Rulon Ellis Gardner is an American retired Greco-Roman wrestler. He won the gold medal at the 2000 Olympic Games, defeating Russia's three-time reigning Olympic gold medalist Aleksandr Karelin in the final; Karelin was previously unbeaten for 13 years in international competition. Gardner won a bronze medal at the 2004 Games. In 2010, he was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member.
Sambo is a martial art with Soviet origins, an internationally practised combat sport, and a recognized style of amateur wrestling included by UWW in the World Wrestling Championships along with Graeco-Roman wrestling and freestyle wrestling.
Savio Vega is a ring name of Juan Rivera, a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is known for his work in the World Wrestling Council, where he won the WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship three times and the WWC Puerto Rico Heavyweight Championship three times. During the 1990s, he worked for the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), initially under the masked, villainous and venom-spewing Kwang gimmick. He later portrayed Savio Vega, the eventual leader of a Puerto Rican stable, Los Boricuas.
Adrian Neil Adams, is an English judoka who won numerous Olympic and World Championship medals in judo representing Great Britain. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1983 New Year Honours for services to judo.
James A. Pedro is an American retired World Champion and Olympic judoka, as well as a current judo coach. Pedro currently holds a 7th degree black belt in judo. He is the coach of Kayla Harrison, the first and currently only American to win an Olympic gold medal in judo.
Hendrik "Henk" Numan was a judoka from the Netherlands, who won a bronze medal in half-heavyweight division (–95 kg) at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. His only loss at that tournament was against the later champion Robert Van De Walle from Belgium. A year earlier, Numan won a bronze medal at the 1979 World Judo Championships. In 1992, he also competed in Japanese professional wrestling for Fighting Network RINGS as a part of Chris Dolman's team.
Canary Islanders, or Canarians, are the people of the Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain near the coast of Northwest Africa. The distinctive variety of the Spanish language spoken in the region is known as habla canaria or the (dialecto) canario. The Canarians, and their descendants, played a major role during the conquest, colonization, and eventual independence movements of various countries in Latin America. Their ethnic and cultural presence is most palpable in the countries of Uruguay, Venezuela, Cuba and the Dominican Republic as well as the US territory of Puerto Rico.
Israel has competed at the Olympic Games as a nation since 1952. Its National Olympic Committee was formed in 1933, during the British Mandate of Palestine. Israel has sent a team to each Summer Olympic Games since 1952, and to each Winter Olympic Games since 1994. Israel became a member of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in 1994. At the 2024 Summer Olympics, Israel won seven Olympic medals, the most up until this point, breaking Israel's record for Olympic medals per Olympics.
El Salvador first competed in the Olympic Games at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico. It has participated in every Games of the Olympiad since that time, excluding those held in 1976 and 1980, when the nation joined the American-led boycott in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The nation has never participated in the Olympic Winter Games and has not earned a medal at any Games of the Olympiad.
Giovanna José Blanco Bazon is a female judoka from Venezuela, who won the silver medal in the women's heavyweight division at the 2003 Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
María Teodora Adoracion ("Dori") Ruano Sanchón is a retired female track and road racing cyclist from Spain. She represented her native country at three Summer Olympics: in 1992, 2000, and 2004. Her biggest achievement was winning the world title in the women's points race at the 1998 UCI Track Cycling World Championships.
İbrahim Bölükbaşı is a Turkish freestyle wrestler and judoka. He competed in freestyle wrestling in the 84 kg event at the 2012 Summer Olympics and the 97 kg event at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and was eliminated in early rounds. He took up wrestling aged 11. He also competed in para judo in the 100 kg event at the 2016 Summer Paralympics.
Giovanni Schillaci is an Italian former freestyle wrestler who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics, in the 1992 Summer Olympics, and in the 1996 Summer Olympics.
María Altagarcia García Cáceres is a Dominican Republican judoka who competes in the women's 52 kg category. She became the first Dominican judoka to win a world championship medal, with a bronze at the 2006 Junior Championships.
Sugoi Uriarte Marcos is a Spanish judoka who won a silver medal at the 2009 World Judo Championships. He competed at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games and reached semifinals in 2012.
Kim Sung-Bum is a South Korean judoka, who competed in the men's heavyweight category. He is a two-time Olympian, and four-time medalist at the Asian Judo Championships. He defeated Iran's Mahmoud Miran for the gold medal in the open weight division at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar. Kim also captured two more medals for the same division at the 2003 Summer Universiade in Jeju City, and at the 2007 Summer Universiade in Bangkok, Thailand.
David Fernández Tercero is a retired Costa Rican judoka, who competed in the men's extra lightweight category. Fernandez represented Costa Rica at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, where he was appointed as the nation's flag bearer by the National Olympic Committee in the opening ceremony. He was invited to compete in the men's extra lightweight class (60 kg) through a wild card entry from the International Judo Federation. Fernandez was ousted early in the opening match to Mexico's Cristobal Aburto, who scored two kokas and a seoi nage within a span of nearly three minutes.
Katarzyna Juszczak married Schillaci is a retired amateur Polish-born Italian judoka and freestyle wrestler, who competed in the women's heavyweight category. She achieved top eight finishes in the 72-kg division at the World Championships, and also participated in two editions of the Olympic Games under different banners.
Jessica García is a Puerto Rican judoka who competed in the women's lightweight category. She picked up a total of twenty-one medals in her career, including a prestigious gold from the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games in Mayagüez, and represented her nation Puerto Rico at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
José Antonio Cecchini is a retired Spanish wrestler who represented his country in sambo, judo and Greco-Roman wrestling. At 1979 and 1981, he won gold medal at World Sambo Championships. He participated at the 1980 Summer Olympics in judo and was eliminated in second round by Slavko Obadov from Yugoslavia.
