Email regarding new FILA rules and USAW implementation

This e-mail is a correction to the e-mail that was sent on June 17th. Please note, the correction is that the technical fall in freestyle is 10 points for all Junior age group and below competition.

As confirmed on June 10th by USA Wrestling’s Executive Board, the rules to be used are the ones that were accepted by the JOWC and were in effect at the recent Schoolboy National Duals in Indianapolis.

In these rules:

· The technical fall will be seven points for Greco-Roman and 10 for freestyle.

· The recently enacted FILA rule in which two three-point moves ends a match, and a five-point move ends the match when leading, will NOT be used to end a match.

· In the case of a tie match, the first criteria used to determine the winner is the wrestler with the highest value point will win. The next criteria to be used is the wrestler who scored last will be declared the winner. Unlike in previous situations, cautions and warnings are not part of the tiebreaking criteria.

· In Greco-Roman, the only allowable start from the par terre position is for the offensive wrestler to place his/her thumbs together on the back of the opponent (the reverse body lock will not be an option to start in this position).

· All turns or moves that result in placing your opponent in danger are worth 2 points. This includes any action that results in a hand-to-hand turn. The 5-second danger count is used in hand-to-hand situations where a wrestler is held in the danger position. Two points are awarded in instances where the offensive/scoring wrestler fails to arch or rolls across his/her shoulder while executing the move.

· At the conclusion of the 30-second penalty period, a point will be awarded to the wrestler who was deemed active if there was no point scored by the inactive wrestler.

These are the same rules which were used by USA Wrestling at the United 4 Wrestling event in Los Angeles, the University/FILA Cadet Nationals in Akron, Ohio and the Battle At the Falls in Niagara Falls, Canada. These rules will be used for the remaining age-group wrestling competitions on the USA Wrestling national schedule, including the remaining National Duals on the Cadet and Junior levels, the Kids Freestyle and Greco-Roman Nationals and the ASICS/Vaughan Junior and Cadet Nationals.

The reason for staying with the rules as implemented is to remain consistent throughout the program with the rules which have been used in competition and in training for the age-group coaches and athletes as well as enforced by the officials.

If you would like to see the press release showing which rules will be used at the upcoming World Team Trials, please click here.