The applause began as Team USA walked into the crowded stadium here at the Freestyle World Cup Wrestling championships in Kermanshah, Iran. The Iranians in the crowd whooped, cheered, and began chanting the name of Jordan Burroughs, the best known athlete here. […]

So it was again in Kermanshah, as Iranian fans welcomed Team USA — a powerhouse of the sport — with gifts and flowers. […]

“The welcome has been so gracious, it’s great being here,” said Burroughs, who has more Instagram followers from the Iranian capital Tehran than any other city in the world. “The reaction I get from fans here is more than what I get back in the States.” […]

— Source: Time

Unlike in politics, in wrestling there is a great deal of awe and respect between the US and Iran. “I have been wrestling overseas for three years now and every Iranian I have ever come in contact with has been extremely respectful, extremely polite,” US Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder said during a training session. “[While] there’s a little bit of turmoil politically, you definitely don’t see that within the sport. We respect each other as competitors and as people,” Snyder told CNN.

Wrestling is one of Iran’s favorite sports and many of team USA’s wrestlers are celebrities here. “In America we are misfits. In Iran we are heroes, so it is really cool to see,” Burroughs said. We’ve come to win before any political stance, but we think it’s an opportunity to show how cool and how great of a relationship we have on such an intricate level, “Burroughs said before Friday’s final. “[It’s about] seeing the people, being engaged with them and understanding their culture as much as we can before we make any big decisions about who they truly are.”

— Source: CNN

Winning the Freestyle Wrestling World Cup title for the sixth time in a row, Iran defeated USA in the 2017 final match, while Azerbaijan placed third with a victory over Turkey.

Later the US team wrote on their Instagram: “Thank you to the wonderful Iranian fans for cheering on our men throughout the World Cup & being gracious hosts!”

2017 Freestyle World Cup – Iranian fans cheering USA wrestler James Malcolm Green (Photo credit Anadolu Agency, Getty Images) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – USA wrestler Jordan Burroughs welcomed by fans (Photo credit unitedworldwrestling in instagram) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – Iranian wrestling team (Photo credit Mehdi Marizad, FARS) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – USA wrestling team (Photo credit Mohammad Erfan Karami, ISNA) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – Iranian wrestling team celebrating their gold medal (Photo credit IRNA) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – USA wrestling team celebrating their silver medal (Photo credit Meghdad Madadi, Tasnim) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – Team Azerbaijan celebrating their bronze medal (Photo credit Mehdi Marizad, FARS) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – Iranian wrestling team celebrating their gold medal (Photo credit IRNA) 2017 Freestyle World Cup – USA wrestling team chilling (Photo credit BORNA)

Detailed finals results: IRAN (IRI) 5 : 3 UNITED STATES (USA)

57 kg – Hassan Sabzali RAHIMI (IRI) df. Anthony Joseph RAMOS (USA), 6-0

61 kg – Masoud Mahmoud ESMAEILPOORJOUYBARI (IRI) df. Logan Jeffery STIEBER (USA), 6-2

65 kg – Meisam Abolfazl NASIRI (IRI) df. Frank Aniello MOLINARO (USA), 5-4

70 kg – Mostafa Mohabbali HOSSEINKHANI (IRI) df. James Malcolm GREEN (USA), 2-0

74 kg – Jordan Ernest BURROUGHS (USA) df. Peyman Morteza YARAHMADI (IRI), 3-2

86 kg – David Morris TAYLOR III (USA) df. Hassan Aliazam YAZDANICHARATI (IRI) by FALL, 10-4

97 kg – Kyle SNYDER (USA) df. Amir MOHAMMADI (IRI), 6-0

125 kg – Komeil GHASEMI (IRI) df. Nicholas Edward GWIAZDOWSKI (USA), 5-0

Other sources: teamusa.org, Instagram @alliseeisgold, Instagram @usawrestling, Instagram @unitedworldwrestling, unitedworldwrestling.org, Azad News Agency, BORNA, FARS 1, FARS 2, IRNA, ISNA, Tasnim News