| Professional wrestling in Japan, or "puroresu," is a | | | | well fought. With all the restrictions on what the |
| popular fighting sport. It had its boom years in the | | | | fighters could and could not do, it became a joke. |
| 1960's and 70's, but it is still widely enjoyed today. | | | | Still, he tried to legitimize puroresu with his slogan, |
| Rikidozan and the Early Days | | | | "civil rights for puroresu." |
| Puroresu began in Japan after World War 2. It didn't | | | | Women in the Ring |
| really take off until Rikidozan came along. Rikidozan | | | | Women have always been active in wrestling in |
| was a Korean-born sumo wrestler. In 1951, he began | | | | Japan. The All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling |
| the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance, or the JWA. It was | | | | Association was started in 1955, but women's |
| modeled after the pro-wrestling associations in the | | | | wrestling in Japan really began to pick up speed in |
| United States. | | | | 1967, with the establishment of the Japan Women's |
| The first 10 years of proresu are dominated by | | | | Pro-Wrestling Association. In the early days of the |
| Rikidozan. He helped set up virtually the whole | | | | AJW, Japanese wrestlers would fight wrestlers from |
| pro-wrestling industry. He was the first to compete | | | | other countries, in order to try to promote the fights. |
| internationally, and he began bringing international | | | | In 1975, Mach Fumiake won the WWWA |
| pro-wrestlers to Japan to compete. He basically put | | | | Championship, and since that time only 2 |
| Japan on the map in the pro-wrestling world. | | | | non-Japanese women wrestlers have won it. |
| In 1963, Rikidozan died at the age of 39. Although | | | | There were a number of great pro-wrestlers in Japan |
| he'd done much for puroresu in the last ten years, he | | | | throughout the 1980's and 90's, including Jushin Luger, |
| died leaving many projects unfinished. It was decided | | | | Manami Toyota, Lioness Asuka and Akira Hokuto. |
| that the JWA would continue with all the new talent | | | | With the dissolution of the major men's wrestling |
| that had emerged. | | | | federations, women wrestlers have taken the main |
| Rival Camps | | | | stage. Today, women's wrestling is much more |
| In the 1970's, there were lots of famous puroresu | | | | popular in Japan than men's wrestling. While the men's |
| stars in Japan, including Giant Baba and Antonio Inoki. | | | | wrestling fighters have generally splintered off into |
| At this time, the unity of the JWA was starting to | | | | other fighting styles, women fighters tend to stay |
| break up. Both Baba and Inoki started their own | | | | true to puroresu. |
| wrestling organizations and went into vicious | | | | Puroresu Today |
| competition with one another. Giant Baba started All | | | | As K-1 and other mixed martial arts gain popularity in |
| Japan Pro-Wrestling and Antonio Inoki started New | | | | Japan, the popularity of puroresu has been on the |
| Japan Pro-Wrestling. The next year, JWA went | | | | decline. This is due also to the gradual disintegration |
| under. | | | | of both Baba's AJPW after his death, and the decline |
| Puroresu has always been less gimmicky than | | | | of the NJPW. |
| American pro-wrestling, and Antonio Inoki has done a | | | | Although pro-wrestling is not as popular as it once |
| lot to try to elevate its status to a real fighting form. | | | | was in Japan, it still draws huge crowds. As it has |
| Throughout the 1970's, he tried to elevate the | | | | become mixed with other sports in the new hybrid |
| sport's legitimacy by fighting karate fighters, judo | | | | fighting styles, it has lost some of its purity, but it still |
| fighters and boxers. In 1976 he fought Muhammad Ali | | | | remains popular. |
| in a fight that was very heavily promoted, but not | | | | |