Unlike Greco-Roman, freestyle and collegiate wrestling allow the use of the wrestler's or the opponent's legs in offense and defense.

In catch-as-catch-can wrestling, both contestants started out standing and then a wrestler sought to hold his opponent's shoulder to the ground (known as a fall).

[4] Catch-as-catch can was the style performed by at least a half dozen U.S. presidents, including George Washington, Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, and Theodore Roosevelt.

Freestyle wrestling gained great popularity in the United States after the Civil War.

[4] Nineteenth century wrestling matches were particularly long, and especially Greco-Roman bouts (where holds below the waist and the use of the legs are not allowed) could last as many as eight to nine hours, and even then, it was only decided by a draw.

[6] For more than forty years into the twentieth century, freestyle and its USA counterpart, collegiate wrestling, did not have a scoring system that decided matches in the absence of a fall.

The introduction of a point system by Oklahoma State University wrestling coach Art Griffith gained acceptance in 1941 and influenced the international styles as well.

[9] In the spring of 2013, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted wrestling out of the core sports for the summer Olympics beginning in 2020[10] As a result of this news the wrestling community started a massive campaign in order to reinstate the sport.

They had several campaigns as well as Facebook and Twitter pages that spread awareness and gathered support for the cause of wrestling's return to the Olympics.

They had a mission of gaining 2,000,020 signatures (online and offline) in support of wrestling's return to the Olympic Games.

[11] In September 2013 the IOC voted to allow wrestling back into the Olympics for 2020 and 2024 as a probationary sport.

Currently, international men's freestyle wrestling is divided into six main age categories: schoolboys, cadets, novice, juvenile, juniors, and seniors.

[14][15] Seniors (men ages 20 and up) wrestle in seven weight classes ranging from 57 to 125 kg (126 to 276 lb).

[16] Women currently compete in freestyle wrestling in one of four age categories on an international level: schoolgirls, cadets, juniors, and seniors.

[17] Seniors (women ages 20 and up) wrestle in seven weight classes ranging from 44 to 72 kg (97–159 lb).

Inside the red zone is the central wrestling area which is seven meters 7 metres (23 ft 0 in) in diameter.

The judge sits at the side of the mat, keeps score, and occasionally gives his approval when needed by the referee for various decisions.

The mat chairman sits at the scoring table, keeps time, is responsible for declaring technical superiority, and supervises the work of the referee and judge.

The referee then calls both of them to his side at the center of the mat, shakes hands with them, inspects their apparel, and checks for any perspiration, oily or greasy substances, and any other infractions.

[24] When the session (or match) has concluded, the referee stands at the center of the mat facing the officials' table.

For example, when one wrestler performs a grand amplitude throw that brings his opponent into the danger position, he is awarded the greatest number of points that can be scored in one instance.

A match can be won in the following ways: In an international wrestling tournament, teams enter one wrestler at each weight class and score points based on the individual performances.

Freestyle wrestling was added to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program effective with the 2020–21 school year.