125th Session of the IOC
Buenos Aires, Argentina
How Wrestling Got Here:
On February 12, 2013, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board recommended the 25 sports that would make up the “core sports” of the Olympic Games after 2016. Wrestling was not among those sports. Wrestling started an intense effort to save its position on the Olympic Programme and joined with seven other sports to have a chance to become an “additional sport” on the Olympic Programme for 2020 and 2024.
The eight sports campaigning were: Baseball-Softball, Karate, Roller Sports, Sport Climbing, Squash, Wakeboarding, Wrestling and Wushu.
On May 29 in St. Petersburg the IOC Executive Board met to vote for an unspecified number of sports to progress to the 125th Session of the IOC in Buenos Aires. Following presentations by all of the sports, it was decided that the sports advancing to Buenos Aires would be Wrestling, Baseball-Softball and Squash. All three sports were asked to present their case before the IOC Session on September 8.
Wrestling in the Olympics:
In addition to being one of the sports of the Ancient Olympiad in 708 B.C., wrestling was one of the main attractions for the first modern Olympics of 1896. Wrestling has remained a main event since, appearing in every Olympic Games since 1904.
Though often referred to as “Man’s Oldest Sport,” wrestling has made several significant adaptations over the decades. Greco-Roman was the original Olympic discipline, but wrestling added freestyle in 1904 in order to gain traction in developing countries. In 2004, in response to the sport’s growing popularity among women, FILA announced the addition of women’s freestyle. Wrestling now has 177 wrestling federations on six continents, and in 2012 a record-setting 71 countries qualified for the Olympic Games, with 29 countries earning medals.
The FILA President:
Mr. Nenad Lalovic of Serbia was elected as the seventh president of FILA on May 18, 2013 at a special Congress in Moscow. Lalovic, 55, had been serving as Acting President since February 16, 2013, when then-FILA President Raphael Martinetti resigned his post. Lalovic’s current term is set to expire September 2014, at which point he will be eligible to run for a six-year term as FILA President.
Lalovic joined the FILA Bureau in 2006 and was re-elected in 2012. He’s the former president of the Serbian Wrestling Federation and served on the Bureau of CELA, the European Wrestling Federation, and the Serbian Olympic Committee.
The Changes:
At its meeting in Phukett, Thailand, following the resignation of then-FILA President Raphael Martinetti the FILA Bureau named Nenad Lalovic as Acting President. The Serbian leader made immediate and lasting changes to the organization and the sport convening the entire membership of FILA to a three-day Extraordinary Congress May 18 in Moscow. The Congress acted to improve on three major areas of concern; rules of the sport, internal governance and gender equity.
The Extraordinary Congress was a success. New rules were created, presented, discussed and passed. An improved governance structure was announced. And in August FILA’s request to add two more weight classes for women, effective for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janiero, were approved by the IOC. The number of weight classes in Greco-Roman, Men’s Freestyle and Women’s Freestyle are now scheduled to stand at 6-6-6.
The FILA Presentation Panel:
President Nenad Lalovic of Serbia is the current President of FILA. He was confirmed to his position at FILA’s Extraordinary Congress May 18 after serving as Acting President since the IOC’s decision to remove wrestling from the Olympic Games in February. He has been with FILA’s Bureau since 2006.
Carol Huynh of Canada won the gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics at 48kg, and a bronze at the 2012 London Game. Her 2008 gold was Canada’s second-ever medal in women’s wrestling and its first-ever gold. Huynh was born in British Columbia to ethnic Chinese refugees from North Vietnam. Both of her sisters wrestled and she started the sport when she was 15. She will be inducted into the FILA Hall of Fame, September 20 in Budapest.
Lise Legrand of France is a Vice President of the French Wrestling Federation, an Athens 2004 bronze Medalist and 1996 World Championships bronze medalist.
Daniel Igali is a Nigerian-Canadian wrestler who won the 69kg gold medal for Canada in freestyle at the 2000 Olympic Games. Igali grew up in Nigeria with 20 siblings and gained refugee status in Canada in 1994. He was Canada’s first-ever gold medalist in wrestling and he is currently a member of Nigeria’s provincial parliament and is President of the Nigerian Wrestling Federation.
Jim Scherr represented the United States at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul and was the first Olympian to ever lead the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC), where he served from 2005 to 2009. Scherr was previously the Executive Director of USA Wrestling from 1990 to 2000. He is currently Chief Operating officer of the 2015 European Games.
The FILA presenters are the same five who presented in St. Petersburg, Russia, on May 29. Wrestling will be the third and final sport making a presentation on September 8.
The IOC Schedule for Vote on Inclusion of Additional Sport:
Sunday, September 8 (All times Buenos Aires)
9:00 President’s opening remarks
9:30 Report by the IOC Olympic Program Commission
10:15 Vote on the proposal for 25 Core Olympic Sports
Presentations of Candidate Sports
10:30 Baseball-Softball
11:00 Squash
11:30 Wrestling
12:00 Vote on possible additional sport for IOC program
12:45 Followed by announcement from IOC President Dr. Jacques Rogge
1:00 Press Conference for winning sport to follow announcement.
Approximate Time of IOC Sport Announcement
Sunday, September 8
Buenos Aires, 1 p.m. (13:00)
Denver, 10 a.m.
New York City, noon
Madrid, 6 p.m. (18:00)
Geneva, 6 p.m. (18:00)
Istanbul, 7 p.m. (19:00)
Moscow, 8 p.m. (20:00)
Tokyo, (1 a.m.)
IOC Sessions Telecast
Each day of the IOC sessions -- including the presentations by the cities, sports and presidential candidates -- will be available over a web telecast on the IOC site, www.olympic.org.
IOC Briefings
The IOC will hold a Press Briefings each day at 6:30 p.m. (18:30) to discuss the day’s activities.
FILA Media Availability, IOC Session
Friday, Sept. 6 Press Briefing, 11:30 a.m. local time, IOC Press Conference Room, Hilton
Sunday, Sept. 8 IOC Session with presentations (Broadcast Live, 9 a.m.)
Press Conference, Post IOC Announcement (Winning Sport), 1:00
*FILA Teleconference with Lalovic, 2:30 PM (14:30)
*Committee to Preserve Olympic Wrestling (CPOW), teleconference
3:00 p.m. (15:00, to follow FILA Teleconference)
*Additional Details to come
FILA Websites for News:
To learn more about FILA’s campaign to keep wrestling in the Olympic Games:
Website: http://www.fila-official.com/;
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/fila.official
Twitter: @FILA_Official
FILA Brochure:
We Are Wrestling, the FILA brochure created for wrestling’s presentation:
http://www.fila-official.com/images/FILA/documents/FILA_Final_online.pdf
FILA Media Contacts:
Bob Condron, FILA Press Officer
+1 719 332-7245
rscondron@yahoo.com or condron@fila-wrestling.com
Stratos Safioleas, FILA Media Consultant/Communciations
+30 693 290 51 16
gostratos@yahoo.com
IOC Contacts:
Mark Adams, Director of Communications
mark.adams@olympic.org
