Rankings in orange circles compare this sport with nine other sports offered for this gender before customization – meaning each of the three health categories is given an equal one-third weighting. The ranking is comprised of data collected or developed from various sources (75% of score) and expert opinion (25% of score). The healthiest sports in each of the three categories – physical activity, safety and psychosocial benefits – and in each data measurement are ranked No. 1. Note: Some sports did not have significant differences between each other in the data. Learn more about our methodology.
4th
out of 10
Physical Activity
Expert Opinion Rank: 8th Out of 10
Key Characteristics: Wrestling physical activity at practices ranks fourth among the 10 boys sports studied by North Carolina State University. Wrestlers have 55.1 percent vigorous activity; the 10 boys sports average 48.5 percent. Forty-six percent of wrestling practice time focuses on skills compared to 29 percent on fitness.
1 North Carolina State University research observing high school athletes in North Carolina, 2017-18.
8th
out of 10
Safety
22.7
Injury Rate2(8th out of 10)
15.2%
Injury Time/Loss3(9th out of 10)
0.48
Catastrophic Rate4(8th out of 10)
8.3%
Injuries Requiring Surgery5(10th out of 10)
3.8
Concussion Rate6(8th out of 10)
Expert Opinion Rank: 9th Out of 10
Key Characteristics: Wrestling has the third-worst injury rate among boys sports, according to the National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study. The most common injuries are to the head/face, shoulder and knee. Wrestling has the highest percentage of injuries requiring surgery among all 20 sports (both genders) evaluated by Healthy Sport Index.
2 Injury rate per 10,000 exposures, National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study, 2016-17.
3 Percentage of all injuries resulting in greater than three weeks of time loss from the sport, National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study, 2016-17.
4 Non-fatal catastrophic injury/illness rate per 100,000 exposures, National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research, 1982-2016.
5 Percentage of all injuries requiring surgery, National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study, 2016-17.
6 Concussion rate per 10,000 exposures, National High School Sports-Related Injury Surveillance Study, 2016-17.
6th
out of 10
Psychosocial
Aspen Psychosocial Survey7
3.605
Personal Social Skills(4th out of 10)
2.692
Cognitive Skills(5th out of 10)
3.721
Goal-Setting(1st out of 10)
3.789
Initiative(5th out of 10)
3.705
Health(4th out of 10)
1.385
Negative Experiences(5th out of 10)
Substance Abuse
Cigarette Use8
22.3%
(9th out of 10)
Binge Drinking9
35.4%
(9th out of 10)
Marijuana Use10
30.8%
(8th out of 10)
Academic Achievement
Cut Class11
34.6%
(9th out of 10)
A/A- Student12
24.3%
(10th out of 10)
Graduate From College13
50.7%
(10th out of 10)
Psychological health14
How We Define Our Metrics
4.11
Self-Esteem(10th out of 10)
2.35
Fatalism(10th out of 10)
3.71
Self-Efficacy(9th out of 10)
2.62
Loneliness(9th out of 10)
2.16
Self-Derogation(10th out of 10)
4.01
Social Support(T-9th out of 10)
Expert Opinion Rank: 9th Out of 10
Key Characteristics: Wrestling rates third among the 10 boys sports in the Aspen Institute/University of Texas psychosocial survey, not too far behind No. 1 football. Goal setting is a strength for wrestling. Wrestling has a high number of athletes using cigarettes and marijuana and involved in binge drinking, according to Women’s Sports Foundation data.
7 Aspen Institute/University of Texas psychosocial benefits survey of high school athletes nationally, 2018. Scoring ranges from 1-4, with 4 being the best except for the Negative Experiences category.
8 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport smoking cigarettes in the past 30 days. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
9 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport binge drinking alcohol in the past two weeks. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
10 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport using marijuana in the past 30 days. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
11 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport who cut class for a full day in the past month. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
12 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport who have an average grade of an A or A-. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
13 Percentage of high school seniors in the sport who expect to graduate from a four-year college. Data from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters.
14 Average scores of high school seniors in the sport in psychological health report card. Data for these six categories came from Monitoring the Future Study (2010-15) and analyzed by Women’s Sports Foundation in Teen Sport in America: Why Participation Matters. Scoring ranges from 1-5, with 5 being the best for self-esteem, self-efficacy and social support.