World Wrestling Championships
International wrestling event
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The World Wrestling Championships for Greco-Roman wrestling (men, since 1904) and freestyle wrestling (men since 1951, women since 1987) are organized by United World Wrestling (UWW).[1]
| World Wrestling Championships | |
|---|---|
| |
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Wrestling World Championship |
| Date | September to October |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location | Various |
| Years active | Unofficially 1904–1920 Officially 1921–present |
| Inaugurated | 1904 |
| Most recent | 2025 Zagreb |
| Previous event | 2024 Tirana |
| Next event | 2026 Manama |
| Organised by | United World Wrestling |
Unofficial editions
Several World Greco-Roman Championships had been held prior to the creation of the International Amateur Wrestling Federation in 1921, the UWW considers those competitions as unofficial.[2]
| Year | Dates | City and host country |
|---|---|---|
| 1904 | 23–26 May |  Vienna, Austria |
| 1905 (1) | 8–10 April |  Berlin, Germany |
| 1905 (2) | 11–13 June | Duisburg, Germany |
| 1907 | 20 May | Frankfurt, Germany |
| 1908 | 8–9 December | Vienna, Austria |
| 1909 | 3 October | Vienna, Austria |
| 1910 (1) | 6 June | Düsseldorf, Germany |
| 1910 (2) | 9 October | Vienna, Austria |
| 1911 (1) | 25–28 March |  Helsinki, Finland |
| 1911 (2) | 29–30 April | Stuttgart, Germany |
| 1911 (3) | 13–14 May | Berlin, Germany |
| 1911 (4) | 24–27 June | Dresden, Germany |
| 1911 (5) | 29 June – 2 July | Vienna, Austria |
| 1913 | 27–28 July | Breslau, Germany |
| 1920 | 4–8 September |  Vienna, Austria |
Editions
Men's freestyle
Men's Greco-Roman
Women's freestyle
| Year | Dates | City and host country | Team champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 24–25 October |  Lørenskog, Norway |
Norway |
| 1989 | 24–25 August |  Martigny, Switzerland |
 Japan |
| 1990 | 29 June – 1 July |  Luleå, Sweden |
Japan |
| 1991 | 24–25 August | Tokyo, Japan |
Japan |
| 1992 | 4–5 September |  Villeurbanne, France |
Japan |
| 1993 | 7–8 August | Stavern, Norway |
Japan |
| 1994 | 6–7 August |  Sofia, Bulgaria |
Japan |
| 1995 | 9–10 September | Moscow, Russia |
Russia |
| 1996 | 29–31 August | Sofia, Bulgaria |
Japan |
| 1997 | 10–12 July | Clermont-Ferrand, France |
Japan |
| 1998 | 8–10 October |  Poznań, Poland |
Russia |
| 1999 | 10–12 September | Boden, Sweden |
 United States |
| 2000 | 1–3 September | Sofia, Bulgaria |
 Japan |
| 2001 | 22–25 November | Sofia, Bulgaria |
 China |
| 2002 | 2–3 November |  Chalcis, Greece |
Japan |
| 2003 | 12–14 September |  New York City, United States |
Japan |
Combined
All-time medal table
Updated after the 2025 World Wrestling Championships.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Soviet Union | 253 | 93 | 69 | 415 |
| 2 | Japan | 146 | 78 | 91 | 315 |
| 3 | Russia | 110 | 67 | 94 | 271 |
| 4 | United States | 90 | 106 | 117 | 313 |
| 5 |  Iran | 77 | 71 | 85 | 233 |
| 6 | Bulgaria | 63 | 96 | 103 | 262 |
| 7 |  Turkey | 60 | 64 | 86 | 210 |
| 8 |  Hungary | 32 | 54 | 52 | 138 |
| 9 |  Cuba | 32 | 28 | 50 | 110 |
| 10 | Sweden | 29 | 36 | 49 | 114 |
| 11 | China | 29 | 23 | 43 | 95 |
| 12 | France | 27 | 24 | 25 | 76 |
| 13 |  Azerbaijan | 23 | 37 | 43 | 103 |
| 14 |  Ukraine | 20 | 22 | 61 | 103 |
| 15 |  Georgia | 18 | 23 | 44 | 85 |
| 16 |  Finland | 17 | 23 | 21 | 61 |
| 17 | Poland | 15 | 38 | 40 | 93 |
| 18 |  Romania | 15 | 33 | 39 | 87 |
| 19 |  Armenia | 15 | 10 | 26 | 51 |
| 20 |  South Korea | 14 | 24 | 25 | 63 |
| 21 |  Canada | 14 | 18 | 33 | 65 |
| 22 |  North Korea | 13 | 7 | 12 | 32 |
| 23 | Norway | 12 | 17 | 29 | 58 |
| 24 |  Germany | 12 | 16 | 35 | 63 |
| 25 | West Germany | 9 | 13 | 19 | 41 |
| 26 |  East Germany | 8 | 23 | 23 | 54 |
| 27 |  Kazakhstan | 8 | 21 | 37 | 66 |
| 28 |  Kyrgyzstan | 8 | 7 | 16 | 31 |
| 29 |  Mongolia | 7 | 29 | 47 | 83 |
| 30 |  Belarus | 7 | 16 | 27 | 50 |
| 31 |  Uzbekistan | 7 | 12 | 25 | 44 |
| 32 |  Serbia | 7 | 1 | 12 | 20 |
| 33 |  Yugoslavia | 5 | 19 | 17 | 41 |
| 34 | Austria | 5 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 35 |  Moldova | 4 | 8 | 6 | 18 |
| 36 |  Russian Wrestling Federation[b] | 4 | 5 | 9 | 18 |
| 37 |  Italy | 3 | 8 | 12 | 23 |
| 38 |  Czechoslovakia | 3 | 6 | 11 | 20 |
| 39 |  Venezuela | 3 | 4 | 5 | 12 |
| 40 |  Egypt | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| – |  Individual Neutral Athletes[c] | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| 41 | Greece | 2 | 3 | 12 | 17 |
| 42 |  Estonia | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 |
| 43 |  Denmark | 1 | 6 | 8 | 15 |
| 44 |  India | 1 | 5 | 18 | 24 |
| 45 |  Chinese Taipei | 1 | 5 | 6 | 12 |
| – |  United World Wrestling[d] | 1 | 4 | 9 | 14 |
| 46 |  Israel | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
| 47 |  Bahrain | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| 48 |  Albania | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 49 |  Ecuador | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 50 |  Belgium | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 51 |  Slovakia | 0 | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 52 | Czech Republic | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 53 |  Puerto Rico | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 54 |  Nigeria | 0 | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| 55 |  Lithuania | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 56 |  Croatia | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
 Latvia | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| 58 |  Netherlands | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 59 |  Lebanon | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 North Macedonia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
 Tajikistan | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 62 |  Brazil | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Tunisia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
 Turkmenistan | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 65 |  Spain | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Switzerland | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | |
| 67 |  Colombia | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
 Pakistan | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 69 |  Argentina | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Chile | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Great Britain | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 San Marino | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Syria | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (73 entries) | 1,243 | 1,236 | 1,669 | 4,148 | |
- Names in italic are national entities that no longer exist.
Team titles
| Country | FS | GR | FW | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soviet Union | 22 | 26 | 0 | 48 |
| Russia | 12 | 13 | 2 | 27 |
| Japan | 0 | 0 | 28 | 28 |
| Iran | 7 | 2 | 0 | 9 |
| Turkey | 5 | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| United States | 5 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Azerbaijan | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| Georgia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| China | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Russian Wrestling Federation[b] | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Bulgaria | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Cuba | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Hungary | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Sweden | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Norway | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Multiple gold medalists
The tables shows those who have won at least 5 gold medals at the World Championships. Boldface denotes active wrestlers and highest medal count among all wrestlers (including these who not included in these tables) per type.
Men's freestyle
| Rank | Wrestler | Country | Weights | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valentin Yordanov | Bulgaria | 52 kg | 1983 | 1995 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
| 2 | Aleksandr Medved | Soviet Union | +87 kg / 97 kg / +97 kg / +100 kg | 1961 | 1971 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 3 | Sergei Beloglazov | Soviet Union | 57 kg / 62 kg | 1979 | 1987 | 6 | 1 | – | 7 |
| Arsen Fadzaev | Soviet Union | 68 kg / 74 kg | 1983 | 1991 | 6 | 1 | – | 7 | |
| Abdulrashid Sadulaev | Russia Russian Wrestling Federation Individual Neutral Athletes | 86 kg / 97 kg / 92 kg | 2014 | 2024 | 6 | 1 | – | 7 | |
| 6 | Jordan Burroughs | United States | 74 kg / 79 kg | 2011 | 2022 | 6 | – | 3 | 9 |
| 7 | Buvaisar Saitiev | Russia | 74 kg / 76 kg | 1995 | 2005 | 6 | – | – | 6 |
| 8 | Makharbek Khadartsev | Soviet Union Russia | 90 kg | 1986 | 1995 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| 9 | Khadzhimurat Gatsalov | Russia | 96 kg / 120 kg / 125 kg | 2005 | 2014 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 10 | Ali Aliev | Soviet Union | 52 kg / 57 kg | 1959 | 1967 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 |
| 11 | Leri Khabelov | Soviet Union Russia | 100 kg / 130 kg | 1985 | 1995 | 5 | – | 1 | 6 |
| 12 | Abdollah Movahed |  Iran | 70 kg / 68 kg | 1965 | 1970 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
Men's Greco-Roman
| Rank | Wrestler | Country | Weights | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aleksandr Karelin | Soviet Union Russia | 130 kg | 1989 | 1999 | 9 | – | – | 9 |
| 2 | Hamid Sourian | Iran | 55 kg / 59 kg | 2005 | 2014 | 6 | – | – | 6 |
| 3 | Rıza Kayaalp | Turkey | 120 kg / 130 kg | 2009 | 2023 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 10 |
| 4 | Mijaín López | Cuba | 120 kg / 130 kg | 2005 | 2015 | 5 | 3 | – | 8 |
| 5 | Gogi Koguashvili | Russia | 90 kg / 97 kg | 1993 | 1999 | 5 | – | 1 | 6 |
| 6 | Nikolay Balboshin | Soviet Union | 100 kg | 1973 | 1979 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
| Viktor Igumenov | Soviet Union | 78 kg / 74 kg | 1966 | 1971 | 5 | – | – | 5 | |
| Valery Rezantsev | Soviet Union | 90 kg | 1970 | 1975 | 5 | – | – | 5 | |
| Aleksandar Tomov |  Bulgaria | +100 kg | 1971 | 1979 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
Women's freestyle
| Rank | Wrestler | Country | Weights | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saori Yoshida | Japan | 55 kg / 53 kg | 2002 | 2015 | 13 | – | – | 13 |
| 2 | Kaori Ichō | Japan | 63 kg / 58 kg | 2002 | 2015 | 10 | – | – | 10 |
| 3 | Hitomi Obara (Sakamoto) | Japan | 51 kg / 48 kg | 2000 | 2011 | 8 | – | – | 8 |
| 4 | Christine Nordhagen | Canada | 70 kg / 68 kg / 75 kg | 1993 | 2001 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| 5 | Yayoi Urano | Japan | 75 kg / 70 kg / 65 kg | 1990 | 1996 | 6 | 1 | – | 7 |
| 6 | Adeline Gray | United States | 67 kg / 72 kg / 75 kg / 76 kg | 2011 | 2023 | 6 | – | 3 | 9 |
| 7 | Kyōko Hamaguchi | Japan | 75 kg / 72 kg | 1997 | 2010 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 8 | Zhong Xiue | China | 44 kg / 47 kg / 46 kg | 1991 | 1999 | 5 | 2 | – | 7 |
| 9 | Shoko Yoshimura | Japan | 44 kg | 1987 | 1996 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 10 | Liu Dongfeng | China | 75 kg | 1991 | 1997 | 5 | – | 1 | 6 |
| Stanka Zlateva | Bulgaria | 72 kg | 2006 | 2011 | 5 | – | 1 | 6 | |
| 12 | Nikola Hartmann | Austria | 61 kg / 62 kg | 1993 | 2000 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
See also
- Wrestling World Cup
- U17 World Wrestling Championships
- U23 World Wrestling Championships
- World Wrestling Clubs Cup
- World Beach Wrestling Championships
- List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (freestyle)
- List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (Greco-Roman)
- List of World Championships medalists in wrestling (women)
- List of World and Olympic Champions in men's freestyle wrestling
- List of World and Olympic Champions in Greco-Roman wrestling
- List of World and Olympic Champions in women's freestyle wrestling
Notes
- At the 2021 World Championships, in accordance with a ban by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), wrestlers from Russia were not permitted to use the Russian name, flag, or anthem. They instead participated under the name and the modified flag of the Russian Wrestling Federation (RWF).
- At the 2023 and 2024 World Wrestling Championships, in accordance with sanctions imposed following by the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, wrestlers from Russia and Belarus were not permitted to use the name, flag, or anthem of Russia or Belarus. They instead participated as "Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN)", their medals were not included in the official medal table.
- Wrestlers from India at the 2023 World Championships and Belarus and Russia at the 2025 World Championships were not permitted to use the name, flag, or anthem of their countries. They instead participated under the name and the flag of the United World Wrestling (UWW), their medals were not included in the official medal table.