Wrestling is a combat and strength sport in which no hitting or kicking is allowed: one tries to bring the opponent to the point where he touches the ground with both shoulders at the same time through regulated holds.
There are two styles of wrestling, the Greco-Roman style and the free style. In the Greco-Roman style, only grabs from the head to the hips are allowed, i.e. the arms, torso and head. In the free style, there are no restrictions on attack zones, one may do holds from the head to the legs and feet. Women only practise the free style. Unlike many other combat sports, techniques that cause pain or injury are prohibited in wrestling.
Since 1896, wrestling (Greco-Roman) has been on the programme of the modern Olympic Games. In 1904, free-style wrestling entered the Olympic programme. Since 2004, women's wrestling has also been an Olympic discipline.
There is often a confusion of concepts between wrestling on the one hand and catch or American ‘pro wrestling’. While wrestling is exclusively a competitive sport, catch places strong emphasis on entertainment, where not only the outcome of the match is often determined in advance, but partly also the course of the match.
A match is divided into three periods of two minutes each, with a 30-second rest in between. In youth, the period length is sometimes shortened to one and a half minutes.
There are two styles of wrestling, the Greco-Roman style and the free style. In the Greco-Roman style, only grabs from the head to the hips are allowed, i.e. the arms, torso and head. In the free style, there are no restrictions on attack zones, one may do holds from the head to the legs and feet. Women only practise the free style. Unlike many other combat sports, techniques that cause pain or injury are prohibited in wrestling.
Since 1896, wrestling (Greco-Roman) has been on the programme of the modern Olympic Games. In 1904, free-style wrestling entered the Olympic programme. Since 2004, women's wrestling has also been an Olympic discipline.
There is often a confusion of concepts between wrestling on the one hand and catch or American ‘pro wrestling’. While wrestling is exclusively a competitive sport, catch places strong emphasis on entertainment, where not only the outcome of the match is often determined in advance, but partly also the course of the match.
A match is divided into three periods of two minutes each, with a 30-second rest in between. In youth, the period length is sometimes shortened to one and a half minutes.