OTTAWA— Wrestling Canada Lutte (WCL) held their annual Members Meeting August 26-28 in Ottawa. This was the first time the meeting had been held in person since 2019. The meeting followed up the Annual General Meeting, which was held early this month virtually.

Among the highlights from the event was the confirmation of elected board members. Joining the WCL Board of Directors, on two-year terms are:

• Jessica Tang
• Paul Bellavia
• Jasmit Phulka (Athlete representative)

Also, two members were re-elected:

• Bill Whiteway (2^nd consecutive two-year term)
• Gary Bird (Two-year term after being appointed to fill a vacancy)

WCL bid farewell to two members who left the Board: Steve Rennalls and John Cook.  Both had served three, two-year terms. WCL wishes to thank both Steve and John for all their efforts during their time on the Board of Directors.

During the meeting, WCL’s Strategic Framework was approved. This will pave the way for the new WCL Strategic Plan that will take the organization through 2027.

The members also discussed the new requirements regarding the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC), which will administer the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS). This will be a requirement for all national sport organizations in Canada and the discussion led to may helpful suggestions in how WCL can best implement the new requirements.

Finally, the members discussed the general return to sport and what kind of initiatives can take place to see the return of athletes, coaches, and officials. This included everything from new programs, to reducing costs and encouraging new participants to the sport.

The WCL Management and Operations teams will now look to build off and implement the appropriate suggestions as WCL turns its attention to building towards the 2024 Paris Olympics.