Paris 2024 Olympic Wrestling: Schedule and Defining Moments
Wrestling at the Paris 2024 Olympics ran from August 5 through August 11 at Champ-de-Mars Arena. Eighteen weight classes covered men’s freestyle, men’s Greco-Roman, and women’s freestyle, with six gold medals available in each discipline. The week combined historic achievements with first-time champions, most notably Mijaín López’s fifth consecutive Olympic gold and a strong performance by Japan across the wrestling program.
How the wrestling week unfolded
The competition used staggered brackets rather than conducting every weight class at once. A group began with preliminary rounds and semifinals, then returned for repechage and medal matches. This arrangement placed championship bouts on successive days and allowed spectators to follow both new brackets and conclusions to the previous day’s action.
Repechage gave a further opportunity to wrestlers defeated by finalists. That feature is important when reading Olympic results: an early loss could leave a medal route open, while a competitor whose opponent failed to reach the final could be eliminated. Each weight class awarded two bronze medals, alongside one gold and one silver.
López turns a final appearance into history
On August 6, Cuba’s López defeated Chile’s Yasmani Acosta 6-0 in the Greco-Roman 130kg final. The victory followed his titles at Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016, and Tokyo 2020. He became the first athlete to win the same individual event at five consecutive Summer Olympics.
The final also marked the end of his competitive career. López removed his shoes and left them on the mat, a wrestling tradition associated with retirement. Acosta, meanwhile, secured Chile’s first Olympic wrestling medal by reaching the final, giving the match significance for both countries.
New champions and returning medalists
Amit Elor won the women’s 68kg championship for the United States, defeating Meerim Zhumanazarova 3-0 in the final. Her success showed how quickly an athlete with substantial world-level experience could make an Olympic impact. Japan ultimately led the wrestling medal table, taking eight gold medals during the Paris program.
The American team also produced a third Olympic medal for Helen Maroulis and a debut bronze for Aaron Brooks. Their results illustrate the week’s range: established champions extended their records while newcomers reached the podium. The completed competition therefore offers more than a schedule to revisit; it records a series of distinct achievements across styles, nations, and generations.
All dates in the medal schedule below refer to Paris local time.
Medal-round schedule in Paris
- August 6 — men’s Greco-Roman 60kg and 130kg; women’s freestyle 68kg.
- August 7 — men’s Greco-Roman 77kg and 97kg; women’s freestyle 50kg.
- August 8 — men’s Greco-Roman 67kg and 87kg; women’s freestyle 53kg.
- August 9 — men’s freestyle 57kg and 86kg; women’s freestyle 57kg.
- August 10 — men’s freestyle 74kg and 125kg; women’s freestyle 62kg.
- August 11 — men’s freestyle 65kg and 97kg; women’s freestyle 76kg.
Sources
- United World Wrestling: Paris 2024 schedule and competition guide
- United World Wrestling: official results
- UWW: López and Elor championship report
- USA Wrestling: final medal count
Sources: uww.org; teamusa.com
Tags
Olympic Games, Wrestling
