Wrestling is one of the oldest sports in history, dating back millennia, with Sumerian depictions dating back to over 3000 BC. Included in the ancient Olympic Games as early as 708 BC, it has a considerable Olympic legacy. At that time, it was the decisive discipline in the pentathlon. In its modern form, wrestling is divided into two main disciplines: Greco-Roman wrestling, a direct heir to the ancient sport, and freestyle wrestling, which is more modern.
Both styles of wrestling, Greco-Roman and freestyle, have their specificities, but their objective remains the same: to defeat the opponent by placing him in a position where his shoulder blades touch the ground. The fights take place on a circular surface and last two times three minutes. Wrestling was present at the Olympic Games as soon as they were renovated in Athens in 1896, with Greco-Roman wrestling, and freestyle wrestling was added later, in 1920. Since the Athens 2004 Games, women’s events have also been present, but only in freestyle wrestling. The former USSR dominates the Olympic wrestling charts, followed by other nations such as the United States, Iran, Russia, Turkey and Japan, which is the leading nation in women’s wrestling.
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