page_title: 1896 Summer Olympics
section_title: Wrestling
hierarchical_section_title: 1896 Summer Olympics / Events / Wrestling
caption_attribution_description: Carl Schuhmann (GER) and Giorgios Tsitas at Athens 1896
context_page_description: The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, were held at Athens in Greece.
  The games took place from April 6 to 15, 1896. It was the first international Olympic Games held in the Modern era. As Ancient Greece was the birthplace of the Olympic Games, Athens was an appropriate choice to stage the inaugural modern Games. The International Olympic Committee was also instituted during this congress.
  The 1896 Olympics were regarded as a great success even though there were many obstacles and setbacks. The Games had the largest international participation of any sporting event to that date. The Panathinaiko Stadium, the only Olympic stadium used in the 19th Century, overflowed with the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event. The highlight for the Greeks was the marathon victory by Spyridon Louis. The most successful competitor was German wrestler and gymnast Carl Schuhmann, who won four events.
  After the Games, Rhys Coubertin and the IOC were petitioned by several prominent figures including Greece's King George and some of the American competitors in Athens, to hold all the following Games in Athens.
context_section_description: No weight classes existed for the wrestling competition, held in the Panathinaiko Stadium, which meant that there would only be one winner among competitors of all sizes. The rules used were similar to modern Greco-Roman wrestling, although there was no time limit, and not all leg holds were forbidden (in contrast to current rules).
  Apart from the two Greek contestants, all the competitors had previously been active in other sports. Weightlifting champion Launceston Elliot faced gymnastics champion Carl Schuhmann. The latter won and advanced into the final, where he met Georgios Tsitas, who had previously defeated Stephanos Christopoulos. Darkness forced the final match to be suspended after 40 minutes; it was continued the following day, when Schuhmann needed only a quarter of an hour to finish the bout.
caption: Carl Schuhmann (left) and Georgios Tsitas shake hands before the final match of the wrestling competition.
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