In Istanbul a meeting of the Presidium of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation was held

18.09.2021

On the eve of major international competitions a traditional meeting of colleagues on the development of mas-wrestling takes place.

So, today after the work of the egistration and admission commission, the weighing procedure and the drawing of lots for the participants of the first day of the competitions of the stage of the Mas-Wrestling World Cup, a working meeting of the Presidium of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation was held, which was chaired by President Alexander Akimov.

In his welcoming speech he thanked, first of all, the President of the World Ethnosport Confederation, Nejmeddin Bilal Erdogan, for the invitation to host the international competitions in Istanbul, as well as all the participants who had arrived.

"On behalf of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation and on my own behalf, I express my gratitude to athletes from different countries for finding the opportunity to come to Istanbul at this difficult time! Despite the pandemic, you have carried out work in your countries to promote and develop mas-wrestling. Thank you all for your enviable persistence, worthy of a real mas-wrestler! " - said Alexander Akimov to the representatives of the national mas-wrestling federations invited to the meeting of the Presidium members.

IMWF General Secretary Arnold Mokhov briefly reviewed the events held this year.

In January, a training workshop on mas-wrestling was held in Los Angeles, California, USA. The seminar was held in the gym of the Vice-President of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation, President of the US Mas-Wrestling Federation Odd Haugen and included training courses on refereeing and mas-wrestling techniques.

In March, the International Mas-Wrestling Tournament "2021 Visegrip Viking Invitational MAS Wrestling Tournament" took place in Los Angeles, California, USA. The international status was supported by the participation of Pakistani colleagues.

On April 10, the World Ethnosport Confederation held the IV Ethnosport Forum "Revival of Traditional Sports" in an online format, in which the President of the organization, Mr. Necmeddin Bilal Erdogan, the Minister of Sports and Youth of Turkey Mehmet Muharrem Kasapoglu, the Ministers of Sports of Gambia, Qatar, Mali, Serbia and Somalia, government officials, sports officials and representatives of federations from 60 countries. The International Mas-Wrestling Federation was represented by the 1st Vice-President Alexander Kim-Kimen. President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent his greetings to the participants. He expressed his hope for the further development of traditional sports, as well as the culture and values they represent.

On May 28-30, the North American Open Championship took place in Fort Wayne, USA. Due to the well-known restrictive measures, this time only US athletes took part in the competition. It should be noted that in the competition, two athletes with disabilities, with limb amputation, fought on equal terms for the title of champion. And one of them in the heavyweight division became the winner.

In June, the International Mas-Wrestling Federation took part in the online festival of the 7th TAFISA World Games "Sport for All". The International Sport for All Association was founded in 1991 and is an international organization dedicated to promoting physical activity, social interaction, integration and communication among people around the world. The TAFISA World Games, supported by the IOC and UNESCO and have been held every four years since 1992. The festival showcases bright moments from competitions and training videos on the sport of "mas-wrestling".

June 18-19, the 1st stage of the Mas-Wrestling World Cup 2021 - the Asian Open Championship and the International Mas-Wrestling Tournament among boys and girls were successfully held in Khiva, Uzbekistan. The World Cup stage was attended by 138 athletes from nine countries: Afghanistan, Hungary, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

Before the competition, a meeting of representatives of the national federations of Asian countries was held under the chairmanship of the President of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation Alexander Akimov, during which current issues and plans for the coming years were discussed. Representatives of Asian countries expressed their readiness to include mas-wrestling in the Asian and Islamic Games. In 2025, the next Asian Games will be held in Uzbekistan.

In accordance with the Order of the Government of the Russian Federation, from August 23 to September 4, 2021, the International Military-Technical Forum "ARMY 2021" and the International Army Games were held at the Patriot Convention and Exhibition Center. Within the framework of international events, an extensive exhibition, scientific, business and exhibition program was envisaged. At the site of the Physical Training and Sports Directorate of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, planned expositions were presented, aimed at developing the physical qualities of military personnel, including a demonstration of the sport "mas-wrestling". Presentation events were held with the aim of including mas-wrestling in the competitive program of the International Army Games. This project is regarded as particularly significant for the promotion of mas-wrestling among military personnel in many countries.

Then Arnold Mokhov gave the floor to those responsible for the remaining planned activities included in the Calendar events of IMWF .

IMWF Vice President Odd E. Haugen told about the international tournament in the framework of "Olympia" in Orlando, USA. He invited athletes from different countries and the IMWF leadership to support one of most significant events this year. Unfortunately, the Las Vegas tournaments scheduled for September 17-18 as part of Halfway to St. The Patrick's Day Celtic Clan Celebration was canceled the day before. These are the brutal realities of today's world.

It should be noted that it was North America, thanks to the efforts of Mr. Haugen, that provided significant support to world mas-wrestling during the difficult time of the pandemic. Everyone in our community appreciates the work of our American colleague very highly.

Marina Zakharova, Vice-President of the All-Russian Mas-Wrestling Federation, spoke about the final stage of the Mas-Wrestling World Cup in Dolgoprudny, Russia.

Further, Alexander Konstantinovich gave the floor to the head of the Mas-Wrestling Academy, 1st Vice-President of the IMWF, Alexander Kim-Kimen, who, as always, gave a bright welcoming speech.

Then the vice-president of the IMWF Lena Tomskaya shared her plans for the next year.

The IV World Mas-Wrestling Championship is planned to be held in Yakutsk, Russia, with a preliminary date of June 23-27. Preparations for the championship have already begun; it is dedicated to the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the formation of the YASSR. These days we will celebrate for the first time the World Mas-Wrestling Day. Competitions for the creation of the anthem of the International Federation and the emblem of the World Mas-Wrestling Day are timed to its celebration. The regulations will be posted on the website of the International Mas-Wrestling Federation.

In the section International competitions, it is planned to hold international mas-wrestling competitions among juniors. On September 3 of this year, within the framework of the Eastern Economic Forum at the site of the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation, a presentation of the application of the VII International Sports Games "Children of Asia" Vladivostok-2022 took place.

The Minister of Sports of Russia Oleg Matytsin announced that the federal ministry fully supports the Games and told about the impact they have on the younger generation. The administration of the region and the city of Vladivostok expressed their readiness to prepare and hold the Games at a decent level.

Recall that the national teams of the member countries of the Olympic Council of Asia, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Georgia, the Turkish Republic, the Far Eastern, Siberian and Ural federal districts, the Republic of Bashkortostan *, the Republic of Tatarstan *, Moscow, the Russian Federation are allowed to participate in the Games. , the national team of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), two national teams of the Primorsky Territory.

Age of participants - 16 years old and younger (2006 year of birth and younger). The national mas-wrestling team will consist of 5 youths. They can be accompanied by a trainer and a representative. A total of 7 people.

The Children of Asia International Sports Games are supported by the Russian Olympic Committee, the Asian Olympic Council under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee.

If the application is accepted, then the Regulation of the Games will be approved in November this year and we will begin full preparation for this wonderful children's competition.

All National Federations are given the opportunity to declare competitions in their country from the list of the IMF Calendar for 2022. At the IMF final conference at the end of November, it will be collectively approved.

During the meeting, news came from Lithuania, from the Lithuanian Ethnosport Committee. This organization brings together several traditional sports and martial arts, passed down from generation to generation, which reflect the local identity and traditions of this country. Among others, there is also a tug of a stick. Stanislav Bayurin is the president of this organization. He sent video and photographs about the tug of a stick competition. Indeed, there is an overlap with our sport. We hope that our countries will have good sports ties.

Our Finnish colleague Juha-Vesa Jantti said that his country is slowly opening its borders and inviting world mas-wrestlers to his TCB before the World Cup final in Moscow. He has all the conditions for this.

We heard the speech of the vice-president from Brazil Vilmar Oliveira from the mouth of Igor Galutva, because the connection was at times unstable. Our colleague suggested holding a large Pan American tournament in his country, for which, nevertheless, common efforts are needed.

In conclusion, President Alexander Akimov thanked all the participants for their work. Special thanks go to Mr. Levent Akichi, whose philological abilities helped in the work of the general meeting of like-minded people. Surely, it is difficult to establish high-quality distant communication when dialogues are going on, one might say, on a planetary level in several languages. And the help of the polyglot came in handy.

The meetings of the IMWF Presidium were attended by:

Alexander Akimov, Russia - President of the IMWF;

Arnold Mokhov, Russia - General Secretary of the IMWF;

Alexander Kim-Kimen, Russia - 1st Vice President of the IMWF;

Akichi Levent, Turkey - General Secretary of the World Ethnosport Confederation;

Haugen Odd Earling, USA - Vice President of the IMWF, President of the USA Mas-Wrestling Federation;

Vilmar Oliveira, Brazil - Vice President of the IMWF, President of the Brazilian Mas-Wrestling Federation;

Lena Tomskaya, Russia - Vice President of the IMWF;

Valery Gazaev, Ukraine - Member of the IMWF Presidium, President Mas-Wrestling Federation of Ukraine;

Henriette Borbeli, Hungary - Member of the IMWF Presidium;

Talap Imataliev, Kazakhstan - member of the IMWF Presidium;

Anna Lewandowska, Poland - member of the IMWF Presidium;