Weaponless combat sports have existed since prehistoric times. Wrestling history has recorded various forms of wrestling (and boxing), and many of the details as to how they have evolved.

Some of the earliest accounts of wrestling, can be found in wrestling mythology.

Contents 1 Prehistoric times 2 Asia 3 Mediterranean 4 Middle Ages 5 Modern 6 References 7 Notes

[edit] Prehistoric times

In Mesopotamia and Egypt, forms of belt wrestling were popular, in prehistoric times. ^{[1] [n 1]}

[edit] Asia

Shuai Jiao, a wrestling style originating in China, is arguably the most ancient of all Chinese martial arts, with a reported history of over 4,000 years. (The date may be legendary, but wrestling was reportedly used by the Yellow Emperor during his fight against the rebel Chih Yiu and his army in 2697 BC.) During these matches, the combatants reportedly wore horned helmets that they used to gore their opponents while using a primitive form of grappling. This early style of combat was first called Jiao Ti (butting with horns). Throughout the centuries, the hands and arms replaced the horns while the techniques increased and improved. The name Jiao Ti also changed over time, both through common usage and government decree.^[2]

[edit] Mediterranean

The first documented evidence of wrestling in Egypt appeared circa 2300 BC, on the tomb of the Old Kingdom philosopher Ptahhotep. During the period of the New Kingdom (2000-1085 BC), additional Egyptian artwork (often on friezes), depicted Egyptian and Nubian wrestlers competing. Carroll notes striking similarities between these ancient depictions and those of the modern Nuba wrestlers.^[3] On the 406 wrestling pairs found in the Middle Kingdom tombs at Beni Hasan in the Nile valley, nearly all of the techniques seen in modern freestyle wrestling could be found.^[4] During the period of Ancient Greece (about 1100 to 146 BC), Greek wrestling was a popular form of martial art in which points were awarded for touching a competitor's back to the ground, forcing a competitor to submit or by forcing a competitor out of bounds (arena).^[5] Three falls determined the winner. It was at least featured as a sport since the eighteenth Olympiad in 704 BC. Wrestling is described in the earliest celebrated works of Greek literature, the Iliad and the Odyssey.^[6] Wrestlers were also depicted in action on many vases, sculptures, and coins, as well as in other literature. Other cultures featured wrestling at royal or religious celebrations, but the ancient Greeks structured their style of wrestling as part of a tournament where a single winner emerged from a pool of competitors.^[4] Late Greek tradition also stated that Plato was known for wrestling in the Isthmian games.^[7]

This continued into the Hellenistic period. Ptolemy II and Ptolemy III of Egypt were both depicted in art as victorious wrestlers. After the Roman conquest of the Greeks, Greek wrestling was absorbed by the Roman culture and became Roman Wrestling during the period of the Roman Empire (510 BC to AD 500).^{[citation needed]} Arabic literature depicted Muhammad as a skilled wrestler, defeating a skeptic in a match at one point. By the eighth century, the Byzantine emperor Basil I, according to court historians, won in wrestling against a boastful wrestler from Bulgaria.^[7]

[edit] Middle Ages

In 1520 at the Field of the Cloth of Gold pageant, Francis I of France threw Henry VIII of England in a wrestling match.^[7] In Henry VIII's kingdom, folk wrestling in many places was widely popular and had a long history. In particular, the Lancashire style may have formed the basis for Catch wrestling also known as "catch as catch can." The Scots later formed a variant of this style, and the Irish developed the "collar-and-elbow" style which later found its way into the United States.^[8] The French developed the modern Greco-Roman style which was finalized by the 19th century and by then, wrestling was featured in many fairs and festivals.^[9]

[edit] Modern

Because of that and the rise of gymnasiums and athletic clubs, Greco-Roman wrestling and modern freestyle wrestling were soon regulated in formal competitions. On continental Europe, prize money was offered in large sums to the winners of Greco-Roman tournaments, and freestyle wrestling spread rapidly in the United Kingdom and in the United States after the American Civil War. Professional wrestling soon increased the popularity of Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling around the world with such competitors as Georg Hackenschmidt, Kara Ahmed, Paul Pons, Stanislaus Zbyszko, William Muldoon, and Frank Gotch.^[8][10] When the Olympic games resurfaced at Athens in 1896, Greco-Roman wrestling was introduced for the first time. After not being featured in the 1900 Olympics, sport wrestling was seen again in 1904 in St. Louis; this time in freestyle competition. Since then, Greco-Roman and freestyle wrestling have both been featured, with women's freestyle added in the Summer Olympics of 2004. Since 1921, the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA) has regulated amateur wrestling as an athletic discipline, while professional wrestling has largely become infused with theatrics but still requires athletic ability.

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Images of wrestling, have been found on cylinder seals and a copper statuette, dated 3000 BC.