FILA Considers Shirtless Uniform for Greco-Roman Wrestling

FILA has recently proposed a shirtless uniform for Greco-Roman wrestlers, according to an article in the Swedish paper Bladet. Apparently part of the idea may be a visual distinction between Greco-Roman and Freestyle, since the two styles are quite different, yet share the same uniform. However, I would propose allowing Freestyle wrestlers to compete shirtless as well and making the visual distinction in other ways, perhaps trunks versus tights. In a spectator setting such as the Olympics, it might be sensible to make a visual distinction in the mats they are competing on, such as colors or even labels stating whether the mat is featuring Greco-Roman or Freestyle competition. At any rate, it is good to hear that they are considering the option.

This raises another interesting question, though. Would they consider a shirtless option for submission wrestlers? While it is not in the Olympics, one of FILA's styles is submission wrestling, and FILA is the only major governing body for submission wrestling that requires a shirt or rashguard.

If you want to weigh in on the proposed shirtless uniform, or suggest extending shirtless options to freestyle or submission wrestling, contact info for FILA is found in a previous post on this blog.