The men's freestyle lightweight competition at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo took place from 11 to 14 October at the Komazawa Gymnasium.

If 2 wrestlers remained, point totals were ignored and they faced each other for gold and silver (if they had already wrestled each other, that result was used).

The bout between Horiuchi and Movahed, where a victory of any kind would eliminate the loser and allow the victor to continue, resulted in a draw—keeping both men in the competition.

Rost had the great fortune to receive the bye in this round, guaranteeing he would continue while the field narrowed.

Horiuchi's victory over Atalay in this round eliminated both men at 6 points; it also ultimately served as the tie-breaker between the two for the bronze medal.

Ultimately, the match ended in a tie; Valchev continued on to face Rost in the final while Movahed took 5th place.