UNITED STATES PLACES SECOND IN UNOFFICIAL TEAM STANDINGS IN FREESTYLE WRESTLING    Using the scoring system employed at each World Championships, the United States placed second to Russia in points scored in the freestyle wrestling competition at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.    This is an outstanding achievement, especially since seven of the eight team members were competing in their first Olympic Games. It also showed the U.S. depth in freestyle wrestling, as four medals were claimed and seven of the eight team members scored points toward the team race.    Russia registered 53 points, with three champions and five medalists. The U.S. was a strong second, with 48 points.  Iran placed third with 37 points, followed by Cuba with 28 points and Belarus with 27 points.    Point scorers for the United States were silver medalists Sammie Henson at 54 kg (9 points) and Brandon Slay at 76 kg (9 points), and bronze medalists Terry Brands at 54 kg (8 points) and Lincoln McIlravy (8 points). Also scoring key points were Charles Burton, who was fifth at 85 kg (6 points). Kerry McCoy, who was fifth at 130 kg (6 points) and Cary Kolat, who placed ninth at 63 kg (2 points). The other member of the team was Melvin Douglas (97 kg).    This done by giving 10 points to the champion, nine to the runner-up, eight to the bronze medalist, down to one point for 10th place. Any athletes placing lower than 10th do not score points.    There are no official team standings or team medals in freestyle wrestling. The only official way to compare is through the medal count. However, wrestling traditionally evaluates the performance using the World Championships system.    The United States also placed second in the medal count. Russia won with five medals (4 gold, 1 silver).  The United States was second with four, including the two silvers and two bronzes. Only two other countries had more than one medal, Korea and Cuba, with two.    The U.S. team was led by co-head coaches Dan Gable, John Smith and Greg Strobel, National Freestyle Coach Bruce Burnett, and a team of additional assistant coaches.    Unofficial team standings in the 2000 Olympic Freestyle competition    Russia, 53 pts.; United States, 48 pts.; Iran 37 pts.; Cuba, 28 pts.; Belarus, 27 pts.; Uzbekistan, 24 pts.; Kakakhstan, 21 pts.; Korea, 21 pts.; Ukraine, 19 pts.; Azerbaijan, 16 pts.; Germany, 16 pts.; Greece, 15 pts.; Georgia, 14 pts.; Armenia, 14 pts.; Macedonia, 11 pts.; Canada, 10 pts.; Moldova, 10 pts.; Bulgaria, 9 pts.; Poland, 9 pts.; Turkey, 9 pts.; Mongolia, 6 pts.; Kyrgyzstan, 6 pts.; Hungary, 4 pts.; Slovakia, 3 pts.; Romania, 3 pts.; Netherlands, 3 pts.; North Korea, 2 pts.; Japan, 1 pt.; Switzerland, 1 pt.    Medal count for freestyle wrestling at the 2000 Olympic Freestyle competition  Russia, 5 (4 gold, 1 silver, 0 bronze); United States, 4 (0-2-2); Cuba, 2 (0-1-1); Korea, 2 (0-0-2); Azerbaijian 1 (1-0-0); Canada (1-0-0); Iran, 1 (1-0-0); Germany, 1 (1-0-0); Bulgaria, 1 (0-1-0); Kazakhstan, 1 (0-1-0); Ukraine, 1 (0-1-1); Uzbekistan, 1 (0-1-0); Greece 1, (0-0-1); Georgia, 1 (0-0-1); Macedonia, 1 (0-0-1)