Wrestling has roots in nearly every culture and had a solid foundation in ancient Greece long before the first recorded Olympic Games in 776 B.C. Greek wrestling was an extremely popular form of competition.

Greco-Roman wrestling is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. It was contested at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been included in every edition of the summer Olympics held since 1908. This style of wrestling forbids holds below the waist; this is the major difference from freestyle wrestling, the other form of wrestling at the Olympics. This restriction results in an emphasis on throws because a wrestler cannot use trips to take an opponent to the ground, or avoid throws by hooking or grabbing the opponent's leg. Freestyle wrestling is a style of amateur wrestling that is practiced throughout the world. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic games. American high school and college wrestling is conducted under different rules and is termed scholastic and collegiate wrestling. Freestyle wrestling’s ultimate goal is to throw and pin your opponent to the mat, which results in an immediate win. Freestyle and collegiate/folkstyle wrestling, unlike Greco-Roman, allow the use of the wrestler's or his opponent's legs in offense and defense. Collegiate wrestling or folkstyle wrestling, is a style of amateur wrestling practiced at the college and university level in the United States. Collegiate/folkstyle wrestling emerged from the folk wrestling styles practiced in the early history of the United States. This style, with some slight modifications, is also practiced at the high school and middle school levels, and also among younger participants, where it is known as scholastic wrestling. Collegiate wrestling’s goal, like its international counterpart, freestyle wrestling, is to pin the opponent to the mat, which results in an immediate win. Collegiate and freestyle wrestling, unlike Greco-Roman, also both allow the use of the wrestler's or his opponent's legs in offense and defense. The international styles (freestyle and Greco-Roman) encourage explosive action and risk, while collegiate/folkstyle wrestling encourages and rewards control over the opponent.

In collegiate/folkstyle wrestling, there is a de-emphasis on "throws", or maneuvers where the other wrestler is taken off his feet, taken through the air, and lands on his back or shoulders. This lack of emphasis on throws is another example of how collegiate wrestling emphasizes dominance or control, as opposed to the element of risk and explosive action.