Wrestlers to watch at Rio Games

ATHLETES TO WATCH IN THE WRESTLING COMPETITION IN RIO

SAHIT PRIZRENI (MEN'S 65KG FREESTYLE) - Prizreni became an Australian citizen in 2014 and will become Australia's first Olympian to have carried another country's flag at a Games, having done so for his native Albania in 2008. Prizreni won bronze at the 2007 World Championships and silver at the 2011 European Championships, and made it to Rio by finishing second in his weight class at the African/Oceania qualifiers.

TALGAT ILYASOV (MEN'S 74KG FREESTYLE) - Mixed martial artist and Melbourne tradie Ilyasov is back for a second shot at the Olympics, 12 years after a back injury ruled him out on the eve of the 2004 Athens Games. The Uzbek-born grappler, who had been touted as Australia's best ever hope of gold, quit wrestling only to return more than 10 years later and clinch a spot in Rio.

IVAN POPOV (MEN'S 130KG GRECO-ROMAN) - Son of former world and European champion Vladimir Popov, the Russian-born Popov won Australia's first Commonwealth Games wrestling gold in 32 years when he triumphed in Delhi in 2010. He successfully defended his Australian title in Canberra this year and will be aiming to match - or beat - his father's 1988 Olympic bronze.

VINOD KUMAR (MEN'S 66KG GRECO-ROMAN) - Kumar only represented Australia for the first time in March after receiving his citizenship last year. The former Indian dirt wrestler, who has six national championship titles to his name, marked the occasion by clinching gold at the Oceania Championships in New Zealand.

INTERNATIONAL

JORDAN BURROUGHS (US - MEN'S 74KG FREESTYLE) The three-time world champion and 2012 Olympic gold medallist has lost just twice in his entire international career, making him favourite to win again in Rio.