2014 Hall of Fame were approved and the inductees will be announced in the coming weeks.  The Hall of Fame Ceremony will take place at the Congress in Tashkent.