Wrestling History

Want to learn about wrestling's history? Wrestling has been around ever since humans were on Earth. As soon as men could grab ahold of each other, throw each other to the ground and grapple, wrestling was born. Drawings depicting what could be considered wrestling have been found on cave walls. This shows that people have been wrestling for thousands of years. Read on for more details about wrestling history and how the sport evolved.

It's been documented that wrestling took place in Roman and Greek societies. Wrestling was studied in school and combat was taught as training for soldiers. It is believe wrestling in a relatively primitive style took place at the first Olympic festivals approximately 700 BC. Wrestling as a spectator sport spread through Europe and to the United States over the years. Because there were no rules, any sized man could fight any opponent, resulting in lots of injuries. Bets were placed on the wrestling matches as well, making wrestling a complicated and somewhat corrupt business. The colonists brought wrestling with them from Europe and noted that the Native Americans also were practicing wrestling in their own form. In 1888, there was an organized national wrestling event in New York City.

When the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles began in the early twentieth century, it set up rules and procedures for the sport of wrestling. In 1904, the St. Louis Olympic Games featured wrestling. After that point, it slowly became popular in schools and colleges all over the United States. Teams from schools and colleges set up wrestling teams and they began competing against one another. Professional wrestling followed as well. Wrestling has become more sophisticated over the years. There are many different styles of wrestling today and wrestling continues to grow and develop.