Irish wrestling promotion Over The Top (OTT) Wrestling have made a statement of changes following the Speaking Out Movement, which started a little under 3 weeks ago, with then OTT Champion David Starr. OTT were quick to strip the belt following allegations made against David Starr, since then they had remained pretty quiet until recently, this morning Head Promoter Joe Cabary released a statement of changes taking place within the company.
Statement Of Changes
There were a few announcements made on this statement of changes, including the introduction of Anne O’Brien who will head up the talent relations department. As part of this she will be the dedicated point of contact for any issues performers may be experiencing as well as working closely with the training schools. Anne has been working in the wrestling and entertainment business for over 20 years, including working for American Rampage Wrestling on their two European tours. They are also currently looking into updating their safety procedures, code of conduct and disciplinary procedures, as part of this all management and performers will undergo Garda Vetting.
Anne is not the only change being made at a management level, OTT have put together a new board of members and the group will meet monthly to discuss the issues within the Irish Wrestling Industry. On the board currently are Head Promotor Joe Cabary, current OTT performers LJ Cleary, Kaydee McKeon Joyce, Session Moth Martina and Katey Harvey.
LJ Cleary Holding the OTT Gender Neutral Title
They also addressed the Speaking Out Movement directly, stating “OTT Wrestling takes all allegations of Misconduct very seriously. In light of the speaking out movement, no performer will appear in an OTT ring until any and all allegations are investigated” although no specific names have been mentioned it most likely in regards to Former OTT Star Jordan Devlin as well as current star Scotty Davis who both have had allegations made against them.
It is not just the stars or trainees that OTT are looking to safeguard more in the future but also the fans, as such they will also be introducing a code of conduct for the fans that will be place at the entrance of all future events. They have also introduced a direct email address for the fans for any issues that they may have, which is also open to any feedback regarding future safeguarding issues that may help the company and all emails will be monitored by talent relations.
On a brighter note, OTT also announced the opening of The School Of Wrestling NI in the next few months, also announcing that former Women’s champion and current ROH star Session Moth Martina will be the newest member of the coaching team. Martina will be working with current coaches Joe Cabray and Paddy Morrow.
The full statement is available on the link below
Andrew More
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