2026 Beach World Series Porec Travel Blog

Monday, 1 June 2026…  Another Gold medal and a bottle of champagne for Eli, and another one in the books for Team USA Beach Wrestling.  Each World Series event closes with its eight champions sharing a celebratory spray of the bubbly.  Even our non-drinkers can shake a bottle and douse their colleagues!

We needed this one… for Eliana, for Keena, for Sadie, for the ones back home preparing for the series’ remaining three events, for the program.  The last month has been a strenuous start for Americans in this sixth season of UWW’s Beach Wrestling World Series.

Scheduling has bitten us hard this year.  Our domestic schedule, as in our Olympic Styles, is completed late fall for the upcoming spring and summer.   The World Series schedule is notoriously late.  In 2026, we learned in late February that the first Series event (Vietnam) would conflict with our own World Team Trials (North Carolina).  Hence, no Americans in Vietnam.

Other nations are similarly impacted.  The next event, Batumi, Georgia, scheduled June 19 – 21 stacked on top of Slovenia’s National Championship / Trials.  Many of you know that Eva and I live summers in Slovenia. 

Make no mistake!  It’s not like anyone needs Rusty at a Beach World Series event.  I retired as Beach Referees Instructor in 2019.  I’m just sayin’… it makes me sad to miss the opportunity to support the style and its vital American presence.

My hope is that UWW and its Beach leadership will line up potential hosts earlier and release their upcoming schedules by December 1^st, the previous year.  This will definitely help our American athletes, who are self- funded, identify more affordable fares and sugar up some sponsors.

Eva and I got to our Slovenian home last Thursday, then drove to Porec Friday morning.  Recovering from jet lag is much more pleasant on the Adriatic coast!  We get home Monday evening.

Our bonus is a visit by dear friends.  Former World Champion Anastasia Kravchenko (Ukraine) and her husband are staying a few extra days in the Balkan region.  They will use our home as a hub, and we’ll help them identify some of the region’s must-sees.

What a treat it is to be able to make another payment on the debt I owe this sport.  Thank You, Wrestling!

CIAO,

Rusty

Rusty Davidson

Sunday, 31 May 2026…  Richard has reported.  You already know Eliana won the World Series event in Porec.  Maybe that’s no big surprise.  But it IS a big accomplishment!  There are some really talented ‘Big Girls’ on the planet.  Bommarito’s commitment to remaining Leader of the Pack is something special.

This American woman makes it her business to study hard, address detailed adjustments, be the definition of ‘Coachable’, and work her tail off to remain The Definition of Women’s Beach Wrestling on Planet Earth!

You already know that 19-year-old Sadie Evans competed for placement but did not place.  This ‘Baby’ in the Women’s Senior Division continues to mature… as an athlete and as a human.  She has demonstrated that she’s willing to test herself and take her lumps.   Sadie’s a definition of how America’s future, especially in Beach Wrestling really works!

You already know that Keenan Graef knocked on the podium door himself.  Eighty kilograms is, arguably, one of the toughest of our four weight categories.  There are no slouches.   Keenan shows up early to sessions, just to help athletes from other nations warm up.  One… this is a service to others.  Two… Keenan is stealing their best stuff.  This is the definition of a competitor!

Now, let’s talk about Tod Blank.  Tod represents USA Wrestling and our Referees’ Association with dignity.  Tod was selected, this evening, to officiate “The Match”.  Georgia’s Levan Kelekhsashvili and Ukraine’s Oleksii Boruta are, pound for pound, the most talented, most experienced, most battle-tested male Beach Wrestlers alive.  Boruta won this one.  Tod refereed.

It’s no secret that I walk both sides of the circle.  I referee to become a better coach.  I coach to become a better referee.  I have a long-standing investment in Tod’s evolution.  As a relative youngster, Tod made an impression.

Tod Blank is a native of Northern California, where wrestling is important.  It’s kinda’ easy to become a Big Deal in California, with the power of numbers behind you.  Tod has chosen a different… much more difficult pathway.  Tod Blank is a Big Deal for reasons you can respect.

Tod serves as one of the leaders of our national officials’ organization.  It’s kinda’ easy to be a Big Deal when you’re chosen by a nationwide electorate.  Tod has chosen a different… much more demanding pathway.   He continues to keep eyes and ears open to his constituents and educate responsibly.

On the mat / inside the circle, Tod eludes a quiet command.  He does not use the power of rule to punish.  Instead, he uses the influence of rule to reward.  Huge difference!

I watch Tod because I want to… it’s what I do.  Truth is… nobody else ever knows he’s there.  His motion, wrestling savvy, empathy for technical effort make Tod the ultimate Customer Service Agent (with a whistle).

I hope it’s clear that I’m a fan.  100%, I appreciate Tod Blank as a colleague and friend.  100%, I appreciate what Tod serves up to the aspiring referees in the United States.  100%, I appreciate what Tod Blank contributes to wrestling… in his community, in his state, in his region, nationally, internationally.  Please join me in this appreciation.

Tomorrow, I’ll summarize the Porec experience.

CIAO

Rusty

Rusty Davidson

Saturday, 30 May 2026…  When Eva and I watched this five-year-old girl creating bucket sculptures in the warm-up area, between morning and afternoon sessions. I couldn’t resist the photo. With it, I had to form my hypothesis regarding their eventual outcome.

You will not be surprised to confirm that nearly a hundred of the world’s finest athletes warmed up and competed… an entire two-hour session.  Every sandcastle remains unscathed!

The point?  Easy! The point is that the world’s members of the wrestling sorority/fraternity have a consummate respect for other people’s efforts. You should have seen these young adult superstars nudging each other to protect a five-year-old’s inverted bucket-loads of sand.

Gary has already informed you of our Saturday match results. We had a great day, with Eliana and Keenan going undefeated and Sadie’s only loss to Eliana. Tomorrow will get tougher.

Porec 2026 has fielded a relatively small population of entries. That said, the best of the best are here!  As they work toward September’s finale, every placement point is vital. We’re seeing some magnificent scraps.

What’s impressive is the camaraderie and compassion these world-class competitors show, outside the field of play. Most have been around for a while and know their opponents well. To watch them hug, sit together at dinner, trade team paraphernalia, and help loners warm up is the magic we promise parents when their toddlers start wrestling.

I remain bursting with pride at the way our American Beach Wrestlers represent our nation and culture. I hope you’ll share my appreciation by offering the wrestler in your family, school, or neighborhood a handshake, smile, or atta-boy/ atta-girl. They’ve earned it.

Respect each other’s Sandcastles!

Ciao,

Rusty

Friday, 29 May 2026…  So, here we are.  Seven Americans are filtering into a beautiful historic port, on the northern Adriatic Sea, for the second of five Beach World Series events.  2026 is a unique and rather challenging year for senior Beach wrestlers wearing the Stars and Stripes.

As USA Wrestling carves out its spring and summer schedule during autumn of the previous calendar year, United World Wrestling and its Beach component wait until late winter / early spring to announce theirs.  In 2026, we ended up with the first leg of the World Series on the exact days of our U.S. Team Trials (Carolina Beach, May 9^th).

As several U.S. athletes cancelled flights to Vietnam for that first leg, our nation fielded a single entry (Lain Yapoujian, Stanford).  Ongoing schedule conflicts are restricting other Americans from participating in Porec, along with later events.  Please remember that American Beach athletes, in every age category, are self-funded.

Two talented women represent us in Porec. Sadie Evans, of Missouri Valley, enters the seniors’ field after having seen success in the developing age groups. Three-time World Champion Eliana Bommarito carries our banner.

Avila University volunteer coach Keenan Graef is America’s lone entry on the men’s side.  Two other American men were forced to withdraw entry, due to late scheduling, as plane fares from the States to Europe soar (pun intended!).

American Coach Timmy Box (Palomar College) leads us as Coach / Leader.  Dedicated Beach Wrestling enthusiast Tod Blank, of California, is our referee.  Eva and I are here, as we are at most World Series events.  As a retired Instructor of Beach referees, globally, I still get invited by host federations to sprinkle some of that ‘Old-Man Wisdom’ on developing referees.  (Pretty Cool Ride!)

Our teammates back in the States are led by USA Wrestling’s Jamie McNab.  Director of Communications, Richard Immel, and his staff tell you the scores and outcomes. I’ve heard there may even be some ‘Ghost Writing (another pun intended) by the legendary Gary Abbott!  Read every word.

Richard and staff, with Gary chipping in, will get you details and scores immediately.  My chosen task is to get you the color commentary and try to attach an appropriate tone to the action.  I have always enjoyed… no… Reveled… in being invited to tag along and chime in.

Over the upcoming days, I’ll attempt to clarify my Why.

CIAO

Rusty