Historic Victory: Iran’s Freestyle Wrestling Team Roars to World Championship After 12 Years

The Iranian national freestyle wrestling team concluded the 2025 World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, with a remarkable haul: one gold, one silver, and three bronze medals—edging out the United States to claim an early lead in the world rankings.

So far, Amirhossein Zareh secured gold in the 125kg category for Iran, while rising star Ahmad Mohammadzadeh captured silver in the 61kg division. Bronze medals went to Mohammad Nokhodi in 79kg, Kamran Qasempour in 86kg, and Amirhossein Firouzpour in 92kg.

Iran still has two finalists in the remaining weight classes: Rahman Amouzad in 65kg and Amirali Azarpeira in 97kg, who will compete for gold on Tuesday night.

Historically, Iran has won the World Championship title five times, with the last victory dating back 12 years to the 2013 World Championships in Hungary. The Iranian team previously topped the podium in 1961, 1965, 1998, 2002, and 2013.

Additionally, Iran has finished as runner-up nine times (1971, 1973, 1995, 2006, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2022, and 2023) and secured third place 14 times in world competitions.

Freestyle wrestling powerhouse the Soviet Union—later competing as Russia—leads the all-time rankings with an astounding 35 world titles, while Iran ranks second with six championships. The United States and Turkey each have five world titles to their name.

It’s worth noting that Iran did not participate in four editions of the World Championships: 1979 in San Diego, USA; 1983 in Kyiv, USSR; 1986 in Budapest, Hungary; and 1987 in Clermont-Ferrand, France.