Soon after we saw the hype of the Paris Olympics, the 2024 World Wrestling Championship is back to create buzz among sports enthusiasts. As the Paris Olympics participants are not eligible to compete, various notable athletes are linked to participate in WWC. Returning after 8 years, the 4-day event scheduled in Albania is seeing over 300 wrestlers competing under different categories. As the excitement builds, the stage is set for some unforgettable matchups.

With specific categories divided as freestyle wrestling, women’s wrestling, and Greco-Roman wrestling, wrestlers including Jordan Burroughs, David Taylor, Abdulrashid Sadulaev, and Udit have accumulated immense views from their respective matches. With 2 days already gone by, the event is live on the United World Wrestling website, while online users can go for the UWW App to screen the match. The stakes are higher than ever, setting the stage for unexpected twists.

David Taylor’s shocking loss to Russia’s Abdulrashid Sadulaev

David Taylor is currently experiencing an unexpected turn of events, suffering a devastating first-round loss against Russia’s Abdulrashid Sadulaev under the 92 kg category. Sadulaev, a five-time world champion and two-weight Olympic champion, claimed the win with a 7-0 score.

With three world titles in 86 kg, David, who was looking forward to competing against the Russian star, now remains disappointed. In his recent interview with Olympics.com before the World Championship, David shared his interest in competing against Sadulaev and the past approach of a call-out match in 2020. “I’ve been in a lot of big matches in my life and wrestled all the legends in our sport. And he’s just the one guy I hadn’t got to. So I really want to make it happen.”

Following his defeat at the U.S. Olympics Trial to Aaron Brooks, the 33-year-old freestyle wrestler who was back for redemption got himself to fall a bit short. Claiming a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, David’s elimination from the championship is a devastating loss for all. The head-to-head competition between two of the best pound-for-pound wrestlers was, however, an exciting match for the audience.

Now advanced to the finals after defeating Kamran Ghasempour, Sadulaev’s final match is now worth the wait. With eagerness, anticipation, and restlessness increasing, Jordan Burroughs’s participation at the championship also provided a highlighting turn of events.

Jordan Burroughs proved he is still a powerhouse

Donning six gold medals at the World Championships, the 36-year-old freestyle wrestler started off with a win against Zelimkhan Khadjiev of France. Securing a 5-0 win, Jordan led towards another victory claimed against Turkish wrestler Magomet Evloev. Receiving competition at first, he finally secured the win by 4-2.

Carrying hopes to win his third world title in the 79 kg category, Jordan has now entered the quarterfinals. Facing Iran’s Mohammad Nokhodilarimi, Jordan is quite close to getting his 8th Olympic gold. Besides Jordan’s powerhouse role, Vito Arujau is another impactful player in the 2024 World Wrestling Championship.

Vito Arujau came back with full strength for his showdown against Udit

Spirits and hopes are high for our 25-year-old American wrestler, who is very close to winning his second world title. Vito Arujau’s competition, defeating India’s Udit by 4-2, followed by his win against Serbian wrestler Azamat Tuskaev with a 6-3 lead, qualifies him for the semifinals.

With Japan’s Masanosuke Ono to compete, Vito’s performance against the Asian star is one to look for. Just a few days left for the finals. All eyes are now on the main contenders. Whether it is Jordan or Vito, one has to watch for the final match to see who takes away the gold medal and remains to be titled as the 2024 World Wrestling Championship winner.