Wrestling weight classes


In many styles of wrestling, opponents are matched based on weight class.

Olympic and international weight classes

In international competition, men's freestyle wrestling, men's Greco-Roman wrestling, and female wrestling utilize following weight classes as of 2013:

Men's freestyle wrestling

For men's freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling

As of 2006, international freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling for male youths are divided into three age categories: Schoolboys, cadets, and juniors.
Schoolboys compete in freestyle and/or Greco-Roman wrestling in the following 10 weight classes:
Cadets compete in freestyle wrestling and/or Greco-Roman wrestling in the following 10 weight classes:
Juniors compete in freestyle wrestling and/or Greco-Roman wrestling in the following weight classes:
Juniors over the age of 18 are allowed to participate in senior competitions with a medical certificate and parental authorization.

For women's freestyle wrestling

As of 2006, female youth compete in freestyle wrestling on an international level in one of four age categories: Schoolgirls, cadets, and juniors.
Schoolgirls compete in freestyle wrestling in the following 10 weight classes:
Cadets compete in freestyle wrestling in the following 10 weight classes:
Juniors compete in freestyle wrestling in the following eight weight classes:

Elementary school

students competing in wrestling have multiple ways weight classes are determined.
  1. "Madison system" - This is a popular tournament format where there are no weight classes and the tournament director pairs wrestlers into brackets based on weight at weigh-ins. This is a popular method because it discourages "weight cutting" in young athletes.
  2. Division-based system - In this system, the tournament director separates athletes by age, and by weight class. Weight class and division is at the tournament director's discretion.
  3. Pure-weight based system - In this system, the athletes are not divided by age but rather just by weight class. This is rarely used because it pairs younger, less experienced athletes with older, more experienced athletes.

    Middle school

Wrestling weight classes for middle school in the United States vary from state to state and are not regulated by the NFHS. Students may compete in scholastic wrestling in one of the following weight classes:
Alternatively, some other states use these weight classes for middle school:
Still other states use the following weight classes:
And still other states use the following weight classes:
students in the United States competing in scholastic wrestling do so in the following 14 weight classes set by the National Federation of State High School Associations :
The AAU has its own weight classes for their freshman/sophomore tournaments:
Other states have additional or modified weight classes, such as:
The state of Louisiana has different weight classes than the standard classes listed above. The classes include:
and university students in the United States competing in collegiate wrestling do so in the following 10 weight classes set by the National Collegiate Athletic Association :
Also:
The NCWA has also approved the following eight weight classes for its women's division: