Iranian wrestlers claimed one gold, two silver and one bronze medal in the first four Greco-Roman weight classes at the 2026 World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Gholamreza Farokhi led the Iranian charge in the 82kg division, while Payam Ahmadi and Ali Ahmadi Vafa earned silver medals at 55kg and 60kg, respectively. Ali Oskou completed Iran’s medal haul with bronze at 77kg.

The championships, running from October 24 to November 1, have brought nearly 900 wrestlers to Astana for competition across Greco-Roman, women’s wrestling and men’s freestyle.

Farokhi, the defending world champion, maintained his grip on the 82kg crown by defeating Türkiye’s Yuksel Saricicek 5-1 in the final. The Iranian had earlier overcome Hungary’s Zoltan Levai, a world silver medalist, by technical superiority before recording a 9-0 victory over Moldova’s Mihail Bradu. His toughest test came in the semifinals against Russia’s Gamzat Gadzhiev where Farokhi prevailed 3-3.

At 55kg, Ahmadi reached his second consecutive world final after an impressive run. He opened with a 10-1 victory over American Max Nowry, followed by a 9-0 win over India’s Lalit and a 7-1 semifinal triumph over Kazakhstan’s Iskhar Kurbayev.

However, the Iranian was unable to overcome Azerbaijan’s Eldaniz Azizli in the gold-medal bout, losing 3-1 to settle for silver. Azizli, a four-time world champion entering the final, added another title to his decorated career. Ahmadi had also won silver at the 2025 World Championships, making him one of Iran’s promising young contenders in Greco-Roman wrestling.

Ahmadi Vafa also came close to gold at 60kg, extending his strong record in age-group wrestling to the senior world stage. After defeating Germany’s Abdolmohammad Papi 9-1 and Romania’s Razvan Arnaut 8-0, he edged Uzbekistan’s Alisher Ganiev, the 2025 world silver medalist, 8-3 in the semifinals.

The final against Japan’s Koto Gomi proved heartbreaking. Ahmadi Vafa built a commanding 7-1 lead but was caught and pinned, handing Gomi the gold medal. The Iranian, a former world champion at under-17, under-20 and under-23 levels, had been seeking to complete a full set of world titles across the three age groups and the senior division.

At 77kg, Oskou secured Iran’s fourth medal of the opening group after a determined campaign. He began with an 11-0 win over Lithuania’s C̦epauskas, followed by a 12-1 victory over Kyrgyzstan’s Yryskeldi Maksatbek Uulu. He then defeated Hungary’s Robert Fritsch 5-1 to reach the semifinals.

Oskou’s gold-medal hopes ended with a 2-0 loss to Azerbaijan’s Sanan Suleymanov, a world silver medalist. The Iranian recovered in the bronze-medal match, edging Uzbekistan’s Doniyorkhon Nakibov 4-3 to secure a place on the podium. The result marked a notable achievement for Oskou, who was making his senior World Championships debut.

Iran will now look to build on its strong opening as the Greco-Roman competition continues in Astana, with the remaining weight classes still to be decided.