Wrestlers try to push each other to the ground inside the wrestling ring.
They do it on a wrestling mat.
Wrestlers wear soft leather boots.
There are wrestling events for men and for women.
Wrestling is an Olympic sport for men and women.
Wrestlers try to push their opponent to the mat and hold them there. © iStock
In a wrestling competitions wrestlers try to push their opponent to the ground and hold him or her there.
Two styles of wrestling
There are 2 styles of wrestling: greco-roman and free style.
In the greco-roman style, wrestlers are allowed to hold their opponent from the waist up.
In free style wrestling holds are allowed on the whole body.
The referee watches to make sure wrestlers obey the rules. © Getty Images
Wrestling matches consist of two, three-minute parts, called rounds, with a 30 second break between parts.
A referee makes sure that wrestlers obey the rules. The referee awards points to wrestlers for how well they wrestle. The referee can also take points off a wrestler for breaking a rule. The wrestler who gets the most points and wins two rounds, wins the match.
Greco-Romas style wrestler throws his opponent to the mat. ©iStock
Wrestlers are grouped by weight into 8 different wrestling classes. The lightest wrestlers are in the light flyweight class. They weigh up to 48 kilograms.
The heaviest wrestlers are in the super heavyweight class. They weigh over 100 kilograms and up to 130 kilograms.
Statue of ancient wrestlers ©iStock
History of wrestling
There are prehistoric cave drawings and carvings of wrestlers which date back fifteen thousand years.
Wrestling is thought to be the oldest competitive sport. The sport was introduced into the ancient Olympics in 708 BC. The wrestlers competed in the nude!
Wrestling was also popular in the ancient civilisations in China, Japan, Egypt and India.
Freestyle wrestling became a sport for women in 2004, at the Athens Games.
