The year before the Olympics means that the 2019 world championships in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, serve as the first qualifier for the 2020 Games in Tokyo.

While no athlete can guarantee their own spot in the Olympics, placing top-six here and wrestling for a medal earns their nation a qualification to compete in Tokyo next year.

In women's freestyle, the six Olympic weights are: 50kg, 53kg, 57kg, 62kg, 68kg, and 76kg. In total, six spots at each weight will earn a quota. That means you have to wrestle for a medal to be awarded a qualifying slot.

At the end of the tournament, the qualification by continental is as follows: Europe 17, Asia 16, Pan Am 2, Africa 1. The next opportunity to win an Olympic license will come at the continental qualifiers next spring. The dates have not yet been finalized for those but you can search for them on UWW's events page.

50kg

• Azerbaijan
• China
• Kazakhstan
• Romania
• Russia
• Ukraine

It was Mariya Stadnik of Azerbaijan claiming her first world title since 2010 and ensure herself a shot at her fourth Olympic medal. She faced Emilia Vuc in the finals, who won the Olympic license for Romania. The host nation rallied behind bronze medalist Valentia Islamova Brik, and her former country of Russia also won bronze because of Ekaterina Poleshchuk. Oksana Livach (UKR) was a five time age level world medalist, and after winning bronze last year in Budapest, she followed up by qualifying Ukraine for the Games. China's Yanan Sun was one of the most exciting wrestlers of the whole tournament. The Rio bronze also kept Japan's Yuki Irie from qualifying.

53kg

• China
• Greece
• India
• Japan
• North Korea
• Poland

Yong Mi Pak became North Korea's first ever female world champ when she rolled up Mayu Mukaida (JPN), a two-time defending world champ up at 55kg who dropped down and will be Japan's rep next year as well. Pak also beat Mukaida in the finals of the Asian championships. Asia swept all of the medals, with Qianyu Pang (CHN) getting a forfeit against Roksana Zasina (POL), and Indian sensation Vinesh Phogat pinning Maria Prevolaraki (GRE) for bronze.

57kg

• Belarus
• China
• Japan
• Moldova
• Nigeria
• Poland

Risako Kawai (JPN) cemented her claim as the world's best women's wrestler when she teched returning world champ Ningning Rong (CHN) in the finals. This weight will go on the third day of the Olympics next year, and with Kawai knocking off Kaori Icho just to make the team, she should be treated and hyped as an absolute star. Speaking of stars, Odunayo Adekuoroye of Nigeria won her third world medal by teching JR world champ Anastasia Nichita (MDA) for bronze. She continues to be the standard bearer for her country, a vastly rising Nigeria, and the African continent as a whole. Iryna Kurachkina (BLR) won her second medal of the quad, and Jowita Maria Wrzesien qualified for what appears to be a much improved Polish program.

62kg

• Bulgaria
• Hungary
• Japan
• Kyrgyzstan
• North Korea
• Sweden

Defending world champ Taybe Yusein (BUL) once qualified Bulgaria for the Games, as she was bronze at the 2015 world championships in Las Vegas. Two-time Olympian Aisuluu Tynybekova became the first women's finalist ever for Kyrgyzstan. Marianna Sastin (HUN) took advantage of her four seed, making it to the semis to qualify. Her opponent in the bronze match is Henna Katarina Johansson (SWE). North Korea entered four, all at Olympic weights, and Jong Sim Rim became the second to qualify, knocking off American Kayla Miracle in the quarters. To make the bronze match opposite Rim, returning silver Yukako Kawai (JPN) had to defeat Yulia Tkach of Ukraine in the repechage. Tkach had medaled in the previous four world championships

68kg

• Germany
• Japan
• Mongolia
• Sweden
• Ukraine
• United States

In 2016, Tamyra Mensah-Stock won the Olympic Team Trials, but was unable to qualify the weight. This time around, she took care of business at the world championships. Listen to this road Jenny Fransson (SWE) navigated to make the finals: first round over University and U23 world champ Buse Tosun, second round over world silver and bronze Koumba Larroque, quarters over 2015 world champ Battsetseg Soronzonbold, and then dethroned defending champ Alla Cherkasova (UKR). Although the last one in Cherkasova did not repeat, she took out U23 world champ Yudaris Sanchez Rodriguez and 2018 silver Danielle Lappage of Canada. Anna Schell (GER) picked up a spot when she made the semis.

76kg

• China
• Estonia
• Germany
• Japan
• Kazakhstan
• United States

Just like last quad, Adeline Gray won the second and third years heading into the Olympics. That made her the first five-time world champ (just worlds, not Olympics) in US history. Japan's Hiroe Minagawa Suzuki was a surprise finalist out of the top half. A 2014 world champ, Aline Rotter Focken made it two for Germany with her bronze medal, and Epp Mae replicated her performance from 2015, winning bronze to qualify Estonia for the Games. The host nation got in via Elmira Syzdykova and China's Qian Zhou was your final qualifier.

Below are the nations who qualified, and how many spots they earned.

1. Azerbaijan, 1
2. Belarus, 1
3. Bulgaria, 1
4. China, 4
5. Estonia, 1
6. Germany, 2
7. Greece, 1
8. Hungary, 1
9. India, 1
10. Japan, 5
11. Kazakhstan, 2
12. Kyrgyzstan, 1
13. Moldova, 1
14. Mongolia, 1
15. Nigeria, 1
16. North Korea, 2
17. Poland, 2
18. Romania, 1
19. Russia, 1
20. Sweden, 2
21. Ukraine, 2
22. United States, 2