Analysis of key stages in the sports development of 2024 Olympic champions in wrestling

Purpose: to analyze the performances of the 2024 Olympic wrestling champions at key stages of their sports development and develop the main trends for each type of wrestling. Material and methods. The following methods were used: analysis of literary sources, retrospective analysis of the results of athletes' sports activities and methods of mathematical statistics. The sports careers of 18 Olympic champions in wrestling in 2024, representing three main types of wrestling: Greco-Roman, freestyle and women's, were analyzed. The main indicators analyzed in the study were: age characteristics and achievements of athletes during their sports careers. All performance data were taken from the official website of the international wrestling federation United World Wrestling. Results: the results of the study showed significant differences in the age characteristics of Olympic champions depending on the type of wrestling. In women's wrestling, the average age of champions was 22,8 years, which indicates the dominance of young athletes. In Greco-Roman wrestling, the average age of champions was 27,7 years, and in freestyle wrestling – 26,5 years. The study also emphasized the importance of the cadet and junior stages in the development of athletes. In women's wrestling, 83,3 % of champions achieved success in cadet competitions, which indicates the importance of early specialization. In Greco-Roman wrestling and freestyle wrestling, these figures were lower – 33,3 % and 33,3 %, respectively. Participation in the world championships among adults also showed high results for women's wrestling – 100,0 %, in Greco-Roman wrestling – 83,3%, while in freestyle wrestling this figure was only 50,0 %. Conclusions. The results of the study indicate a significant influence of different stages of sports career on the formation of Olympic champions in wrestling. World Championships turned out to be a key stage of preparation in all types of wrestling, especially in women's wrestling, where all champions achieved success at this level. Junior competitions also play an important role, especially in Greco-Roman wrestling, which demonstrates the highest participation and success rates. In contrast, the experience of participating in cadet competitions and previous Olympic Games had a much smaller influence on the formation of champions, with the exception of women's wrestling.