The head of the International Wrestling Federation tells Urheilu that wrestlers from Russia and Belarus must get a visa for the World Championships in Tampere. The Finnish Wrestling Federation is preparing for the loss of long-organized competitions.
Tampere’s Hakametsä should host Finland’s biggest wrestling competition in almost 30 years, the under-23 World Championships, in October. However, the Finnish wrestling federation is on fire, as the international umbrella organization United World Wrestling threatened to take the games from Finland in June if the organizer is unable to guarantee Finnish visas for athletes from Russia and Belarus.
The wrestling federation replied to the UWW that it cannot influence the visa process. The UWW is among the umbrella organizations that have readmitted Russians and Belarusians as neutral athletes despite the war in Ukraine. Russian influence in the UWW is great.
Urheilu reached out to the director of communications from UWW by Gordon Templemanwhose answer reveals that the pressure on the Finnish organizers continues as before:
– The fate of the World Cup is undecided. We still demand that everyone who wants to go to the Games be given a visa, and that no one is discriminated against because of their travel document. There is no further comment on the matter, Templeman replied by email.
Consular Officer Jussi Tanner from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that visa applications are confidential. It is not public information whether members of the Russian and Belarusian delegations have submitted applications for the Tampere Games.
Executive Director of the Finnish Wrestling Association Pasi Sarkkinen admits that the situation is hanging on a loose log without the union’s own fault. The decision made by the UWW earlier this summer does not add to the optimism.
Poland lost their competition
– Poland had been granted the under-20 World Cup to be held this month. They were transferred to Jordan, and the reason was very likely related to this same thing, that is, Russia and Belarus and the entry of wrestlers. Yes, it would really piss us off and was a dangerous precedent from our point of view.
The most critical thing in Tampere is the accommodation reservations for about a thousand people, which cannot be stretched indefinitely. Their back limit has already been moved once, and new flexibility may still have to be requested.
According to the Government’s decisions in principle, a short-term stay in the country for professional sports can be a basis for issuing a visa. Youth value competitions are usually considered an amateur sport, which is not a basis for awarding.
If the games are moved away from Tampere, years of work will be wasted. There is no official information about the replacement. Pasi Sarkkinen has two strong bets.
– Turkey and Jordan would have organizations ready in October as fresh organizers.