The concept of Greco-Roman wrestling always amuses me, in a silly way. Sort of like the joke about “New Mexico.”

If it isn’t new, and it isn’t Mexico, why do we call it New Mexico?

What’s “Greco” about this sport? What is Roman? Have you seen any Romans around lately? So why is it Greco-Roman?

OK,  yes, the name is a tribute to a really ancient form of wrestling, one that goes back to when the Greeks and Romans were major players in the world.

Actually, Greco-Roman has a sports pedigree probably rivaled only by track and field. Maybe archery. Weight lifting. This sport is old.

It also is tough. I probably saw more cauliflower ears in one day, today, than I have … since the last time I covered Greco, maybe along about 1996.

Greco and freestyle wrestling, separate disciplines, probably tie for “toughest” sport out there. And maybe Greco gets a slight edge because the International Olympic Committee hasn’t gotten around to a women’s competition in this sport. Which they have for everything else (including freestyle) except boxing.

(Greco, too tough for women?)

Greco-Roman is extremely fit men grappling on a circular pad. They may not seem to be doing much, because they can’t attack anywhere below the waist (unlike freestyle) … but they are, in fact, pushing on each other and exhausting themselves fairly quickly.

The event is three two-minute periods, unless someone gets pinned — or the same guy wins the first two rounds. Both wrestlers are sure to be sucking wind within the first 60 seconds.

I saw T.C. Dantzler and Jake Deitchler of the U.S. go, and both lost in the first round. When they came around to talk to reporters, we could marvel at the scars on them. Dantzler has had eight surgeries. Deitchler is 18 years old but already has ears so torn up you’d think a pit bull chewed on them.

The tactics here are vaguely sumo-like, in trying to get the other guy off-balance, and then picking him up and throwing him. A couple of times during the session one wrestler actually had another over his head, looking for a likely place to toss him. “That can never be good,” one reporter said to no one in particular.

Greco also is extremely Old World sport. Countries that have been around for 4,000 years tend to be good at it. People from the steppes of Asia, the Fertile Crescent. It’s a crowd you don’t see at other venues. Often places where women aren’t quite full participants in society.

In the 74-kilogram competition today, the countries represented included Azerbaijan, Algeria, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Russia and Ukraine.

When I left, China and Georgia were in the finals. I’m pulling for Georgia; they’ve been at the Greco business longer, and China is winning plenty of medals, thank you.

Anyway, I like Greco. (So much I’m going back tomorrow.)

We admire distance runners for their endurance, and basketball players for their skill.  We applaud decathletes for their versatility and ping-pong players for their hand-eye coordination.

But when it comes to athletic toughness … and just plain toughness … I think I saw the creme de la creme today. People were tearing at each other thousands of years ago, probably before the first spearpoint was fashioned. And they turned it into a sport called Greco-Roman wrestling.