How Old Is Our Sport Of Wrestling

Last Updated on August 13, 2021 by

Wrestling is one of the earliest sports known to man. Many hundreds of scenes of wrestling matches are sculptured on the walls of ancient Egyp- tian tombs. And they show practically all the holds and falls known to us today. So wrestling was a highly developed sport at least 5,000 years ago! Wrestling as an organized and scientific Ort was probably introduced into Greece from Egypt or Asia. But there is a Greek legend that it was invented by the hero Theseus.

Wrestling was an important branch of athletics in ancient Greece. The Greek wrestlers used to rub oil on themselves and then rub fine sand on the oil, to afford a better hold. The champion wrestler of the ancient world was Milo of Croton, who scored 32 victories in the national games, and had six Olympic victories.

In Japan, where wrestling is very popular, the first recorded wrestling match took place in 23 B.C. The Japanese have a style of wrestling called “Sumo”, in which weight is very important. Some Sumo champions have weighed as much as 135 kilograms, and were tremendously strong, but still, quite light on their feet. In Britain, wrestling was cultivated even in the earliest times. Did you know that fling Henry VIII liked wrestling and was considered to be very good?