How does a kurash tournament work?
A · Advanced · Referees and the competition · 3 of 4Kurash competitions are knockouts with no repechage. The draw splits the athletes into two halves, A and B, with the strongest seeded apart. The winners of the two halves meet in the final, and the losers of those last fights take third place. With five or fewer entrants, everyone fights everyone.
How it works
- Knockout: the winner of each bout goes on, and the loser is out.
- No repechage: a beaten athlete gets no second route to a medal.
- Two groups: athletes drawn even numbers form group A and odd numbers group B.
- Seeding: the chief referee places the strongest athletes in different groups.
- Draw numbers: kept to the end of the competition.
- Final: the winners of groups A and B fight for first and second place.
- Third place: the athletes who lose to the finalists.
- One day: a weight category is completed in one day.
- Five or fewer: a round robin, ranked by wins, then points scored, then the result between the tied athletes or the fastest wins.
- Kinds of event: individual, team, individual and team, open gilam and absolute championships.
The glossary has the knock-out system, the weight categories, the absolute weight, the chief referee, the age groups and the bout.
Tricky cases
An athlete loses in the first round to the eventual champion. Is there a way back to a bronze medal?
No. The competition runs without repechage, so a beaten athlete is out.
Is there a bout for third place?
No, not in the saved page. It says those who lose the fights before the final get third place, which gives two athletes third.
Four athletes enter a category. Is it a knockout?
No. With five or fewer in the draw, a round robin is held and everyone fights everyone.
Can an athlete enter two weight categories at one event?
No. The only second entry allowed is the absolute weight category, with the chief referee's permission.
Why the rule exists
A straight knockout is quick to run and easy to follow, which matters when a whole weight category has to finish in a day. Seeding keeps the strongest athletes apart until late. The round robin for a very small entry gives each athlete more than one bout.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Six or more entrants | Knockout in two groups | IKA Rules 32.1 to 32.6 |
| Five or fewer | Round robin | IKA Rules 32.8 |
| Judo | A repechage for those beaten in the quarter-finals | C |
| Team championship | Each team's place is decided | IKA Rules 2 |
From the rule book
International Kurash Association, International rules of organization and holding of Kurash competitions (web page, adopted 1998, categories for 2026), sections 2, 4, 25, 27 and 32. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: the federation's competition rules (saved as a web page only).