Iran crowned a dominant campaign by winning the freestyle team title at the 2026 U23 World Championships in Las Vegas on Sunday, finishing ahead of Russia with four gold medals and nine podium finishes.

The Iranian team amassed 180 points to edge Russia, which scored 171, while hosts the United States finished third with 104 points. Iran’s triumph completed a double at the championships, following its earlier victory in the Greco-Roman team standings.

Held from October 12 to 18, the United World Wrestling (UWW) event brought together rising talents from around the world across Greco-Roman, women’s wrestling and freestyle. The freestyle competition, featuring 10 weight classes, concluded on Sunday with the final gold-medal bouts deciding the team standings.

Iran’s title charge gathered momentum on the final day, when Ahora Khateri and Mahdi Yousefi delivered crucial victories to secure the team crown.

Khateri produced one of the tournament’s most dramatic finishes in the 65kg final, overturning a 6-1 deficit against Japan’s Kaiji Ogino to claim a 7-6 victory. The Iranian scored six points in the final 40 seconds to turn the bout around.

Yousefi sealed the team title at 79kg with a 3-1 win over Russia’s Said Saidulov. His victory ensured Iran stayed ahead of its closest rival in the team race.

Iran captures U23 Greco-Roman world title with three golds in Las Vegas

Iran reaffirmed its dominance in U23 Greco-Roman wrestling, capturing the 2026 world team title in Las Vegas with three golds and two bronzes to edge Kazakhstan by five points.

Iran had already secured two gold medals earlier in the freestyle competition. Abolfazl Rahmani defeated Russia’s Arslan Bagaev 5-2 in the 92kg final, while Abolfazl Mohammad Nezhad dominated Georgia’s Aleksandre Abramishvili 10-0 to win the 125kg crown.

Ebrahim Elahi added a silver medal at 70kg, losing 5-3 to Russia’s Magomed Eltemirov in the final.

Iran’s four bronze medals came through Ebrahim Khari at 61kg, Ali Karampour at 74kg, Reza Afshar at 86kg and Mohammadmobin Azimi at 97kg.

Iranian Sports and Youth Minister Ahmad Donyamali congratulated the national freestyle team, saying the triumph once again demonstrated the strength of Iranian wrestling following the country’s Greco-Roman team title.

In his message, Donyamali said the achievement had brought joy and pride to the Iranian people. He congratulated the wrestlers, coaching and support staff, wrestling federation officials and the wider wrestling community, and thanked everyone who contributed to the success.

Meanwhile, Alireza Dabir, head of the Iranian Wrestling Federation reacted to the team title in a short post on X. “Congratulations to the Iranian people on the championship on American soil.”