UWW chose Nao Kusaka from Japan as the best Greco-Roman wrestlers in 2024.

23-year-old Nao KUSAKA (JPN), finished with a Greco-Roman best 79,200 Ranking Series points after winning golds at the Olympics, Asian Championships, and Hungarian Ranking Series events while also winning a bronze at the Croatian Ranking Series event at the beginning of the season. After falling in the semifinals of his first competition of the year, Kusaka rallied off 14 consecutive victories -- four of which came against former world champions Burhan AKBUDAK (TUR), Ibrahim GHANEM (FRA), Malkhas AMOYAN (ARM) and Akzhol MAKHMUDOV (KGZ) -- on his way to winning golds in Paris, Bishkek and Budapest. Kusaka’s win in Paris at 77kg, alongside his fellow teammate Kenichiro FUMITA’s gold, ended Japan’s 40-year Greco-Roman Olympic gold-medal drought.