Note: TheMat.com has resumed its series of previews for the 2001 World Championships. Although it has not yet been determined when and where the event will be hosted, the tournament is expected to be held this year. Those athletes listed as entries for the event originally scheduled for New York City will be used in these previews.    130 kg Greco-Roman World Championships Preview    2000 Olympic champion Rulon Gardner of the United States has continued to wrestle, and will seek his first World gold medal. He upset three-time Olympic champion Alexandre Kareline of Russia in the gold-medal match at the Sydney Olympics, becoming an international celebrity.     In the year since his Olympic glory, Gardner has been very busy, doing interviews and making public appearances. He has also continued to train and compete, mainly because he loves what he does and still has goals within the sport. No moment will ever match Rulon's victory on September 27, 2000. However, his skill and excellent conditioning could provide Gardner the opportunity to add to his legacy by winning more medals.    Kareline has retired, according to all reports. Russia's roster lists Alexei Kolesnikov or Yuri Patrikeev as the choice. Patrikeev, who beat Gardner at the Podubbny Tournament in the summer of 2000, was heralded as the next Russian superstar at this weight. However, it has been Kolesnikov who has been the most consistent on the international circuit this year. Kolesnikov was fifth at the 2001 European Championships.    Looking to topple Gardner from the top will be 2000 Olympic bronze medalist Dmitry Debelka of Belarus. He did not compete at the European Championships this year, so this will be his first big test since winning a medal in Sydney.    The fourth-place finisher  in Sydney was Juri Yevseychyc of Israel, who is not on the athlete roster, as Israel did enter a team. Now that the World Championships have moved away from a Jewish religious holiday, the team might enter. Yevseychyc gave Gardner a very tough match in the Olympic semifinals, with the deciding factor being Gardner's tremendous conditioning and persistence.    One of the hottest Greco-Roman super heavyweights this year has been Mihaly Deak-Bardos of Hungary, a past World silver medalist and the 2001 European Champion. Deak-Bardos boasts a pair of wins over Gardner at international tournaments this season.    1992 Olympic champion Hector Millan of Cuba placed fifth in Sydney and has numerous medals on the World level. Although he is reaching the twilight of his career, Millan is a dangerous competitor. The U.S. heavyweights have had considerable success against Millan in recent years. This year, Cuban Mijain Lopez won the Pan American Championships, and could be a replacement for Millan at the World meet.    Sergei Mourieko of Bulgaria, who boasts four career World-level medals, won an Olympic bronze in 1996. He washed out at the Sydney Olympics, placing 19th of 20 athletes, but remains a serious medal contender. His bronze medal at the 2001 European Championships indicates that he is back to top form.    Turkey's M. Fatih Bakir won the 2001 European silver medal, and was eighth at the Sydney Olympics. Heorhiy Soldadze of Ukraine has a number of high place finishes on the world level, including a sixth place at the Sydney Games. Among the other experienced heavyweights from Europe who are expected at the World meet this year are Estonia's Hallik Helger, Finland's Juha Ahokas, Georgia's Mirian Giorgadze, Italy's Giuseppi Giunta and Sweden's Eddy Bengtsson.    The 2001 Asian champion was Ali Reza Gharibi of Iran, followed by silver medalist Song Jidong of China and bronze medalist Shermakhammad Quziev of Uzbekistan. Quiziev is the most experienced of this group, but it would be a mistake to look past these athletes in the pool competition.    In the post-Kareline era, every experienced super heavyweight has renewed hope for winning a gold medal. Although Gardner is the reigning king, a number of competitors will believe in their hearts that they can win this year. It will be Rulon's job to peak once again, and prove to his challengers that the new era belongs to him.    GREC0-ROMAN 130 kg/286 lbs. (30 athletes as of 9/14)  Belarus - Dzmity Dziabelka  Bosnia/Herzogovina - Fahrudin Omer Hodzic  Brazil - Renato Sobral  Bulgaria - Sergey Moureyko or Nikola Iliev  Canada - Justin Beauparlant  China - Song Jidong  Cuba-Hector Millan or Mijain Lopez  Czech Republic - David Vala  Estonia -Hallik Helger  Finland - Juha Ahokas  Georgia - Mirian Giorgadze, George Tsurtsumia or Bakur Gogitidze  Germany  - Nico Scmidt, or Dirk Zimmerman  Greece -Xenofon Koutsioubas  Hungary - Mihaly Deak-Bardos or Gyula Branda  Iran  - Ali Reza Gharibi  Italy - Giuseppi Giunta  Japan - Minoru Hamaue  Kazakhstan - Yerlan Oskeyev  Korea - Yang Young-Jin  Lithuania - Gintaras Bukauskas  Norway -Roe Kleive  Romania - Florin Ungureanu  Russia - Alexei Kolesnikov or Yuri Patrikeev  Sweden - Eddy Bengtsson  Tajikistan - Karim Karimov  Tunisia - Omrane Ayari  Turkey - M. Fatih Bakir, Yekta Yilmaz Gul or Yuksel Unsel  Ukraine - Heorhiy Soldadze, Konstiantyn Stryzhak or Mykhailo Shvydkyy  United States - Rulon Gardner  Uzbekistan -Shermakhammad Quziev