Mitsuharu Misawa
Sunday 14th June, 04:03 PM JST
HIROSHIMA —
Japanese professional wrestler Mitsuharu Misawa died Saturday
night after receiving a blow to his head when he was backdropped by
his opponent during a match in Hiroshima. He was 46. Misawa was
confirmed dead at a local hospital, where he was taken to in an
ambulance after losing consciousness following the maneuver shortly
after 8:30 p.m. in a tag team match at Hiroshima Green Arena,
according to police and event organizers.
According to one spectator, the referee stopped the match after
Misawa collapsed, and fellow wrestlers and emergency personnel
performed cardiac massage and used an automated external
defibrillator to try to resuscitate him but he did not budge.
Misawa, hailing from Koshigaya, Saitama Prefecture, debuted as a
pro wrestler in 1981 and served as the second ‘‘Tiger Mask’’ before
becoming a key wrestler in the All Japan Pro-Wrestling group during
the 1990s. He went on to launch a new group, the Pro-Wrestling
Noah, and was its president.