Wrestling is a form of combat sport involving grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint

locks, pins and other grappling hol ds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two (occasionally more) competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior po sition. There are a wide range of styles with varying rules with both traditiona l historic and modern styles. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into o ther martial arts as well as military hand-to-hand combat systems. The term wrestling is attested in late Old English, as wrstlunge (glossing palest ram).[1] Contents 1 History 2 Women and wrestling 3 Mythology 4 By country o 4.1 Modern 5 International disciplines (non-folk styles) o 5.1 Greco-Roman o 5.2 Freestyle wrestling o 5.3 Grappling o 5.4 MMA and combat grappling o 5.5 Beach wrestling o 5.6 Oil wrestling o 5.7 Sambo o 5.8 Pankration 6 Folk style disciplines 7 Collegiate wrestling 8 Professional wrestling o 8.1 United States o 8.2 Puroresu o 8.3 Lucha libre o 8.4 Germany 9 Mixed martial arts competition 10 Sport nutrition 11 See also 12 References 13 Notes 14 External links History Main article: Wrestling history Wrestling is one of the oldest forms of combat with references to it as early as the Iliad, in which Homer recounts the Trojan War in the 13th or 12th century B C.[2] The origins of wrestling can be traced back 15,000 years through cave draw ings in France. Babylonian and Egyptian relief's show wrestlers using most of th e holds known to the present-day sport. In ancient Greece, wrestling occupied a prominent place in legend and literature; wrestling competition, brutal in many aspects, was the number one sport of the Olympic Games. The ancient Romans borro wed heavily from Greek wrestling, but eliminated much of its brutality. During the Middle Ages (fifth century to fifteenth century) wrestling remained p opular and enjoyed the patronage of many royal families, including those of Fran ce, Japan and England. Early Americans brought a strong wrestling tradition with them when they came fr om England. The settlers also found wrestling to be popular among Native America ns.[citation needed] Amateur wrestling flourished throughout the early years of the country and served as a popular activity at country fairs, holiday celebrati ons, and in military exercises. The 1st organized national wrestling tournament was held in New York City in 1888, while the 1st wrestling competition in the mo dern Olympic Games was held in 1904 in Saint Louis, Missouri.[citation needed] F ILA was founded in 1912, in Antwerp, Belgium. The 1st NCAA Wrestling Championshi ps were also held in 1912, in Ames, Iowa. USA Wrestling, located in Colorado Spr

ings, Colorado, became the national governing body of amateur wrestling in 1983. It conducts competitions for all age levels. Women and wrestling Also, women's wrestling is gaining popularity around the world. International wr estling federation FILA (Federation Internationale de Luttes Associees - French acronym) and other federations and associations regularly hold tournaments and c hampionships in different parts of the world.[citation needed] The first world w omen's wrestling championship was held in 1987 in Lorenskog, Norway. European wr estlers came away with all the gold medals.[citation needed] Since that time, an increasing number of nations field women's wrestling teams each year and gold h as been spread beyond Europe. Mythology Main article: Wrestling mythology Jacob Wrestling with the Angel illustration by Gustave Dor (1855) Some of the earliest references to wrestling, can be found in wrestling mytholog y. The Mahabharata describes the encounter between the accomplished wrestlers Bhima and Jarasandha. The Epic of Gilgamesh: Gilgamesh established his credibility as a leader, after wrestling Enkidu. Greek mythology celebrates the rise of Zeus as ruler of the earth after a wrestl ing match with his father, Cronus. Both Heracles and Theseus were famous for the ir wrestling against man and beast. By country Shuai Jiao, a wrestling style originating in China, which according to legend, h as a reported history of over 4,000 years. In Pharaonic Egypt, wrestling has been evidenced by documentation on tombs (circ a 2300 BC) and Egyptian artwork (2000-1085 BC). Greek wrestling was a popular form of martial art, at least in Ancient Greece (a bout 1100 to 146 BC).[3] Roman Wrestling: After the Roman conquest of the Greeks, Greek wrestling was abs orbed by the Roman culture and became Roman Wrestling during the period of the R oman Empire (510 BC to AD 500).[citation needed] Arabic literature depicted Muhammad as a skilled wrestler, defeating a skeptic i n a match at one point. The Byzantine emperor Basil I, according to court historians, won in wrestling a gainst a boastful wrestler from Bulgaria in the eighth century.[4] Michiel Sweerts, Wrestling Match, 1649. In 1520 at the Field of the Cloth of Gold pageant, Francis I of France threw fel low king Henry VIII of England in a wrestling match.[4] The Lancashire style of folk wrestling may have formed the basis for Catch wrest ling, also known as "catch as catch can." The Scots later formed a variant of th is style, and the Irish developed the "collar-and-elbow" style which later found its way into the United States.[5] A Frenchman [n 1] "is generally credited with reorganizing European loose wrestl ing into a professional sport", Greco-Roman wrestling.[6] This style which was f inalized by the 19th century and by then, wrestling was featured in many fairs a nd festivals in Europe.[7] Modern Greco-Roman wrestling and modern freestyle wrestling were soon regulated in form al competitions, in part resulting from the rise of gymnasiums and athletic club s. On continental Europe, prize money was offered in large sums to the winners of G reco-Roman tournaments, and freestyle wrestling spread rapidly in the United Kin gdom and in the United States after the American Civil War. Wrestling profession als soon increased the popularity of Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling, worldw

ide.[5][8] Greco-Roman wrestling became an event at the first modern Olympic games, in Athe ns in 1896. Since 1908, the event has been in every Summer Olympics. Freestyle wrestling became an olympic event, in 1904. Women's freestyle wrestlin g was added to the Summer Olympics in 2004. Since 1921, the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA) h as regulated amateur wrestling as an athletic discipline, while professional wre stling has largely become infused with theatrics but still requires athletic abi lity. Today, olympic wrestling is the national sport of several of Russia's Repu blics, Iran, Turkey, Mongolia, Azerbaijan, Gambia, USA and several ex-U.S.S.R na tions.