How To Watch The UWW Gi & No-Gi Grappling World Championships in September
How To Watch The UWW Gi & No-Gi Grappling World Championships in September
The gi and no-gi Grappling World Championships, hosted by United World Wrestling in Kazakhstan, takes place on September 6-9.
The Grappling World Championships is an international gi and no-gi grappling event that pits Russians vs Americans and Brazilians, allows leg reaping and will feature the Miyao Brothers.
Hosted by United World Wrestling in Astana, Kazakhstan the Grappling World Championships takes place on September 6-9.
A four-day tournament that will see men and women from novice through seniors compete in both gi and no-gi divisions, the Grappling World Championships is an international event with athletes from many countries around the world.
Kazakhstan: Hotbed of Grappling
The country of Kazakhstan– which is emerging as a hotbed of grappling activity in the region– plays host to the event. A well-developed nation known for hosting major sporting events, Kazakhstan has also played host to large scale freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling events. The Grappling World Championships will be held in the capital city, Astana.
The Central Asian region boasts a rich wrestling culture, with many indigenous grappling traditions that were developed over thousands of years. In recent times, athletes from this part of the world have combined their native styles with the modern developments we see in sports such as jiu-jitsu and submission wrestling.
Who Will Compete?
The World Grappling Championships serve as UWW’s flagship event for submission grappling and features national teams from Russia, Poland, France, Iran, Ukraine, Italy, Azerbaijan, Kryzgstan, Brazil, the United States and more.
Brazil will send a powerhouse team which will feature the well-known Miyao brothers, competing for the first time under these rules. A number of Brazilian based in Qatar will also make the journey over to Kazakhstan to rep their country.
Russia's squad is expected to be strong and they held their national championships (known as 5 Star) just a few weeks ago to decide on who would represent the country at the Grappling World Championships.
Team USA will send a squad of nine athletes including 2017 UWW Grappling world champion Breanna Stikkelman and 2017 silver medalist Carlos Soto.
The Key Differences Between UWW Grappling and Jiu-Jitsu
Though little-known in the Western world, the Grappling World Championships features extremely talented athletes from European and Central Asian countries. Russian wrestlers and sambists hailing from places such as Dagestan share the mat with jiu-jitsu stylists from Europe and Asia. You'll see lightning-fast wrestling takedowns, slick scrambles and savage submissions at the Grappling World Championships.
The rules at the Grappling World Championships are very similar to what you would see at most grappling tournaments, although with some small differences. Possibly the biggest is that leg reaping is not penalized – it is possible to attack for leg locks (ankle locks, kneebars) or sweeps– the only leg attack that is prohibited are heel hooks.
Matches are five minutes long and the pace is kept high by the referees, who are quick to penalize stalling. The matches take place on a large mat with a circular boundary just as is used for freestyle wrestling bouts.
Russia vs Brazil?
As multiple-time World and European team champions Russia have nearly always been the favorites for gold in most categories, although Brazil will look to challenge that dominance this year.
Due to visa restrictions, many of the Russians never get to compete overseas in places such as Europe and the U.S. so this is a perfect opportunity to see what they can do against the best South American competitors.
A picture from the recent UWW Asian Championships
Dates & Times
The Grappling World Championships will run from September 6 to 9, with different divisions and age categories running on different days. All times below are local to Kazakstan (UTC +6).
Thursday September 6
Grappling (no-gi) Novice, Schoolboys/girls, Cadets, Juniors, Veterans
11:00: Elimination rounds & repechage Novice and Schoolboys/girls
15:00: Elimination rounds & repechage Cadets, Veterans and Juniors
19:00: Finals & Award ceremonies All categories
Friday September 7
Grappling (gi) Novice, Schoolboys/girls, Cadets, Juniors, Veterans
11:00: Elimination rounds & repechage Novice and Schoolboys/girls
15:00: Elimination rounds & repechage Cadets, Veterans and Juniors
19:00: Finals & Award ceremonies All categories
September September 8
Grappling (no-gi) Seniors
11:00: Elimination round & repechage Men 62, 66, 71, 77 kg Women 53, 58, 64 kg
12:00: Elimination round & repechage Men 84, 92, 100, +100 kg Women 71, +71 kg
18:00: Finals &Awards Ceremonies All categories
Sunday September 9
Grappling (gi) Seniors
11:00: Elimination round & repechage Men 62, 66, 71, 77 kg Women 53, 58, 64 kg
12:00: Elimination round & repechage Men 84, 92, 100, +100 kg Women 71, +71 kg
18:00: Finals &Awards Ceremonies All categories
How to watch the World Grappling Championships
The entire event will be streamed LIVE and On Demand ONLY on FloGrappling. You will be able to find all of the matches in the event video page labeled with the athletes' names.