When United World Wrestling Ignores Its Most Devoted Fans: The Iranian Wrestling Community During a Deadly Crackdown
STATEMENT
On United World Wrestling’s Silence While Iranians Face Killings and Communication Blackouts
Editorial statement from Wrestling Podium Radio
As nationwide protests in Iran continue under severe crackdowns and communications blackouts, Wrestling Podium Radio addresses the silence from the sport’s governing body
United World Wrestling has built a visible and engaged global communities in international sport. A very central part of that community is Iranian — not only inside Iran, but across the diaspora worldwide. Wrestling is deeply woven into Iranian culture, followed across generations, and carried with pride wherever Iranians live.
The image above documents this reality clearly. Taken during the 2014 Wrestling World Cup in Los Angeles, it shows the arena filled overwhelmingly by Iranian fans. In the heart of one of the most diverse cities in the world, the stands became a gathering of the Iranian diaspora — families, elders, youth — united by wrestling as a shared cultural identity. Flags raised, voices joined, community visible. There were virtually no non-Iranian spectators in this space. This was not an isolated moment; it was a reflection of scale.
For years, global wrestling institutions — including United World Wrestling — have benefited from this devotion. Iranian fans consistently drive engagement, visibility, attendance, and digital reach. This support has crossed borders, politics, and time zones. It has helped elevate wrestling into a truly global sport.
Today, that same community is experiencing profound loss and fear. A large number of civilians in Iran have been killed during recent protests. Communication channels have been deliberately shut down, leaving families inside and outside the country unable to reach one another. The emotional toll on Iranian communities worldwide has been immense.
In this context, United World Wrestling’s complete silence is deeply troubling. No message of sympathy. No acknowledgment of loss. No recognition of the suffering of a community that has long stood at the heart of the sport.
This is not a request for political positioning. It is a call for basic human acknowledgment. When an institution benefits so visibly and consistently from a community, silence during that community’s darkest moments is not neutrality — it is normalization.
Awareness begins with recognizing who sustains a sport, and with standing beside them when their voices are cut off. This statement exists to ensure that this silence is seen, understood, and remembered.