After the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo were delayed, United World Wrestling scrambled to organize a world-level tournament for the year. Impressively, they were able to secure a venue in Belgrade, Serbia and produce what could have been an official World Championship. Unfortunately, major international players like the United States and Japan declined to send their teams to Serbia.
Without full buy-in from key members of the wrestling world, UWW downgraded the event from the World Championship to the “Individual World Cup,” more or less the exact same format as worlds, without the title. Even participating nations like Iran and India held back pound-for-pound talents such as Hassan Yazdanicharati and Bajrang Punia, but the Olympic weights were stacked nonetheless.