Yahoo Sports NCAA adds women's wrestling as a championship sport, with first championship taking place in 2026
NCAA's 91st championship sport was approved at organization's convention this week
Women's wrestling has been officially added to the NCAA as a championship sport, the organization announced Friday.
The sport will now have a national collegiate championship, with the first championship competition taking place in 2026. The event will feature athletes from all three divisions.
The addition of women's wrestling, which becomes the 91st championship sport in the NCAA, was approved at the NCAA convention in Nashville this week. Additionally, the NCAA Board of Governors approved $1.7 million in funding for the sport's championship at its meeting in April.
There were 76 women's wrestling programs in the 2023-2024 season, with 17 more programs expected to join this season, according to the NCAA. More than 1,200 wrestlers participate in the sport, with 45% from "diverse or international backgrounds," per the NCAA.
In the NCAA's statement, Iowa wrestler Kennedy Blades — a silver medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics — spoke about the sport's status in the NCAA.
"This means so much to women's wrestling and to women's sports in general," Blades said. "It gives women's wrestling recognition and shows that it is important, not just around the world, but also in our country. ... Since I was a little girl, I dreamed about being an NCAA national wrestling champion. It will fulfill so many little girls' dreams, including mine."
Prior to being approved as a championship sport, women's wrestling had been designated as an "emerging sport" by the NCAA, part of a program established by the NCAA in 1994. Six emerging sports have been elevated to championship status over the years, all of them women's sports: rowing (1996), ice hockey (2000), water polo (2000), bowling (2003), beach volleyball (2015) and now wrestling.
Five other emerging sports — acrobatics and tumbling, equestrian, rugby, stunt and triathlon — are currently vying for the chance to become championship sports, while women's flag football has applied to be classified as an emerging sport, per the NCAA.
