Wrestling for Amateurs
It’s hard not to get hooked – especially if you’re into grown men hauling one another around in a ring. For some reason, there is an appeal to watching wrestling. Though some insist that it is fake – that the wrestlers are merely performers who can pass for stunt men in a Hollywood movie – the itch to watch is just so easy to scratch that many people spend hundreds of dollars to get ring side tickets to tune in live.
Amateur wrestling, just like its counterpart professional wrestling, is quite popular with blood-curling men and women alike. There are two “international” wrestling styles that are conducted during the Olympic Games – the Freestyle and Greco Roman. They are supervised by FILA or the Federation International des Luttes Associees or International Federation of Associated Wresting Styles.
Freestyle and Greco-Roman have different rules when it comes to which holds are permitted. In Greco-Roman, wrestlers are allowed to hold their opponents and attack them above the waste. In Greco-Roman and Freestyle, the scores accumulated by the wrestlers are eventually the same:
- When an opponent is gained control from a neutral position then a “takedown” has taken place.
- When an opponent is gained control from a defensive position, then a “reversal” occurred.
- When the wrestler escapes his opponent’s control.
- When the wrestler exposes his opponent’s back.
- When the wrestler successfully lifts up his opponent from a defensive position and exposes his back.
- There are various scoring systems when calculating penalty points. Infractions such as acting with brutality, striking your opponent, intending to injure, using illegal holds are considered to be penalties. If the wrestler ends up bleeding, that is considered to be a penalty point. When a wrestler steps out of bounds while he is in a neutral position and the match is taking place, he is penalized and gives his opponent a point.
Format for international amateur wrestling is three two-minute periods. The wrestler who gets two out of the three periods is declared the winner. If the opponents are tied up with 1 point after the second game, the third match is the deciding factor. The only time a match is terminated is when a fall or disqualification occurs.
However, amateur wresting conducted in high schools and universities have different periods. A high school match also has the three two-minute periods but overtimes are allowed.
Winning a Match
There are many ways for a wrestler to win a match:
- Win by Fall. Once a wrestler gains hold of both of his opponents’ shoulders at the same time on the mat, then it is declared to be a “pin”.
- Win by Technical Fall. If a wrestler has a six-point lead over his opponent at any given time while the match is taking place, then he is declared to be the winner of that round.
- Win by Decision. If both wrestlers fail to accomplish any kind of fall, the wrestler who earns the most number of points during the period is the winner. If both wrestlers earn the same number of points, then the judges rule through a criteria based on the international style. In collegiate or high school wrestling, the overtime period will decide who the winner is.
- Win by Major Decision. In collegiate or high school wrestling, if the wrestler outscores his opponent by eight or more points, then he is declared to be the winner by “major decision.” Not only that, he is also rewarded with an additional team point.
- Win by Injury. If a wrestler is injured and can no longer continue competing in the period, then the other wrestler wins the match. This is called “medical forfeit” or “injury default.” It also applies to incidences wherein the wrestler gets injured, has asked for too many time-outs or worse, is bleeding. However, if the wrestler is injured by his competitor’s illegal strike or punch, then the assailant is disqualified.
Moves Not Allowed
Since amateur wrestling requires a lot of grappling, these moves are not allowed:
- pinching and poking with nails, fingers, toes.
- fish hooking the mouth or nose
- biting
- gouging
- striking with the elbows, feet, fists, knees or head
- joint locks such as spinal locks, arm locks and leg locks
- strangling
- smothering
- choke holds
- holding and grasping an opponent’s genitals
- grabbing an opponent’s clothing
The ironic thing is that amateur wrestling is said to be more real than professional wresting that is aired on TV which a number of American s watch. Real or not, there are rules and the last wrestler standing wins.