| | Event type
Super-Heavyweight, Greco-Roman (≤130 kg), Men
| Date | 20 – 21 September 1988 | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Olympic | |
| Location | Sang-mu Che-yuk-gwan, Seongnam | |
| Participants | 16 from 16 countries | |
| Format | Two groups (A and B). Double elimination tournament within each group. Top four in each group advance to placement matches for 1st-8th place. | |
This class was different than in past Olympics as there was a maximum weight limit for the first time, with wrestlers required to no more than 130 kg, or 286 lbs. This was to prevent the massive men who had taken over this class since American Chris Taylor in 1972, who weighed in at over 400 lbs. (182 kg) at the München Olympics.
This class also began the era of Aleksandr Karelin, the Soviet Russian bear of a man who would dominated Greco-Roman wrestling for the next 12 years. Karelin won the gold medal in Seoul by defeating Bulgarian Rangel Gerovski in the final, 5-3, although Gerovski had gotten off to an early 3-0 lead. Karelin would repeat the gold medal performance in 1992 and 1996, and won every World title from 1989-99, before being finally defeated at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in a major upset by American Rulon Gardner.
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | Round Eliminated | CP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Aleksandr Karelin |  URS | – | – | Gold | ||
| 2 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski |  BUL | – | – | Silver | ||
| 3 | 15 | Tomas Johansson |  SWE | – | – | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 2 | Hassan El-Haddad |  EGY | – | – | |||
| 5 | 9 | László Klauz |  HUN | – | – | |||
| 6 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi |  JPN | – | – | |||
| 7 | 16 | Roman Wrocławski |  POL | – | – | |||
| 8 | 1 | Duane Koslowski |  USA | – | – | |||
| 3 | Alexander Neumüller |  AUT | eliminated r3/4 Group A | 5.0 | ||||
| 7 | Lubomír David |  TCH | eliminated r2/4 Group A | 4.0 | ||||
| 11 | Fritz Gerdsmeier |  FRG | eliminated r2/4 Group A | 1.0 | ||||
| 5 | Khodr Bechara |  LBN | eliminated r2/4 Group A | 0.0 | ||||
| 4 | Navind Ramsaran |  MRI | eliminated r2/5 Group B | 4.0 | ||||
| 12 | Dan Payne |  CAN | eliminated r2/5 Group B | 0.0 | ||||
| 6 | Farhan Jassim Mohammed |  IRQ | eliminated r2/5 Group B | 0.0 | ||||
| 14 | Fabio Valguarnera |  ITA | eliminated r2/5 Group B | 0.0 |
Group A - Round One
| Date | 20 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | Lubomír David | TCH | 4.0 | ||
| =2 | 9 | László Klauz | HUN | 3.0 | ||
| =2 | 13 | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | 3.0 | ||
| =2 | 1 | Duane Koslowski | USA | 3.0 | ||
| 5 | 3 | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | 1.0 | ||
| =6 | 11 | Fritz Gerdsmeier | FRG | 0.0 | ||
| =6 | 5 | Khodr Bechara | LBN | 0.0 | ||
| =6 | 15 | Tomas Johansson | SWE | 0.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 20 Sep | Duane Koslowski | USA | Decision (5-3) | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | |
| Match #2 | 20 Sep | Lubomír David | TCH | Fall (0:30) | Khodr Bechara | LBN | |
| Match #3 | 20 Sep | László Klauz | HUN | Passivity (5:30) | Fritz Gerdsmeier | FRG | |
| Match #4 | 20 Sep | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | Passivity (4:00) | Tomas Johansson | SWE |
Group A - Round Two
| Date | 20 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | Event Status | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Duane Koslowski | USA | 7.0 | – | ||
| 2 | 13 | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | 6.0 | – | ||
| 3 | 3 | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | 5.0 | – | ||
| 4 | 7 | Lubomír David | TCH | 4.0 | eliminated | ||
| =5 | 9 | László Klauz | HUN | 3.0 | – | ||
| =5 | 15 | Tomas Johansson | SWE | 3.0 | – | ||
| 7 | 11 | Fritz Gerdsmeier | FRG | 1.0 | eliminated | ||
| 8 | 5 | Khodr Bechara | LBN | 0.0 | eliminated |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 20 Sep | Duane Koslowski | USA | Fall (1:12) | Khodr Bechara | LBN | |
| Match #2 | 20 Sep | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | Injury default (3:44) | Lubomír David | TCH | |
| Match #3 | 20 Sep | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | Passivity (4:43) | László Klauz | HUN | |
| Match #4 | 20 Sep | Tomas Johansson | SWE | Decision (2-1) | Fritz Gerdsmeier | FRG |
Group A - Round Three
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | Event Status | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | 10.0 | – | ||
| =2 | 15 | Tomas Johansson | SWE | 7.0 | – | ||
| =2 | 1 | Duane Koslowski | USA | 7.0 | – | ||
| 4 | 9 | László Klauz | HUN | 6.0 | – | ||
| 5 | 3 | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | 5.0 | eliminated |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 21 Sep | László Klauz | HUN | Decision (2-0) | Duane Koslowski | USA | |
| Match #2 | 21 Sep | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | Fall (4:10) | Alexander Neumüller | AUT | |
| Match #3 | 21 Sep | Tomas Johansson | SWE |
Group A - Round Four
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | 13.5 | ||
| 2 | 15 | Tomas Johansson | SWE | 10.0 | ||
| =3 | 9 | László Klauz | HUN | 7.0 | ||
| =3 | 1 | Duane Koslowski | USA | 7.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 21 Sep | Tomas Johansson | SWE | Decision (2-1) | László Klauz | HUN | |
| Match #2 | 21 Sep | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | Decision (15-0) (2:23) | Duane Koslowski | USA |
Group B - Round One
| Date | 20 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | 4.0 | ||
| =2 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | 3.0 | ||
| =2 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | 3.0 | ||
| =4 | 12 | Dan Payne | CAN | 0.0 | ||
| =4 | 6 | Farhan Jassim Mohammed | IRQ | 0.0 | ||
| =4 | 14 | Fabio Valguarnera | ITA | 0.0 | ||
| =4 | 4 | Navind Ramsaran | MRI | 0.0 | ||
| =4 | 16 | Roman Wrocławski | POL | 0.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 20 Sep | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | Fall (2:09) | Navind Ramsaran | MRI | |
| Match #2 | 20 Sep | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | Passivity (3:51) | Farhan Jassim Mohammed | IRQ | |
| Match #3 | 20 Sep | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | Passivity (5:44) | Dan Payne | CAN | |
| Match #4 | 20 Sep | Fabio Valguarnera | ITA | Dq (double passivity) (5:49) | Roman Wrocławski | POL |
Group B - Round Two
| Date | 20 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | Event Status | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | 7.0 | – | ||
| 2 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | 6.0 | – | ||
| =3 | 4 | Navind Ramsaran | MRI | 4.0 | eliminated | ||
| =3 | 16 | Roman Wrocławski | POL | 4.0 | – | ||
| 5 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | 3.0 | – | ||
| =6 | 12 | Dan Payne | CAN | 0.0 | eliminated | ||
| =6 | 6 | Farhan Jassim Mohammed | IRQ | 0.0 | eliminated | ||
| =6 | 14 | Fabio Valguarnera | ITA | 0.0 | eliminated |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 20 Sep | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | Passivity (4:16) | Farhan Jassim Mohammed | IRQ | |
| Match #2 | 20 Sep | Navind Ramsaran | MRI | Fall (0:48) | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | |
| Match #3 | 20 Sep | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | Passivity (5:27) | Fabio Valguarnera | ITA | |
| Match #4 | 20 Sep | Roman Wrocławski | POL | Fall (4:19) | Dan Payne | CAN |
Group B - Round Three
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | 11.0 | ||
| 2 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | 9.0 | ||
| 3 | 16 | Roman Wrocławski | POL | 4.0 | ||
| 4 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | 3.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 21 Sep | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | Fall (2:14) | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | |
| Match #2 | 21 Sep | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | Passivity (4:23) | Roman Wrocławski | POL |
Group B - Round Four
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | 12.0 | ||
| 2 | 2 | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | 11.0 | ||
| 3 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | 7.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 21 Sep | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | Decision (5-0) | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | |
| Match #2 | 21 Sep | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN |
Group B - Round Five
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | CP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | 15.5 | ||
| 2 | 8 | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | 7.0 |
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 21 Sep | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | Decision (14-0) | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN |
Final Round
| Date | 21 September 1988 |
|---|
| Match | Date/Time | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match 1/2 | 21 Sep | Aleksandr Karelin | URS | Decision (5-3) | Rangel Gerovski | BUL | |
| Match 3/4 | 21 Sep | Tomas Johansson | SWE | Passivity (5:04) | Hassan El-Haddad | EGY | |
| Match 5/6 | 21 Sep | László Klauz | HUN | Passivity (5:00) | Kazuya Deguchi | JPN | |
| Match 7/8 | 21 Sep | Roman Wrocławski | POL |