ACOG - Wrestling - IBM

Who to Watch in Wrestling - Greco-Roman

Like the freestyle events, the Greco-Roman competition received a wave of newly eligible athletes following the breakup of the Soviet Union. For over three decades, the Soviets dominated Greco-Roman competitions and the division of talent has not diluted the success of the former Soviet Republics.

The three-time world championship team, Russia could continue its dominance in the sport with another team loaded with medal contenders. Perhaps the greatest wrestler of all time, Aleksander KARELIN (130kg) has not lost a match since 1987 on his way to two Olympic gold medals and six World Championship titles. In two previous Olympic tournaments, only two wrestlers have lasted the full 5 minutes against KARELIN. Four-time World Champion Islam DOGUCHIEV (68kg), three-time world champion Mnatsakan ISAKANDARIAN (74kg), two-time World Champion Gogi KOUACHVILI (90kg), 1992 Olympic silver medalist Sergei MARTINOV (62kg) and 1995 World Champion Samvel DANIELE (52kg) could make the Russian Federation's national anthem the most popular tune at the wrestling venue.

Other former Soviet Republics also could continue the tradition with Kazakhstan's two-time World runner-up Jouri MELCHNITCHENKO (57kg) and Ukraine's 1995 World Champion Rustem ADSHY (68kg) and Gregorie SOLDADZE (100kg).

Germany also could reap a share of the medals after finishing second at the 1995 World Championships. Maik BULLMAN dominated the 90kg class for much of the decade, winning the 1992 Olympic gold medal and four world championship titles. Joining BULLMAN as top contenders, Thomas ZANDER won the 1994 world title after finishing seventh at the 1992 Games while Rifat YILDIZ (57kg) won a silver medal in Barcelona. Aldred TER MKRTCHYAN (52kg) was the Olympic runner-up in 1992 competing for the Unified Team.

After a disappointing ninth-place finish at the 1995 World Championships, Cuba bounced back to capture the 1995 World Cup team title. Reigning Olympic champion Hector MILLIAN (130kg) earned a world silver medal in 1994 while Cuba's Nestor ALMANZA (74kg) won a world title in 1993. Wilber SANCHEZ (48kg) was the Olympic bronze medalist in 1992.

Sweden ranks third in all-time Greco-Roman medals won at the Games, and two time World Champion Mikael LJUNGBERG (100kg) could add another gold award to the list. LJUNGBERG ranks number one in the weight class entering the Games while Tomas JOHANSSON (130kg) won an Olympic silver medal in 1992 and a bronze medal in 1988.

Korea, Turkey, France and Poland also will look to continue their wrestling traditions at the Games. Korea's AN Hans-BONG is the defending Olympic champion at 57kg while SIM Kwon-Ho is a favorite in the 48kg class as the reigning World Champion. Two time World Champion Hamza YERLIKAYA leads the delegation from Turkey along with 1995 World Champion and 1992 Olympic silver medalist Hakki BASER (90kg). The fifth-place finisher at 74kg in Barcelona, France's Yvon RIEMER won the 1995 World title while French teammate Ghani YALOUZ (68kg) finished fifth at the 1992 Games and won a silver medal at the 1994 World Championships. A two-time Olympian, Poland's Andrzej WRONSKI won the 100kg Olympic gold medal in 1988 and finished fourth at the 1992 Games.

The United States has won only eight medals in Olympic Greco-Roman competition, but the host team's wrestlers may be peaking for the Games following a fourth-place tie at the 1995 World Championships. Dennis HALL (57kg) could be the U.S. team's best hope for a medal after winning the 1995 World Championship. HALL finished eighth at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.

This is an official publication of The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department.


Olympic Factoid
Closing Ceremony of the 1996 Games involved a crew of 2,100 who worked with more than 3,500 performers as well as thousands of athletes who celebrated on the field of Olympic Stadium.