| Date | 5 August 2012 | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Olympic | |
| Location | ExCeL, Newham, London (North Arena 2) | |
| Participants | 19 from 19 countries | |
| Format | Single elimination tournament. Competitors losing to the finalists entered repechage tournament for bronze medals. | |
In a field of strong competitors, Hamid Soryan of Iran and Rövşən Bayramov of Azerbaijan stood out as the two wrestlers most likely to reach the final match of the men’s featherweight Greco-Roman wrestling event. Soryan was a five-time World Champion (2005-2007, 2009-2010) and a strong prospect to win Iran’s first Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling. He had taken the past season off, however, allowing Bayramov to claim the title of reigning World Champion. Both were veterans of the 2008 Games, but had never met at the Olympics, as Soryan was defeated by eventual gold medalist Nazyr Mankiyev in the quarterfinals. Bayramov had survived to the final match, although he too was outclassed by Mankiyev and forced to settle for silver. With Mankiyev having bowed out of defending his crown, the opportunity was ripe for either wrestler to capture the crown.
Up through the final, Bayramov never suffered a single point in his matches, making him appear to be the strongest contender for gold. Soryan struggled somewhat against his first opponent, Arsen Eraliyev of Kyrgyzstan, but managed to avoid taking any more points in the quarter or semi-finals. The first period of the final went scoreless for 90 seconds, necessitating a par terre finish where Soryan was able to score for two points. In the second period, Soryan converted one of Bayramov’s attacks into a point advantage, which was all he needed to claim his nation’s first Olympic Greco-Roman crown.
In the first bronze medal match, Hungarian Péter Módos defeated Denmark’s Håkan Nyblom in three periods. Each round went to par terre and, although the Dane successfully defended in the first period, he was penalized for a leg grab and lost the round 0-3. Módos was unable to defend when on the bottom, giving the second round to Nyblom and extending the match to a third period. Scoreless at the end of 90 seconds, and with their points and cautions tied, a ball was drawn to determine which competitor would choose the positions in the final par terre. Módos won and chose to be on top, successfully scoring on Nyblom and earning the podium spot. The second bout, between Mingiyan Semyonov of Russia and Choi Gyu-Jin of South Korea, was more straightforward but far more aggressive. After a heated exchange in the first period, which Semyonov won 3-1, the Russian clenched the bronze medal by successfully defending in the second period’s par terre.
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to round two. Losers to eventual finalists advanced to repêchage round one. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Fouad Fajari | MAR | ||||
| Match #2 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Håkan Nyblom | DEN | ||||
| Match #3 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Elbek Tazhyieu | BLR | ||||
| Match #4 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Kohei Hasegawa | JPN | ||||
| Match #5 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Hamid Sourian | IRI | ||||
| Match #6 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Arsen Eraliyev | KGZ | ||||
| Match #7 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Elmurat Tasmuradov | UZB | ||||
| Match #8 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Péter Módos | HUN | ||||
| Match #9 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Gustavo Balart | CUB | ||||
| Match #10 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Ayhan Karakuş | TUR | ||||
| Match #11 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Yun Won-Chol | PRK | ||||
| Match #12 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Choi Gyu-Jin | KOR | ||||
| Match #13 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Aleksandar Kostadinov | BUL | ||||
| Match #14 | 05 Aug 13:00 | North Arena 2, Mat A | Li Shujin | CHN | Decision | Viuhar Rahimov | UKR | |
| Match #15 | 05 Aug 13:00 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Rövşən Bayramov | AZE | Decision by shutout | Mingiyan Semyonov | RUS | |
| Match #16 | 05 Aug 13:00 | North Arena 2, Mat C | Spenser Mango | USA | Decision | Abouhalima Al-Sa'id | EGY |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to quarter-finals. Losers to eventual finalists advanced to repêchage round one. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug 13:18 | North Arena 2, Mat A | Håkan Nyblom | DEN | Decision by shutout | Fouad Fajari | MAR | |
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 13:27 | North Arena 2, Mat A | Kohei Hasegawa | JPN | Decision by shutout | Elbek Tazhyieu | BLR | |
| Match #3 | 05 Aug 13:36 | North Arena 2, Mat A | Hamid Sourian | IRI | Decision | Arsen Eraliyev | KGZ | |
| Match #4 | 05 Aug 13:18 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Péter Módos | HUN | Decision by shutout | Elmurat Tasmuradov | UZB | |
| Match #5 | 05 Aug 13:27 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Gustavo Balart | CUB | Decision by shutout | Ayhan Karakuş | TUR | |
| Match #6 | 05 Aug 13:36 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Choi Gyu-Jin | KOR | Decision by shutout | Yun Won-Chol | PRK | |
| Match #7 | 05 Aug 13:18 | North Arena 2, Mat C | Li Shujin | CHN | Decision | Aleksandar Kostadinov | BUL | |
| Match #8 | 05 Aug 13:27 | North Arena 2, Mat C | Rövşən Bayramov | AZE | Decision by shutout | Spenser Mango | USA |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to semi-finals. Losers to eventual finalists advanced to repêchage round two. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug 14:12 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Håkan Nyblom | DEN | Decision by shutout | Kohei Hasegawa | JPN | |
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 14:21 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Hamid Sourian | IRI | Decision by shutout | Péter Módos | HUN | |
| Match #3 | 05 Aug 14:30 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Choi Gyu-Jin | KOR | Decision | Gustavo Balart | CUB | |
| Match #4 | 05 Aug 14:39 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Rövşən Bayramov | AZE | Decision by shutout | Li Shujin | CHN |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to final. Losers advanced to repêchage final. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug 15:24 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Hamid Sourian | IRI | Decision by shutout | Håkan Nyblom | DEN | |
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 15:33 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Rövşən Bayramov | AZE | Decision by shutout | Choi Gyu-Jin | KOR |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to repêchage round two. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug | North Arena 2 | Arsen Eraliyev | KGZ | ||||
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 17:45 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Mingiyan Semyonov | RUS | Decision by shutout | Spenser Mango | USA |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|---|
| Format | Winner of each match advanced to repêchage final. |
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug 18:05 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Péter Módos | HUN | Decision by shutout | Arsen Eraliyev | KGZ | |
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 18:25 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Mingiyan Semyonov | RUS | Decision by shutout | Li Shujin | CHN |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match #1 | 05 Aug 18:45 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Péter Módos | HUN | Decision | Håkan Nyblom | DEN | |
| Match #2 | 05 Aug 18:54 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Mingiyan Semyonov | RUS | Decision | Choi Gyu-Jin | KOR |
| Date | 5 August 2012 |
|---|
| Match | Date/Time | Location | Competitor | NOC | Result | Competitor | NOC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match 1/2 | 05 Aug 19:03 | North Arena 2, Mat B | Hamid Sourian | IRI | Decision by shutout | Rövşən Bayramov | AZE |