The 1979 World Wrestling Championships were held in San Diego, California, United States. As during the 1973 edition, the venue, San Diego State University Arena hosted the Pan American Sambo Championships very next day after the freestyle event finale.
| 1979 World Championships | |
|---|---|
| Host city |  San Diego, United States |
| Dates | 21–28 August |
| Stadium | San Diego State University |
| Champions | |
| Freestyle |  Soviet Union |
| Greco-Roman | Soviet Union |
Medal table edit
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soviet Union | 9 | 5 | 2 | 16 |
| 2 |  Hungary | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 3 |  Bulgaria | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| 4 |  Japan | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 5 |  United States | 1 | 5 | 4 | 10 |
| 6 |  Romania | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 7 |  Poland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
 Sweden | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 9 |  East Germany | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 10 |  West Germany | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 11 |  Yugoslavia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 |  Italy | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (12 entries) | 21 | 19 | 20 | 60 | |
Team ranking edit
| Rank | Men's freestyle | Men's Greco-Roman | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Points | Team | Points | |
| 1 | Soviet Union |
50 | Soviet Union |
43 |
| 2 | United States |
35 | Hungary |
30 |
| 3 | East Germany |
21 | Bulgaria |
27 |
| 4 | Japan |
19.25 | United States |
17 |
| 5 | Bulgaria |
19 | West Germany |
17 |
| 6 | Poland |
13.5 | Romania |
15 |