Freestyle Wrestling World Cup Brings Olympic-Style Global and Cultural Experience to Iowa
eTravel Wire/10220446

CORALVILLE, Iowa - eTravelWire -- You don't have to be a wrestling fan to get excited about a unique, three-day global and cultural event that's just weeks away. For the first time in history, men's and women's Freestyle World Cup wrestlers from around the globe, including the Ukrainian women's team, will compete in side-by-side events on the same international stage—and it will happen in Coralville, Iowa at the Xtream Arena.

Elite athletes from 16 countries will come together to celebrate their sport and their countries. "We are so excited to be able to host this event," said Think Iowa City President Joshua Schamberger. "It will be as close to an Olympic experience as you can get without having to travel abroad or pay for Olympic-priced tickets."

The World Cup is the annual international dual-meet championships. The top five countries to qualify for the Men's Freestyle World Cup include the United States, Iran, Japan, Georgia, and Mongolia. The top five countries for the women's teams are Japan, United States, China, Mongolia, and Ukraine. Qualifying countries are determined based on the overall team results from the Senior World Championships events held in September in Belgrade, Serbia.

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Beyond wrestling, there are many reasons people will want to attend, Schamberger said. "The World Cup will truly be a global event, with thousands of local wrestling fans filling the stands, hundreds of people in attendance visiting from around the world, and tens of thousands of fans tuning-in from their home countries."

This first-of-its-kind event for women's wrestling coincides with the 50-year celebration of Title IX.  Monica Nieves, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Think Iowa City, said many fans will want to come and support the rise of women's wrestling, which has seen exponential growth worldwide and will become a sanctioned sport at the University of Iowa in 2023.

"We want a big supportive crowd, no matter what country people want to support," said Coralville City Manager Kelly Hayworth. "These events are known for bringing an energy and electricity that is amazing to be a part of."

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Schamberger said Iowa has long been a powerful name in wrestling, and these events will bring worldwide attention to the Iowa City/Coralville community – otherwise known as Wrestling Town, USA. "We expect this event to have a huge economic impact on our region,"  he said. "In 2018, we hosted the men's freestyle World Cup and the impact was estimated at just over $5 million. So from a cultural and economic impact, this event really has it all."

More information about the event, the teams, the schedule, and ticket purchases can be found at http://www.worldcupiowacity.com.