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68-465: The Games were reputed to have originated as funeral games for Melicertes (also known as Palaemon), instituted by Sisyphus , legendary founder and king of Corinth , who discovered the dead body and buried it subsequently on the Isthmus . In Roman times, Melicertes was worshipped in the region. Another likely later myth held that Theseus , legendary king of Athens , expanded Melicertes' funeral games from

136-624: A closed nightly rite into fully-fledged athletic-games event which was dedicated to Poseidon , open to all Greeks, and was at a suitable level of advancement and popularity to rival those in Olympia , which were founded by Heracles . Theseus arranged with the Corinthians for any Athenian visitors to the Isthmian games to be granted the privilege of front seats ( prohedria , Ancient Greek προεδρία). Another version states that Kypselos , tyrant of Corinth in

204-549: A competitor can partake in. For example, some junior varsity and freshman competitors are not allowed in tournament competition due to the amount of mat time a wrestler would accrue in a short time period. Women's college wrestling in the U.S. uses freestyle wrestling rules in the NCAA and standard collegiate rules in the NCWA . There are currently several organizations which oversee collegiate wrestling competition: Divisions I, II, and III of

272-503: A culture or geographic region of the world that UWW does not administer rules for. Examples of the many styles of folk wrestling, include Cornish wrestling , backhold wrestling (from Europe), Cumberland Wrestling and Catch-as-catch-can (from England), kurash from Uzbekistan, gushteengiri from Tajikistan, khuresh from Siberia, Lotta Campidanese from Italy, naban from Myanmar, pehlwani from India, penjang gulat from Indonesia, schwingen from Switzerland, tigel from Ethiopia, kene of

340-485: A similar competition was attributed by Virgil to Aeneas , who held games on the anniversary of his father's death. Many of the contests were similar to those held at the Olympic Games , and although those were held in honor of Zeus , many scholars see the origin of Olympic competition in these earlier funeral games. Historical examples of funeral games in ancient Greece are known from the late sixth century BC until

408-513: A type of hand-stitched lederhosen called a kispetler , which are traditionally made of water buffalo hide, and most recently have been made of calfskin. Unlike Olympic wrestling, oil wrestling matches may be won by achieving an effective hold of the kisbet . Thus, the pehlivan aims to control his opponent by putting his arm through the latter's kisbet . To win by this move is called paça kazık . Originally, matches had no set duration and could go on for one or two days, until one man

476-429: A variety of athletic competitions for which prizes were awarded. The most important event was the pankration ; but the dead Aleximachus was always declared the winner of this competition, suggesting that he had been an athlete himself. A variety of prizes were awarded to the competitors at Greek funeral games. The most common prize was an olive wreath or crown, made from the branches of a sacred olive tree. This crown

544-482: Is a world heritage martial art which was introduced to the Ancient Olympic Games in 648 BC. Modern amateur pankration is a form of mixed martial arts (MMA) that incorporates techniques from multiple systems. Matches are fought with both grappling and striking techniques. Alysh is a Turkic term for a Central Asian folk wrestling style which involves the wearing of jackets, trousers and thick belts. Throughout

612-537: Is also treated more as a sport than the entertainment style of wrestling common in North America . As with British/European wrestling, there are fewer and less contrived storylines and angles and there is a similar atmosphere of realistic sporting competition. Much of this direction can be attributed to the influence of two European catch wrestlers/coaches Karl Gotch and Billy Robinson whose matches in Japan early in

680-454: Is divided into two styles: no-gi and gi. In no-gi (GNG), athletes wear shorts and a compression shirt called a rashguard. In gi grappling (GWG), athletes wear a kimono or gi . The goal of the sport is to take down and control the opponent on the ground and potentially win a submission using chokes and joint locks. Pankration (PK), from the Greek words pan and kratos and meaning "all of power",

748-428: Is often concluded in a raised ring; akin to boxing. Although advertised as contests , bouts are actually exhibitions with winners generally pre-determined to increase entertainment value. Legitimate wrestling skill remained a valuable bargaining chip in the wrestling industry until the late 20th century however, with occasional shoot matches (often to settle some backstage personal or business dispute) taking place in

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816-430: Is recognized by UNESCO as among the world's longest-running forms of sport. The best wrestlers earn the title of pahlevan (hero). It is similar to freestyle wrestling, however wrestlers wear pants which extend from the waist to below the knees and a belt. They are allowed to use or grab pants or belt as a grip, use legs, waist, clinch, leg trips and lift or throw, with the goal being to touch their opponent's shoulders to

884-820: Is retrospectively considered a precursor to mixed martial arts . Mexican professional wrestling, also known as lucha libre , is a style of wrestling using special holds. Most performers, known as luchadores (singular luchador ), begin their careers wearing masks, but most will lose their masks during their careers. Traditionally a match involves the best of three rounds, with no time limit. Each luchador uses his own special wrestling style or "estilo de lucha" consisting of aerial attack moves, strikes and complex submission holds. Popular luchadores in Mexico and Puerto Rico are El Santo , Blue Demon , Mil Máscaras , Perro Aguayo , Carlos Colón , Konnan , L. A. Park and Místico . Several wrestlers who performed in Mexico also had success in

952-537: Is the oldest continuously running, sanctioned sporting competition in the world. In recent years this style of wrestling has also become popular in other countries. Collegiate wrestling (also known as folkstyle wrestling) is the commonly used name of wrestling practiced at the college and university level in the United States . This style, with modifications , is also practiced at the high school and middle school levels, and also for younger participants. The term

1020-421: Is used to distinguish the style from other styles of wrestling used in other parts of the world, and from those of the Olympic Games : Greco-Roman wrestling , and freestyle wrestling . Some high schools in the U.S. have developed junior varsity and freshman teams alongside varsity teams. Junior varsity and freshman wrestling teams restrict competitors not only by weight, but also by age and the amount of wrestling

1088-561: The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland , the fair was established by the legendary king Lugh Lámhfhada (reigned 1849 to 1809 BC) in honor of his foster-mother, Tailtiu . These games are known to have been held during Ireland's medieval period, perhaps as early as the sixth century, but died out after the Norman Invasion of Ireland in the twelfth century. Some sources date the games themselves to

1156-640: The Book of Genesis , the Patriarch Jacob is said to have wrestled with God or an angel. The Iliad , in which Homer recounts the Trojan War of the 13th or 12th century BC, also contains mentions of wrestling. Indian epics Ramayana and Mahabharata contain references to martial arts including wrestling. The Yellow Emperor fought the rebel Chi You using Shuai Jiao at the Battle of Zhoulu . This early style of combat

1224-588: The Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520 through to the modern era with regular events since 1928. Oil wrestling ( Turkish : yağlı güreş ), also called grease wrestling, is the Turkish national sport. It is so called because the wrestlers douse themselves with olive oil. It is related to Uzbek kurash , Tuvan khuresh and Tatar and Bashkir көрәш ( köräş ). The wrestlers, known as pehlivanlar meaning "champion" wear

1292-555: The Francois vase at Florence and the Amphiaraus vase in Berlin. In some accounts, funeral games were not merely held to honor the deceased, but in order to propitiate the spirits of those who had died. According to literary tradition , funeral games were a regular feature of Mycenean Greek society. The Iliad describes the funeral games held by Achilles in honor of Patroclus , and

1360-479: The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Wrestling has produced significantly more UFC champions than any other martial art. Wrestlers such as Dan Severn , Don Frye , Mark Coleman , Randy Couture , Mark Kerr , Kazushi Sakuraba , Pat Miletich , and Dan Henderson won many of the early UFC tournaments along with other accolades. Ken Shamrock won the first UFC Superfight Championship and

1428-691: The 1940s before the sport grew more theatrical. Wrestlers from the period were known as hookers or shooters due to their legitimate skills – a dwindling number have remained in the business until modern times. Popular wrestlers from this era include Martin "Farmer" Burns , Frank Gotch , Tom Jenkins , Charles Cutler , Joe Stecher , Earl Caddock , Stanislaus Zbyszko , Ed "Strangler" Lewis , Ad Santel , John Pesek , Jim Londos , Ray Steele , Dick Shikat , and transitional figure Lou Thesz . Sometimes referred as "American-style" professional wrestling, companies such as WWE , AEW , Impact Wrestling and ROH run touring professional wrestling events throughout

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1496-492: The 1970s inspired considerable interest in the more purist grappling element of professional wrestling. Popular Japanese wrestlers include Rikidozan , Giant Baba , Antonio Inoki , Mitsuharu Misawa , Kenta Kobashi , Shinya Hashimoto and Keiji Mutoh . Shoot style wrestling evolved from traditional puroresu in an attempt to create a combat -based style. Shoot style featured a mix of amateur and catch wrestling , kickboxing and submission grappling . Shoot style wrestling

1564-530: The 1980s/1990s and early satellite sports channels during the same period as well as extensive home video releases in 1980s Germany/Austria) – but later declined and was supplanted both on television and in wider culture by imported American wrestling. Some promoters in the UK (and to a lesser extent France and Germany ) still produce live shows in this style but face stiff competition from more American-styled rivals. Japanese professional wrestling, also known as puroresu ,

1632-576: The 7th century BC, returned to the Games their old splendour. The first Isthmian Games were held in 582 BC. The festival included athletic and musical competitions to honor the god Poseidon, and was held in the spring of the second and fourth years of each Olympiad at Poseidon's rural sanctuary on the Isthmus of Corinth, the small neck of land that connects the Peloponnesian peninsula with Central Greece. Since it

1700-629: The Capitol at Rome to express their gratitude, and inscribed themselves as allies of the Roman people. Such was the end of the second war between the Romans and Philip. Since the games' inception, Corinth had always been in control of them. When Corinth was destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC, the Isthmian games continued, but were now administered by Sicyon . Corinth was rebuilt by Caesar in 44 BC, and recovered ownership of

1768-851: The Cornish Wrestling Association is affiliated to the British Wrestling Association which is linked to the UWW. The International Federation of Celtic Wrestling (FILC) organises international competitions between wrestlers from these styles. Folk styles have been international in nature. For example, there have been regular Cornish wrestling tournaments and matches in the US, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, England and Cornwall, with irregular tournaments and matches in Japan, Canada and Mexico. There have also been Inter-Celtic tournaments between Cornwall and Brittany dating back to

1836-636: The Games began, a truce was declared by Corinth to grant athletes safe passage through Greece. In 412 BC, even though Athens and Corinth were at war, the Athenians were invited to the games as usual. Funeral games (antiquity) Funeral games are athletic competitions held in honor of a recently deceased person. The celebration of funeral games was common to a number of ancient civilizations. Athletics and games such as wrestling are depicted on Sumerian statues dating from approximately 2600 BC, and funeral games are depicted in early Greek vases , such as

1904-456: The Games shortly thereafter, but they were then held in Corinth. They did not return to the Isthmus until AD 42 or 43. Libanius mentions the continuation of cultic activities at the Isthmus into the middle of the 4th century, and the games probably continued at least until the end of that century. The circumstances of their demise are unknown. Imperial pressure against pagan rituals was heightened at

1972-536: The Macedonians and Philip, their king, order that Greece shall be free from foreign garrisons, not subject to tribute, and shall live under her own customs and laws." Thereupon there was great shouting and rejoicing and a scene of rapturous tumult; and groups here and there called the herald back in order that he might repeat his words for them. They threw crowns and fillets upon the general and voted statues for him in their cities. They sent ambassadors with golden crowns to

2040-811: The NCAA, the NAIA , the NJCAA , and the NCWA. NCAA Division I wrestling is considered the most prestigious and challenging level of competition. A school chooses which athletic organization to join, although it may compete against teams from other levels and organizations during regular-season competition. The collegiate season starts in October or November and culminates with the National Championship tournament held in March. Professional wrestling

2108-471: The Nagas from India, shuai jiao from China, and ssireum from Korea. Folk wrestling styles are not recognized as international styles of wrestling by UWW . Celtic wrestling styles (e.g., Cornish wrestling , Scottish Backhold , Cumberland Wrestling , Gouren and Collar-and-elbow ) are a subset of folk wrestling and have their own regulatory bodies and some are affiliated to other organisations. For example,

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2176-467: The Olympic Games, for both men and women. This style allows the use of the wrestler's or his opponent's legs in offense and defense. Freestyle wrestling has its origins in catch-as-catch-can wrestling and awards points on the basis of throw amplitude, exposure of an opponent's back to the mat and opponent passivity. A freestyle wrestler may instantly win a match by holding both of an opponent's scapula to

2244-463: The Soviet Union, while not allowing chokeholds . I personally think that the very best skill for MMA is wrestling, I think that's the number one base to come from because those guys just flat out dictate where the fight takes place [standing or on the ground]." "There is no better base for entering into mixed martial arts than the highly successful competitor as a wrestler. The competitive wrestlers,

2312-455: The Soviet armed forces. Its influences are varied, with techniques borrowed from sports ranging from the two international wrestling styles of Greco-Roman and freestyle to judo, jujitsu, European styles of folk wrestling , and even fencing . The rules for sport sambo are similar to those in competitive judo, with a variety of leg locks and defense holds from the various national wrestling styles in

2380-678: The United States, including Eddie Guerrero , Rey Mysterio (Jr.) , and Dos Caras Jr./Alberto Del Rio . In France in the 19th century, early professional wrestling shows in the Greco-Roman style were often performed at the circus by the resident strongmen . This style later spread to circuses in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia where it was a staple part of circuses in the Soviet era, where it

2448-509: The city who had fallen in battle. It was customary for the participants to be citizens of the towns where the games were held. One example of such games was held at Amphipolis , in honor of the Spartan general Brasidas . Brasidas had fallen in battle while capturing the city of Amphipolis during the Peloponnesian War , in 422 BC. After the battle, he became revered as the new founder of

2516-455: The city, displacing Hagnon , who established an Athenian colony there in 437. Subsequently, Brasidas' funeral games became an annual event at Amphipolis. On the island of Amorgos in the Cyclades , Aleximachus Critolaus held a series of funeral games at the town of Aigiale in honor of his son, Aleximachus. The celebrations, which became an annual festival, included sacrifices, a banquet, and

2584-426: The contest the wrestlers must retain their hold on each other's belt. For this reason it is also referred to as ' belt wrestling alysh' or 'alysh belt wrestling' (BWUWW). The origin of pahlavani wrestling goes back to ancient Persia and is said to have been practiced by mythological Iranian heroes. It combines martial arts, calisthenics , strength training , and music, and was originally used to train warriors.. It

2652-439: The current rules allowing wrestlers to score points via takedowns, pushing their opponent out of bounds, or bringing the opponent down to their back. In addition to the annual World Beach Wrestling Championships , beach wrestling has been contested at Youth Olympic Games , Asian Games , Down Under Games, Mediterranean Games and at the 2019 World Beach Games . Folk wrestling describes a traditional form of wrestling unique to

2720-511: The early days of the business and still occurring well into the 1930s and 1940s and the threat to use legitimate skill to have one's way in the ring still potent decades later. The roots of professional wrestling lay in the catch-as-catch-can contests of the late 19th century. Whereas the Europeans favored the more controlled and classical Greco-Roman style, the Americans from the 1880s preferred

2788-563: The early years of the North American colonies and would later serve as a popular activity at country fairs, holiday celebrations, and in military exercises. The first organized national wrestling tournament in the United States took place in New York City in 1888. Wrestling has also been an event at every modern Olympic Games since the 1904 games in St. Louis, Missouri ; Greco-Roman wrestling

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2856-525: The end of the Hellenistic period . They could celebrate either civic heroes, such as the founders of cities, or private individuals, and in either case might become annual events. Persons considered heroes sometimes became the focus of hero cults , in which case funeral games might be held as part of their cult ritual. In a civic context, games might be held to honor public figures acclaimed as heroes, or sometimes whole groups of people, such as soldiers from

2924-454: The end of the 4th century, but some polytheistic cult practices certainly continued at Corinth into the 6th century. The games were the same as those in Olympia including wrestling , pancration , and horse racing. Among other competitions were: The commentator Papagalos also records the first instance of οισοληνειν (oisoleven), an early form of snooker played with painted pottery balls Before

2992-464: The games. In 196 BC Titus Quinctius Flamininus used the occasion of the games to proclaim the freedom of the Greek states from Macedonian hegemony. According to Appian 's account: When he had arranged these things with them he went to the Isthmian games, and, the stadium being full of people, he commanded silence by trumpet and directed the herald to make this proclamation, "The Roman people and Senate, and Flamininus, their general, having vanquished

3060-496: The highly successful amateur wrestlers have such tremendous mental toughness. If you can just get through the room, the wrestling room practices at like really high level universities, NCAA division one teams; those guys are savages. The stuff they go through, just the overtraining, just the mental toughness that you have to develop. The rapid rise in the popularity of mixed martial arts (MMA) has increased interest in wrestling due to its effectiveness against other martial arts since

3128-590: The infancy of MMA, and several wrestling techniques have been specifically adapted for MMA, leading to many martial arts gyms holding MMA wrestling classes. It is considered one of the primary disciplines in MMA along with Brazilian jiu-jitsu , boxing , kickboxing / muay Thai , and judo . Shoot wrestling , a relative of catch and freestyle wrestling, is the foundation of Shooto , a combat sport and pioneer MMA organization founded in 1985. Pancrase , another influential MMA organization based on shoot wrestling, also predates

3196-522: The late Old English term wræstlunge . Wrestling represents one of the oldest forms of combat sport. The origins of wrestling go back around 15,000 to 17,000 years ago through cave drawings in France. Babylonian and Egyptian reliefs show wrestlers using various holds known in the present-day sport. Literary references to wrestling occur as early as the Old Testament and the ancient Indian Vedas . In

3264-434: The legs). Points are allotted on the basis of throw amplitude, exposure of an opponent's back to the mat and opponent passivity. A Greco-Roman wrestler may instantly win a match by holding both of an opponent's scapula to the mat (known as a "fall"). A well known Greco-Roman wrestler is Alexander Karelin from Russia . Freestyle wrestling (FS, WW) is an international discipline and one of two wrestling disciplines featured in

3332-406: The mat (known as a "fall"). This form of wrestling is similar to American scholastic and collegiate wrestling with freestyle wrestling having a greater emphasis on throw amplitude. Collegiate women's wrestling uses two rulesets, freestyle in the NCAA and standard collegiate in the NCWA . Submission Wrestling incorporates techniques and holds from a variety of wrestling disciplines. Grappling

3400-603: The mat. UWW, then known as FILA, codified the form of beach wrestling in 2004. Beach wrestling (BW) is standing wrestling done by wrestlers, male or female, inside a sand-filled circle measuring 7 meters (23 ft) in diameter. The style originally mirrored the rules used before the use of wrestling mats, and beach wrestling has been regarded as the oldest version of international competitive wrestling. The wrestlers wear swimsuits rather than special wrestling uniforms. Wrestlers may also wear spandex or athletic shorts. The international rules have been modified in 2015 by UWW, with

3468-525: The matches which, for the most part, had the atmosphere of real wrestling competition. In many countries this form of professional wrestling achieved mainstream popularity – particularly in the United Kingdom and France where in both countries from the 1950s to the late 1980s, national television coverage made household names of its stars (it was also regularly screened on Welsh language television in Wales in

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3536-612: The men and youths who had enjoyed victories in wrestling, boxing , pankration and other athletic contests. During the Middle Ages from the fifth to fifteenth century , wrestling remained popular and enjoyed the patronage of many royal families, including those of England , France , and Japan . Early British settlers in America brought a strong wrestling tradition with them. The settlers also found wrestling to be popular among Native Americans . Amateur wrestling flourished throughout

3604-795: The midpoint of Lugh's reign, in 1829 BC, claiming that they predate the Greek Olympics by over a thousand years, and even that they were the inspiration for the Olympic Games. Wrestling Wrestling is a martial art and combat sport that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves different grappling-type techniques, such as clinch fighting , throws and takedowns , joint locks , pins , and other grappling holds . Many different wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts , combat sports , and military systems . Wrestling comes in different competitive forms,

3672-424: The more wide-open style of wrestling that later became known as freestyle . When the best American catch wrestlers discovered they could earn money with their skills, the professional counterpart was born. Initially, the contests were similar to amateur matches, except there were no time limits, and submission and choke holds were allowed. Amateur wrestling coexisted with its professional counterpart until around

3740-570: The most popular being professional wrestling , which is a form of athletic theatre. Others include Greco-Roman , freestyle , judo , sambo , folkstyle , catch , shoot , luta livre , submission , sumo , pehlwani , shuai jiao , and more. Wrestling first appeared in the ancient Olympic Games as an event during the 18th Olympiad in 708 BC. There are a wide range of styles with varying rules, with both traditional historic and modern styles. The term "wrestling" in Modern English originated from

3808-523: The opponent in order to throw or choke them. Judo also allows some chokes and joint locks, although they are typically banned for children. Judo is a popular sport in Japan as well as in France, Russia, and eastern Europe. Sambo is a martial art that originated in the Soviet Union (specifically Russia ) in the 20th century. It is an acronym for "self-defence without weapons" in Russian and had its origins in

3876-666: The sport frequently in their works, most notably Plato , Socrates , Aristotle , Xenophon , Epictetus , Seneca , Plutarch , and Marcus Aurelius . Dicaearchus wrote that Plato wrestled at the Isthmian games . Many of Plato's dialogues are set in wrestling schools . Ancient Greek lyric poet Pindar wrote victory odes, grouped into four books named after the Olympian , Pythian , Isthmian , and Nemean Games  – Panhellenic festivals held respectively at Olympia , Delphi , Corinth , and Nemea . These odes were composed to honor

3944-405: The winners of the Isthmian games received a wreath of celery; later, the wreath was altered such that it consisted of pine leaves and called Isthmian pine (Ἰσθμικὴ πίτυς). Victors could also be honored with a statue or an ode . Besides these prizes of honor, the city of Athens awarded victorious Athenians with 100 drachmas . From 228 BC or 229 BC onwards the Romans were allowed to take part in

4012-485: The world. Matches are highly theatrical, with dramatic stories such as feuds between the athletes developed and performed as part of build-up and promotion for matches. Before its increase in popularity in the mid-1980s, professional wrestling in the United States was organised as a cartel of regional monopolies, known as "territories." Wrestling in some of these areas (particularly the Southern and Midwestern United States )

4080-504: Was able to establish superiority, but in 1975 the duration was capped at 40 minutes for the başpehlivan and 30 minutes for the pehlivan category. If no winner is determined, another 15 minutes—10 minutes for the pehlivan category—of wrestling ensues, wherein scores are kept to determine the victor. The annual Kırkpınar tournament, held in Edirne in Turkish Thrace since 1362,

4148-640: Was contested at the first modern Olympics in 1896 , but not at the 1900 games . The international governing body for the sport, United World Wrestling (UWW), was established in 1912 in Antwerp , Belgium as the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA). The first annual NCAA Wrestling Championships were held in 1928 in Ames, Iowa . USA Wrestling , located in Colorado Springs, Colorado ,

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4216-508: Was easy to reach both from land and sea, the Isthmia was a natural meeting place. This festival was open to all Greeks and the Isthmian games were especially popular with Athenians, though the Eleans boycotted them. The Isthmian games were used by many as a forum for political propaganda. These were stephanitic games (i.e., with a crown as prize) and at least until the 5th century BC ( Pindar 's time)

4284-603: Was established as the national governing body of U.S. amateur wrestling in 1983. Some of the earliest references to wrestling can be found in wrestling mythology . Wrestling disciplines, as defined by UWW, are broken down into two categories: international wrestling disciplines and folk wrestling disciplines. Three are Olympic disciplines: Greco-Roman wrestling , men's freestyle wrestling and women's freestyle wrestling. UWW also sanctions associated styles: grappling , amateur pankration, belt wrestling alysh , pahlavani wrestling , beach wrestling , and African wrestling. Sambo

4352-526: Was first called jiao di (butting with horns). In Ancient Greece wrestling occupied a prominent place in legend, literature, and philosophy. Wrestling competition, brutal in many aspects, served as the focal sport of the ancient Olympic Games . Ancient Romans borrowed heavily from Greek wrestling, but eliminated much of its brutality through implementing different rules. Wrestling is referenced throughout both Ancient Greek and Roman literature. Many philosophers and leaders practiced wrestling and/or referenced

4420-486: Was given status as an international style in 1966 by FILA, UWW's predecessor. Greco-Roman (GR) is an international discipline and one of two wrestling disciplines featured in the Olympic Games. This form of wrestling prioritizes upper body attacks, with an emphasis on explosive "high amplitude" throws. Under the Greco-Roman ruleset, it is forbidden to attack the opponent below the belt in the execution of any action (restricting holds, trips, and active but not passive usage of

4488-400: Was often advertised as "French wrestling." Ivan Poddubny achieved major stardom in his homeland and beyond during the interwar period . Judo is a style of wrestling which is derived from jujitsu , a Japanese martial art. As a wrestling style, judo is distinctive in that practitioners, called judoka, wear a heavy jacket and trousers, called a gi , along with a belt. The gi is used to grip

4556-447: Was performed in a relatively less theatrical more serious style, which could vary from realistically sporting to darkly violent, depending on local preference. A different style of professional wrestling evolved in the United Kingdom and spread across Western Europe (where it was known as "Catch" in the non-English speaking countries of mainland Europe). Traditionally in this style, there was less use of storylines and angles to promote

4624-718: Was the most revered prize awarded. In the early period, other prizes awarded included useful commodities such as tripods , kettles , double cups, and various farm animals. In later times, precious metals such as gold, silver, bronze, or steel were also awarded. Competitions known as Aonachs were held in Ireland in the Bronze Age . The most famous of which was the Aonach Tailteann "Tailtin Fair", held at Tailtin ( Teltown ) in Mide . According to

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