The defending Olympic champion is Rulon Gardner of the United States, who was also a 2001 World Champion. Gardner became a worldwide sports hero when he beat three-time Olympic champion Alexander Kareline of Russia in the 2000 Olympic finals.     Gardner has continued staying in the news with challenges off the mat, including the loss of his toe to frostbite during 2002, plus a motorcycle crash and basketball injury to his hand this year. To make the U.S. team, he beat 2002 World champion Dremiel Byers, also an international star. All eyes will be on Gardner in his attempt to become the first American to win two Olympic gold medals in Greco-Roman. He had a great performance at the 2004 Pytlasinski Tournament in Poland in July, leading into the Athens Games.    The reigning World champion in Russia's Khassan Baroev, who beat Gardner in an early round then went on to win the 2003 World meet. Baroev has to share the stage in Russia with Yuri Patrikeev, who won the 2002 World bronze medal and was the 2004 European Championships. It is unclear which of these stars will be chosen by Russia for the Athens Games. Patrikeev lost to Gardner in the 2001 World Championships, and was also beaten by Gardner in the finals of the Pytlasinski Tournament his summer.    Winning World silver medals four times, without a gold medal, has been Mihaly Deak-Bardos of Hungary, who has gotten so very close to winning it all. Many believe that Deak-Bardos may be finally ready to shed monkey off his back and finally win that gold medal. He was fifth at the Pytlasinski Tournament.     Host Greece also has a legitimate contender in Xenofon Koutsioubas, who was third, fourth and fifth in the last three World meets. Koutsioubas will have the home crowd behind him, and will be a very difficult draw for anybody in the field.    The other recent World medalist is Georgiy Tsurtsumia of Kazakhstan, who was third in the 2003 World Championships. Tsurtsumia won the gold medal at the 2004 Asian Championships.    Placing fourth at the 2003 World Championships was Mindaugas Mizgaitis of Lithuania. At the 2004 European Championships, he finished seventh. He comes off a strong bronze medal finish at the Pytlasinski Tournament in Poland.    Another star is Bulgarian veteran Sergey Mourieko, who boasts four career World-level medals, including an Olympic bronze medal in the 1996 Atlanta Games. He has not been a medalist in four seasons, but his sixth place in the 2003 World Championships qualified him for the Olympics. His bronze medal at the 2004 European Championships shows that he still has world-class skills.     Cuba's Mijian Lopez has been a bit of a mystery, a talented athlete who is still finding his way but has great potential. He has beaten Gardner a number of times in events in North America, but has placed no higher than his sixth at the 2001 World Championships. He did not place in the 2003 Worlds, so he entered and won a gold medal at the first Olympic Qualification Tournament.    Yuri Yevseychyc of Israel lost to Gardner in the 2000 Olympic semifinals in a close battle and placed fourth. He has seemed to draw American in many major events, and does not have a win there. As he did not place in the 2003 World meet, Yevseychyc qualified for Athens at the first Olympic Qualification Tournament. He captured a bronze medal in the 1998 World Championships.    Juha Ahokas of Finland is a veteran who could be a challenger. He placed seventh at the 2003 World Championships. His major achievement was a gold medal at the 2003 European Championships.     Others who qualified their nation for this weight division through a top 10 finish at the 2003 World Championships were Yannick Szcezepaniak of France and Haykaz Ghalstyan of Armenia. Since Greece also placed in the top 10, the 11th place finisher also qualified for the Olympics, Dmitri Debelka of Belarus. Debelka was a 2000 Olympic bronze medalist.    Placing second in the first Olympic Qualification event was Turkey's Yilmaz Gul. Georgia's Miran Girogadze was third at the first Olympic qualifier, and veteran Eddy Bengtsson of Sweden earned the final spot by taking fifth in the mee.    Iran's Sajad Barzi won the gold medal in the final Olympic Qualification Tournament, and later won a bronze medal at the 2004 Asian Championships. Rounding out the field from the final qualifying event were Marek Mikulsky of Poland, David Vala of the Czech Republic and veteran Giuseppe Giunta of Italy.    Nations qualified (alphabetically):  Armenia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Cuba, Finland, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, Turkey, United States    Past gold medalists expected in field: Khassan Baroev of Russia (2003), Rulon Gardner of the United States (2000, 2001)    Top World-level placement for Rulon Gardner: 1st (2000, 2001)    120 kg/264.5 lbs. -  Greco-Roman  1st at 2003 World Championships - Russia (Khassan Baroev or Yuri Patrikeev)  2nd at 2003 World Championships -Hungary (Mihaly Deak-Bardos)  3rd at 2003 World Championships -Kazakhstan (Georgiy Tsurtsumia)  4th at 2003 World Championships -Lithuania (Mindaugas Mizgaitis)  6th at 2003 World Championships - Bulgaria (Sergei Mourieko)  7th at 2003 World Championships - Finland (Juha Ahokas)  8th at 2003 World Championships - France (Yannick Szcezepaniak)  9th at 2003 World Championships -Armenia (Haykaz Ghalstyan)  10th at 2003 World Championships - United States (Rulon Gardner)  11th at 2003 World Championships - Belarus (Dmitri Debelka or Andre Cherkhauskoi)  Host Nation entry - Greece, also 5th at World Championships (Xenofon Koutsioubas)  1st at Olympic Qualifier #1 - Cuba (Mijian Lopez)  2nd at Olympic Qualifier #1-Turkey (Yilmaz Gul)  3rd at Olympic Qualifier #1 -Georgia (Mirian Girogadze)  4th at Olympic Qualifier #1 -Israel (Juri Yevseychik)  5th at Olympic Qualifier #1 -Sweden (Eddy Bengtsson)  1st at Olympic Qualifier #2 - Iran (Sajad Barzi)  2nd at Olympic Qualifier #2 -Poland (Marek Mikulsky)  3rd at Olympic Qualifier #2 -Czech Republic (David Vala)  4th at Olympic Qualifier #2 -Italy (Giuseppi Giunta)    RECENT WORLD AND OLYMPIC RESULTS    2003 World Championships results   120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Gold - Khassan Baroev (Russia) dec. Mihaly Deak-Bardos (Hungary), 3-1; Bronze - Georgiy Tsurtsumia (Kazakhstan) dec. Mindaugas Mizgaitis (Lithuania), 4-0; 5th - Xenofon Koutsioubas (Greece); 6th - Serguey Moreyko (Bulgaria); 7th - Juha Ahokas (Finland) ; 8th - Yannick Szcezepaniak (France); 9th - Haykaz Ghalstyan (Armenia); 10th - Rulon Gardner (USA)    2002 World Championships results   120 kg/264.5 lbs. - Gold - Dremiel Byers (United States) dec. Mihaly Deak-Bardos (Hungary), 3-0; Bronze - Yuri Patrikeev (Russia) dec. Xenofon Koutsioubas (Greece), 9-4; 5th - Helger Hallik (Estonia); 6th -Yuriy Yevseychek (Israel); 7th - Giuseppe Giunta (Italy); 8th - Georgiy Tsurtsumia (Kazakhstan); 9th - Roe Kleive (Norway); 10th - Nico Schmidt (Germany)    2001 World Championships results    130 kg/286 lbs. - Gold  - Rulon Gardner (United States) won by ref. dec. over Mihaly Deak-Bardos (Hungary), 2-0, ot; Bronze - Xenofon Koutsoubas (Greece) dec. Sergei Mourieko (Bulgaria), 8-0; 5th - George Tsurtsumia (Georgia); 6th - Mijain Lopez (Cuba); 7th - Eddy Bengtsson (Sweden); 8th - Yuri Patrikeev (Russia); 9th - Alireza Gharibi (Iran); 10th - David Vala (Czech Republic)    2000 Olympic Games results   130 kg/286 lbs. - Gold - Rulon Gardner (USA) won by ref. dec. over Alexandre Kareline (Russia), 1-0, ot, 9:00; Bronze - Demitri Debelka (Belarus) won by ref. dec. over Juri Yevseychyc (Israel), 1-0, ot, 9:0; 5th - Hector Milian (Cuba); 6th - Georgiy Saldadze (Ukraine); 7th - Giuseppe Giunta (Italy); 8th - Fatih Bakir (Turkey); 9th - David Vala (Czech Republic); 10th -Eddy Bengtsson (Sweden); 11th - Mihaly Deak-Bardos (Sweden); 12th - Rafael Barreno (Venezuela); 13th - Haykaz Galstyan (Armenia); 14th - Hailin Zhao (China); 15th - Omrane Ayari (Tunisia); 16th - Helger Hallik (Estonia); 17th - Marek Sitnik (Poland); 18th - Laszlo Kovacs (Australia); 19th - Sergey Moreyko (Bu