Alexander Karelin

He is universally considered to be the greatest Greco-Roman wrestler of all time. Nicknamed the "Russian Bear", he went undefeated in international competition (spanning from 1987 until 2000), save for being upset in his last match by American Rulon Gardner in the gold-medal match at the Sydney Olympics.

The origins of Greco-Roman wrestling should not be sought in ancient times, since the style practiced by the Greeks and the Romans was actually similar to freestyle wrestling. This style has its origins in the 19th century and was created by a Napoleon soldier named Exbroyat. He performed in Lyon fairs what he called “flat hand wrestling” to differentiate it from other combat sports where hitting his opponent was allowed.

The rules of Greco-Roman wrestling encourage a wrestler to develop a good sense of balance.The use of quick throws and tilts make it easier to illustrate certain principles such as those of balance and direction of throws, as well as, the use of your opponents momentum to your own advantage. Greco-Roman will build a great deal of confidence in the individual wrestler. He learns to move-in instead of pulling-away when he gets into a difficult situation. It also gives a wrestler many more take- downs from the tie-up position. In Greco-Roman wrestling style legs are passive,which means they cannot be used to apply holds, nor can they be attacked. However, this style emphasizes flexibility and upper body strength more than the other styles of wrestling.

Arm drags, bearhugs, and headlocks found in freestyle have greater prominence in Greco-Roman. Throws especially known as a suplex are used, in which the offensive wrestler lifts his opponent in a high arch while falling backward on his own neck to a bridge in order to bring his opponent's shoulders down to the mat. Even on the mat, a Greco-Roman wrestler must still find several ways to turn his opponent's shoulders to the mat for a fall without legs, including (but not limited to) techniques known as the bodylock and the gut-wrench.

Greco-Roman wrestling was the first style registered in the Modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 and this form of professional entertainment became a first class amateur sport during the 20th century. Wrestling was never absent from the Olympic programme, except during the Games in Paris in 1900.

Links:

Official Website of FILA (Fédération Internationale des Luttes Associées)

http://www.fila-wrestling.com

Wikipedia Article

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GRECO-ROMAN_WRESTLING

Alexander Karelin Biography

http://sports.jrank.org/pages/2441/Karelin-Alexander.html