The Kavkaz Association operates a sports club of the same name in Warsaw, Poland. We focus on refugees and immigrants integration through sports, with individuals from these groups making up more than three-quarters of our participants. Our staff communicate effectively in Russian, a language known to the majority of immigrants and refugees in Poland, and we employ coaches from these communities. We are a grassroots organization, and we work at the local level.
The Kavkaz Association has been working with refugee athletes since 2021, but our history goes back two years earlier. Around 2019, we began as an informal group working with the Chechen community in Warsaw, aiming to create a space where refugee Chechen children could practice sports.
To date, we have become one of the leading Polish sports clubs in Olympic wrestling and Sambo. To mention our sports achievements from only 2023: Our athlete, Zelimkhan Mutsukhaev, joined the national junior team in freestyle wrestling. He won the title of Polish Junior Champion, secured a bronze medal at an international junior tournament in Bucharest (the only medalist from the Polish freestyle team), and finished in 8th place at the European Championships. He also competed at the World Championships.
The Kavkaz Club claimed victory in two Warsaw Youth Olympics – in Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling. A total of six club members won medals at the Polish Championships in 2023, including three gold medals. The club also achieved numerous team trophies at various tournaments, such as first place at the International Polish U22 Championships in freestyle wrestling and first place at the Open Polish Sambo Championships. At the Polish U14 Championships in freestyle wrestling, all three of our permitted competitors won medals: gold, silver, and bronze. Additionally, our athlete Ismail Erzanukaev took home the gold at the Polish U15 Championships.
The Kavkaz Club is a member organization of the Polish Wrestling Association and the Sambo Association. In collaboration with these associations, the club organizes major sports events, including championship-level competitions. In 2022, we also hosted the Sambo Kavkaz Cup for children aged 8-11. In November 2023, the association organized the International Polish Youth Championships in Freestyle Wrestling for athletes under 22, followed the next day by the Open Polish Sambo Championships. Both events featured spectacular lighting, sound, and artistic elements. Photographic documentation from both events is available on the website https://iviterwrestling.pl/. Approximately 200 participants took part in each of the events, and the competitions in both wrestling and Sambo attracted hundreds of spectators, which is a significant achievement in the field of wrestling sports. We organized the International Polish Youth Championships in Freestyle Wrestling for athletes under 22 and the Open Polish Sambo Championships again in November 2024.
Although the core activity of our Association is sports, from the beginning we have had to deal with the issues arising from the specific challenges faced by people with refugee or migrant backgrounds. Consequently, out of necessity, we also became involved in efforts to overcome integration barriers faced by those training with us, particularly in the following areas:
Cultural differences – The lack of knowledge about customs and understanding of behaviours, both on the part of refugees and the host community, often leads to misunderstandings. This is especially true regarding the roles played by both genders. It creates barriers between communities, discomfort in mutual relations, and can lead to social exclusion.
Lack of information enabling access to resources – Such as finding housing, accessing healthcare, social assistance, and education.
Barriers related to mental health – Issues such as anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Young refugees who have experienced trauma, such as violence, persecution, or forced displacement, often struggle with mental health problems, which can complicate integration and participation in sports.
Lack of effective participation in education – Children and youth growing up in war conditions often lack the habit of regular schooling. Cultural differences and language barriers mean that for public education available in Poland to fulfill its role, additional support is necessary. Our experience shows that without such support, there is a risk of absenteeism and dropping out of the school system, which in the long run may lead to living on the margins of society.
Discrimination in the host community, both institutional and in everyday interactions.
As far as our resources allow, in addition to providing sports training and championship participation for refugee children and youth, we have also aimed to:
- Provide educational support by organizing supplementary educational activities led by a teacher.
- Offer integration assistance with tasks such as finding housing, accessing healthcare, enrolling in schools, and providing guidance on Polish customs and cultural expectations.
- Provide psychological support to individuals in particularly difficult situations, especially when public assistance was unavailable (funding for this was organized through collections among members and supporters).
- Facilitate labour market integration through internships and traineeships for young people in collaboration with the company - club’s main sponsor.
