Freestyle & Greco-Roman

Men’s and Women’s Freestyle and Men’s Greco-Roman are the styles of wrestling in the Olympics.  The USA is the only country that wrestles folkstyle. Freestyle and Greco opens the door for local and state competitions as well as premier national and international competitions. 

Major Rule Differences

·         Exposure Rule – you are awarded 2 points if you can expose your opponent’s back to the mat beyond 90 degrees for any amount of time. It is not necessary to hold them on their back for a count.

·         Locking Hands – you are allowed to lock your hands around the body even when on the mat

·         Step Out- If you can force your opponent out of bounds, or they step out that is worth 1 point

·         Greco Roman - not allowed to attack below the waist so it is focused on controlling the ties, hand-fighting, and throwing.

Benefits for Folkstyle

Fun

·         Change of Pace - It feels like a new/different activity while still training your wrestling skillset

·         Learning – adding new and exciting moves while spending time on areas where there is not as much focus during the folkstyle season.

·         Creativity – the exposure rule and less rules i.e. locking hands, allows for more creative ways to score

Encourage Risk Taking

·         Higher Reward – takedowns are still worth 2 points but a feet-to-back move (i.e. throw, fireman’s carry, double leg) is worth 4

·         Do Over! – if you try a move and “slip” you get put back up in the neutral position without giving up points

Neutral

·         Focus on the Feet – although mat wrestling is an important way to score in the Olympic styles, both periods start in the neutral position. After a takedown, if the top wrestler cannot turn their opponent in about 15 seconds the ref will restart them in neutral

·         Finish Quickly – because of the exposure rule being incorporated into defense, the attacking wrestler must finish quickly so they are not tipped over to their back or rolled through

·         Control the Mat – stepping out of bounds is worth 1 point so it teaches wrestlers to stay in the center and wrestle on the edge of the mat to stay in

·         Stay Off Your Back – keep your head up and hips square to the mat so you don’t give up exposure points.  This translates great to folkstyle fundamentals where sometimes you see wrestlers too comfortable with rolling across their back

Top

·         Turns – in the Olympic styles, there is no escape point so the bottom wrestler usually defense by laying flat on the mat as to not get turned.  If you can turn someone whose only goal is to not get turned, that will help you in folkstyle.  Some of the techniques are different, but the forward pressure, using your legs to drive/turn, and bridging will all help your folkstyle top game.  Plus, there is no riding just for the sake of staying in the top position – you either get a turn or you go back to neutral

·         Transitions – quickly going from takedown to turn is important because you only have a short time to work on top before the ref puts you back on your feet

Bottom

·         (repeat) Stay Off Your Back – learning how to keep your hips square, shift your weight, or “hip away” to avoid being turned is a great benefit of the Olympic styles

Keep Wrestling!

·         If a wrestler scores a takedown, after a brief moment on the mat the wrestlers will be returned to their feet. The one who score must look to score again rather than just ride/hold someone down. The wrestler who was taken down gets to try to score a takedown without having to stand up, get out of legs etc.

·         Someone is always winning or losing. There is not overtime and there are no ties. There is criteria that determines a winner so there is no tie score with letting the clock tick until OT. Someone is always losing thus looking to score.

Constraints Led Approach

By competing with a different rule-set, wrestlers are forced to come up with new ways to score, defend, and different match strategies and tactics. In greco for instance, removing the ability to score from leg attacks, forces wrestlers to find ways to score with upper body attacks. When leg attacks are again allowed in folkstyle, the wrestler will now not only have the leg attacks they already had, but also the upper body techniques they gained.

Conclusion

Freestyle and Greco encourages the development of versatile, dynamic, and well-rounded wrestlers. The change of styles is energizing and motivating while kids get to learn how to wrestle like their Olympic heroes!