Analysis of Technical and Tactical Movements Performed in the 2021 and 2022 Senior Freestyle World Championships

This study aimed to perform a notational analysis to examine the technical and tactical aspects of elite male wrestlers participating in the 2021 and 2022 Senior World Wrestling Championships. A total of 598 bout videos were observed and analyzed using the Dartfish Connect Plus 8.0 match analysis program. The analysis process involved four stages: bout analysis preparation, searching and tagging, database creation, and data utilization procedures. Wrestling techniques were categorized into takedowns and throws (standing position) and flips and throws (parterre position). A significant difference was found between attack and counterattack techniques between the 2021 and 2022 World Championships (p < 0.05; χ2 = 8.318). The mean technical points (TPmean) recorded during the first and second periods were 5.2 and 4.4, respectively, in the 2021 World Championship (p > 0.05, d = 0.071), while the mean number of wrestling actions (WAmean) was 1.78 and 1.73 (p > 0.05, d = 0.068) for the same periods. In the 2022 World Championship, TPmean was recorded as 5.1 and 4.4 (p > 0.05, d = 0.061), and WAmean as 1.77 and 1.76 (p > 0.05, d = 0.001) for the first and second periods, respectively. The majority of wrestling techniques were performed in the standing position (61.4% in 2021 and 58.6% in 2022). The findings of the present study demonstrated the dynamic and active nature of wrestling in the 2021 and 2022 World Championships. Furthermore, leg attacks, takedowns, push-outs, and gut wrenches were identified as the most valuable techniques in elite freestyle wrestling