Manami Toyota
is a Japanese retired professional wrestler, best known for her work with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW). She is widely considered to be one of the greatest female professional wrestlers of all time. Following AJW's closure, Toyota continued to work in other '' joshi'' promotions such as GAEA Japan and NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling. Professional wrestling career All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (1987–2002) Manami Toyota made her professional wrestling debut on August 5, 1987, at the age of 16, in a singles match against Sachiko Nakamura. Her big break came in her second year, on the first Wrestlemarinpiad show at Yokohama Arena, on May 6, 1989. Teaming with Mima Shimoda as the Tokyo Sweethearts, she defeated Etsuko Mita and Toshiyo Yamada in a match that nearly stole the card from the more established veterans. The bout had all the basic ingredients that made Toyota a star, including flashy moves, fast and frequent tags, double-team moves, and a long series of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Masuda, Shimane
is a Cities of Japan, city located in Shimane Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 43,885 in 21,249 households and a population density of 60 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Masuda is located on the western edge of Honshu, facing the Sea of Japan to the north and the Chugoku Mountains to the south and is bordered by Yamaguchi Prefecture to the west and Hiroshima Prefecture to the southwest. The city has the largest geographic area among municipalities in Shimane Prefecture. The urban center is on a narrow floodplain between the Takatsu River and the Masuda River. Parts of the southern region of the city are within the borders of the Nishi-Chugoku Sanchi Quasi-National Park. Neighboring municipalities Hiroshima Prefecture *Akiōta, Hiroshima, Akiōta *Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima, Hatsukaichi *Kitahiroshima, Hiroshima, Kitahiroshima Shimane Prefecture *Hamada, Shimane, Hamada *Tsuwano, Shimane, Tsuwano *Yoshika, Shimane, Yoshika Yama ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chigusa Nagayo
is a Japanese professional wrestler best known for her mainstream popularity in the 1980s as a member of the Crush Gals with long-time tag team partner Lioness Asuka. In 1995 she founded GAEA Japan and in 2014 created its successor Marvelous That's Women Pro Wrestling. Nagayo is often regarded as the most popular and one of the greatest and most influential female wrestlers of all time. Wrestling Journalist and historian Dave Meltzer has stated that in the 1980s, the Crush Gals reached a level of popularity in Japan equatable to Hulk Hogan in the United States in the same period, and thereafter Chigusa Nagayo was the most popular woman in wrestling for an extended period until her first retirement in 1989. Professional wrestling career All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (1980–1989) Early career (1980–1983) Nagayo debuted on August 8, 1980, for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) against Yukari Omori. She cried upon losing and was scolded by Tomi Aoyama, a member of th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Takako Inoue
is a Japanese professional wrestler. She wrestled primarily for the All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling promotion, and held several championships, primarily in tag team wrestling. She was well known as one-half of the tag team Double Inoue, which she formed with fellow wrestler Kyoko Inoue (no relation). Professional wrestling career All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (1988–1999) She was born November 7, 1969, in Toride, Ibaraki. A magazine model at the time, she possessed an athletic background in track and field and amateur wrestling. She failed her first audition for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) but trained with Mayumi Ozaki. While she failed her first AJW audition, she passed the second screening for the music group, Onyanko Club. Ozaki passed her audition for Japan Women's Pro Wrestling and invited Takako to join, but she declined. She then passed her AJW audition and joined in October, 1987, where she was trained by Jaguar Yokota. Takako made her debut on Octo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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JWP Joshi Puroresu
, also known as or simply JWP, was a Japanese ''joshi puroresu'' (women's professional wrestling) professional wrestling promotion, promotion, founded in 1992 as a splinter promotion of Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. Celebrating its 25th anniversary at the time of its folding in 2017, JWP was the oldest ''joshi puroresu'' promotion in Japan and its JWP Openweight Championship, Openweight Championship was the oldest championship in all of ''joshi''. Command Bolshoi, who had worked for the promotion since the beginning, served as the final president of JWP. The promotion's slogan was "Pure Heart, Pure Wrestling". History JWP Joshi Puroresu was founded in early 1992, when Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (JWP), ravaged by internal politics, split up into two camps, dubbed the "Shoot wrestling, shooters" and the "Sports entertainment, entertainers", and eventually folded on January 18. The "shooter" side went on to form Ladies Legend Pro-Wrestling (LLPW), while the "entertainer" side, led ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Reggie Bennett
Reggie Bennett (born January 24, 1961) is an American former professional wrestler. She is best known for her work in ''joshi puroresu'' organizations such as All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. Professional wrestling career Early career (1986–1993) Bennett began wrestling on the Californian independent circuit in 1986, primarily for the Independent Wrestling Federation, where she won the promotion's Women's Championship three times. Soon after, she was signed to the Ladies Professional Wrestling Association. Bennett participated in the LPWA Japan Title tournament during the February 23, 1992 pay-per-view LPWA Super Ladies Showdown, where she lost by disqualification in the semi-final round. All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (1993–1996) Bennett signed with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling in 1994 and competed there for several years. Bennett faced Chigusa Nagayo at the Big Egg Wrestling Universe show at the Tokyo Dome on November 20, 1994. She won the IWA World Women's C ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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IWA World Women's Championship
The IWA World Women's Championship was a major women's professional wrestling title in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. It had its origins with Stampede Wrestling in Calgary, Alberta in 1987. Title history See also * List of professional wrestling promotions in Japan * List of women's wrestling promotions * Professional wrestling in Japan Professional wrestling in Japan has existed for several decades. The first Japanese person to involve themselves in catch wrestling (the basis of traditional professional wrestling) was former sumo wrestler Sorakichi Matsuda. There were subsequ ... References External linksIWA World Women's title history {{DEFAULTSORT:IWA World Women's Championship All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling championships World professional wrestling championships Women's professional wrestling championships Stampede Wrestling championships ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dave Meltzer
David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist, author, and historian who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (WON), a dirtsheet primarily addressing professional wrestling. He has also written for the ''Oakland Tribune'', the ''Los Angeles Times'', Yahoo! Sports, SI.com, and '' The National Sports Daily''. He has extensively covered mixed martial arts since UFC 1 in 1993 and also covers it for SB Nation. He has been called "the most accomplished reporter in sports journalism" by Frank Deford of ''Sports Illustrated''. Early life David Allen Meltzer was born into a Jewish family in Upstate New York on October 24, 1959. He later moved with his family to San Jose, California. He earned a journalism degree from San Jose State University and started out as a sportswriter for the ''Wichita Falls Times Record News'' and the '' Turlock Journal'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mayumi Ozaki
(born October 28, 1968) is a Japanese professional wrestler. She is currently working for Oz Academy. Professional wrestling career Ozaki debuted in a tag team match in August, 1986. In her career, she held the WWWA tag titles with Dynamite Kansai from April 11, 1993 to December 6, 1993 (both winning from and losing to Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada of All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling, selected for "Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Match of the Year for 1993". They rematched in April 1993 and won at the Dreamslam II (and with it the titles); the first time a woman's match won the award. Their final match was at St. Battle Final in December. (AJW). She also held the UWA Junior and JWP Junior titles between 1988 and 1991, and teamed with Cutie Suzuki and Hikari Fukuoka to win the JWP Tag Titles a number of times between 1992 and 1995. She held the AAAW Tag Team Championship with Aja Kong, beating GAEA's Sugar Sato and Chikayo Nagashima on August 23, 1998 in Tokyo. In 1995 Oz ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dynamite Kansai
is a retired Japanese female professional wrestler, better known by the ring name . Career Chieko Suzuki was born on December 4, 1969, and was raised in Kyoto, Japan. In 1986 she auditioned for All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW), but was unsuccessful, and instead joined the first rookie class of Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. She debuted on August 17, 1986 in Korakuen Hall, Tokyo under the ring name ''Miss A''. When Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling was dissolved, Suzuki became part of the JWP Project. She wrestled in the United States for World Championship Wrestling, but returned to Japan in 1991, and changed her ring name to ''Dynamite Kansai''. After leaving Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling in the mid-1990s, she joined a new wrestling promotion organisation, GAEA Japan. In 2006, she worked for Mayumi Ozaki's promotion, OZ Academy. In 2015, Kansai returned to the United States for the first time in twenty-four years, appearing for Shimmer Women Athletes alongside Aja Kong. In 20 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Aja Kong
is a Japanese professional wrestler better known by her ring name . She currently makes appearances on the Japanese independent circuit and for Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling (TJPW). She is the founder of the Arsion all-women professional wrestling promotion and has won several championships in both singles and tag-team divisions throughout her career, primarily while with All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling. Early life Born Erika Shishido, her mother is Japanese and her father, the late Henry Manigault, was an African-American who was a member of the US Army at Tachikawa Airfield. Although her parents were de facto married, they were forced to divorce when Erika was five years old, due to her father's sudden repatriation, and grew up in a single-mother family. Her mother was ostracized by all her relatives who did not like her relationship with Erika's father. Erika and her mother moved from Tachikawa to Akishima, Tokyo when Erika was in the 5th grade of elementary school. Erika ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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WWWA World Tag Team Championship
The World Women's Wrestling Association (WWWA) World Tag Team Championship was the top doubles championship in All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling (AJW) from 1971 until it closed in 2005. During those years the title was held by many of the most famous tag teams in Japanese women's professional wrestling, including the Beauty Pair ( Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda) and the Crush Gals (Chigusa Nagayo and Lioness Asuka). The WWWA Tag Team belt succeeded AJW's original tag belt, the American Girls Wrestling Association (AGWA) International Tag Team Championship, which was contested in AJW from 1968 until 1971. Reigns Combined reigns By team By wrestler See also * List of professional wrestling promotions in Japan * List of women's wrestling promotions * Professional wrestling in Japan Professional wrestling in Japan has existed for several decades. The first Japanese person to involve themselves in catch wrestling (the basis of traditional professional wrestling) ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Professional Wrestling Match Types
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a storyline. Throughout professional wrestling's decades-long history, some gimmick matches have spawned many variations of the core concept. Singles match The singles match is the most common of all professional wrestling matches, which involves only two competitors competing for one fall. A victory is obtained by pinfall, submission, knockout, countout, or disqualification. One of the most common variations on the singles match is to restrict the possible means for victory. Blindfold match In a blindfold match, the two participants must wear a blindfold over their eyes for the entire duration of the match. A well-known example of this match is the WrestleMania VII match between Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Rick Martel. No count-out match ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |