U.S. Claims Nine Men’s Freestyle Golds, Berge Awarded Golden Boot at 2026 U23 Pan American Championships

LIMA, Peru – Team USA kicked off the 2026 U23 Pan American Championships with a sensational 10-for-10 medal effort at La Videna Velodrome, including nine individual champions highlighted by Golden Boot recipient Bennett Berge.

Berge was the Minnesota winner of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award in 2022 while fellow American gold medalist Hayden Walters was the Oregon and West Region winner in 2023.

Wrestling continues at 10 a.m. local time on Friday with the women’s freestyle competition. Lima, Peru, is one hour behind U.S. Eastern Time.

A live stream and archived matches of the event are available to the U.S. audience through FloWrestling. Brackets and updated results are hosted on UWW Arena.

Guilford, Welker Will Duel at Final X, Presented by Kerberos Capital Management

Two-time World bronze medalist Kylie Welker and 2022 World Team member Dymond Guilford renew their rivalry at 2026 Final X, presented by Kerberos Capital Management, with a spot on the 2026 U.S. Senior World Team on the line. The 76 kg women's freestyle matchup will be on June 19 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Final X will determine the 2026 U.S. World Team in two international disciplines—men’s freestyle and women’s freestyle. In total, 20 weight classes will be contested, 10 in each discipline. The top two U.S. athletes in each weight class will wrestle a best-of-three series at Final X to determine the U.S. representative at the 2026 Senior World Championships.

The Final X field includes Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winners Alexis Janiak, Everest Leydecker and Macey Kilty and Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winners Marcus Blaze, David Carr, Jax Forrest, Wyatt Hendrickson, Spencer Lee, Ridge Lovett, Chance Marsteller, Zain Retherford and Zahid Valencia.

Buchanan, Snyder, Will Battle at Final X, Presented by Kerberos Capital Management

Reigning World champion Kyle Snyder takes on international newcomer Stephen Buchanan for the 97 kg men’s freestyle spot on the 2026 U.S. Senior World Team. The two square off on June 19 at 2026 Final X, presented by Kerberos Capital Management at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Final X will determine the 2026 U.S. World Team in two international disciplines—men’s freestyle and women’s freestyle. In total, 20 weight classes will be contested, 10 in each discipline. The top two U.S. athletes in each weight class will wrestle a best-of-three series at Final X to determine the U.S. representative at the 2026 Senior World Championships.

The Final X field includes Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winners Marcus Blaze, David Carr, Jax Forrest, Wyatt Hendrickson, Spencer Lee, Ridge Lovett, Chance Marsteller, Zain Retherford and Zahid Valencia and Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winners Alexis Janiak, Everest Leydecker and Macey Kilty.

Episode 6 of 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒆 Now Available

Episode 6 of 𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒆 is now available featuring Stephen Neal, a Distinguished Member inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2012, who was a two-time NCAA wrestling champion and a World Champion before playing 10 years and winning three Super Bowls as an offensive lineman for the New England Patriots.

Host Shane Sparks explores Stephen's remarkable journey from the wrestling mat to football's biggest stage, the mindset that fueled his success, and the lessons he's learned from competing at the highest levels of both sports.

U.S. Receives Draw for 2026 U23 Pan American Championships

LIMA, Peru – United World Wrestling has released brackets for all three Olympic styles at the 2026 U23 Pan American Championships, which begin on Thursday morning at La Videna Velodrome in Lima, Peru. 

Team USA features Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winners Claire DiCugno, Taylor Graveman, Sage Mortimer and Alexandra Szkotnicki and Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winners Aden Attao, Bennett Berge, Pierson Manville and Hayden Walters.

The tournament will be contested over three days, with all 10 weights in each style running start-to-finish in a single day—men’s freestyle leads things off on June 11, followed by women’s freestyle on June 12, culminating with Greco-Roman on June 13. Wrestling begins at 10 a.m. local time each day. Lima, Peru, is one hour behind U.S. Eastern Time. 

Blades, Mir Will Meet at 2026 Final X, Presented by Kerberos Capital Management

2024 Olympic silver medalist Kennedy Blades and two-time age-group World Team member Isabella Mir are slated to square off at 68 kg in a battle of 2026 NCAA champions at 2026 Final X, presented by Kerberos Capital Management. The 2026 World Team spot will be decided on June 19 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Final X will determine the 2026 U.S. World Team in two international disciplines—men’s freestyle and women’s freestyle. In total, 20 weight classes will be contested, 10 in each discipline. The top two U.S. athletes in each weight class will wrestle a best-of-three series at Final X to determine the U.S. representative at the 2026 Senior World Championships.

The Final X field includes Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award winners Alexis Janiak, Everest Leydecker and Macey Kilty and Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award winners Marcus Blaze, David Carr, Jax Forrest, Wyatt Hendrickson, Spencer Lee, Ridge Lovett, Chance Marsteller, Zain Retherford and Zahid Valencia.

Hidlay, Macchiavello Will Clash at 2026 Final X, Presented by Kerberos Capital Management

North Carolina State alums, 2025 World champion Trent Hidlay and three-time U.S. Open champion Michael Macchiavello, are set to battle in a Final X best-of-three series on Saturday, June 13, at Freedom High School in Chantilly, Va.

Hidlay and Macchiavello are wrestling for the 2026 U.S. World Team spot at 92 kg a week before the 2026 Final X, presented by Kerberos Capital Management, card at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Hall of Fame's Class of 2026 Shares Stories of Gratitude, Resilience

The National Wrestling Hall of Fame & Museum Honors Weekend concluded on Saturday night at the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of Oklahoma State University with the formal induction of the Class of 2026 honorees. 

The evening of celebration was moderated by Hall of Fame announcer Sandy Stevens. Each honoree was introduced with a detailed short film created by Skooter Schultz, before being presented with their tailored award and sharing some words of inspiration for the crowd of supporters. 

Four Distinguished Members were inducted this year: Ben Askren, Tervel Dlagnev, Lee Roy Smith and Shannon Williams-Yancey. 

The Hall of Fame also honored Meritorious Official recipient Zach Errett, Order of Merit recipient James L. Porter, Medal of Courage recipient Patrick Morrissey, Outstanding American recipient Major General (Ret.) Mike Nardotti, Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award recipient Austin Collins and Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award recipient Natalie Radecki.