{"id":83608,"date":"2022-10-01T07:42:02","date_gmt":"2022-10-01T07:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-wrestling-icon-and-japanese-politician-dead-at-79\/"},"modified":"2022-10-01T07:42:02","modified_gmt":"2022-10-01T07:42:02","slug":"antonio-inoki-wrestling-icon-and-japanese-politician-dead-at-79","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-wrestling-icon-and-japanese-politician-dead-at-79\/","title":{"rendered":"Antonio Inoki, wrestling icon and Japanese politician, dead at 79"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>A popular Japanese professional wrestler and lawmaker Antonio Inoki, who faced a world boxing champion Muhammad Ali in a mixed martial arts match in 1976, has died at 79.<\/p>\n<p>Inoki brought Japanese pro-wrestling to fame and pioneered mixed martial arts matches between top wrestlers and champions from other combat sports like judo, karate and boxing.<\/p>\n<p>He also was the first in his sport to enter politics.  He promoted peace through sports and made more than 30 trips to North Korea during his time as a lawmaker in hopes of forging peace and friendship.<\/p>\n<p>Inoki, who was battling a rare disease called amyloidosis, died earlier Saturday, according to the New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co., of which he was the founding president.  Inoki was upbeat and in good spirits, even as he was fighting the disease.<\/p>\n<p>With his trademark red scarf dangling from his neck, Inoki last appeared in public in August on a TV show, in a wheelchair.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs you can see, I&#8217;m pushing myself to the limit, and I&#8217;m getting power as I get to see you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption>After retiring from wrestling, Inoki served as a Japanese politician.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"682\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-908.jpg?resize=682%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Inoki founded the New Japan Pro-Wrestling.\" class=\"wp-image-24085110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-908.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1023 1023w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-908.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=682 682w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-908.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=341 341w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-908.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 682px) 100vw, 682px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><figcaption>Inoki founded New Japan Pro-Wrestling.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">ullstein bild via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Born as Kanji Inoki in 1943 in Yokohama, just outside Tokyo, he moved to Brazil with his family when he was 13 and worked at a coffee plantation.  Inoki won local fame in shot put as a student, and debuted as a professional wrestler at 17 while on wrestling tour in Brazil where he captured the attention of Rikidozan, known as the father of Japanese pro-wrestling.<\/p>\n<p>Inoki made his pro-wrestling debut in 1960 and gave himself a ring name Antonio Inoki two years later.<\/p>\n<p>With his archrival and another Japanese legend, the late Shohei \u201cGiant\u201d Baba, Inoki made pro-wrestling a hugely popular sport in Japan.  Inoki founded the New Japan Pro-Wrestling in 1972.<\/p>\n<p>He rose to global fame in the sport in 1976 when he faced Ali in a mixed martial arts match at Tokyo&#8217;s Budokan hall, a match fans remember as \u201cthe fight of the century.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-901.jpg?resize=1024%2C682&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Dubbed &quot;The Fight-of-the-Century&quot; Antonio Inoki fought Muhammad Ali in Japan.\" class=\"wp-image-24085108\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-901.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-901.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-901.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"\/><figcaption>Dubbed \u201cThe Fight-of-the-Century\u201d Antonio Inoki fought Muhammad Ali in Japan.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Imag<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Inoki entered politics in 1989 after winning a seat in the upper house, one of Japan&#8217;s two chambers of parliament, and headed the Sports and Peace Party.  He traveled to Iraq in 1990 to win the release of Japanese citizens who were held hostage there.  He also staged a pro-wrestling match in North Korea.<\/p>\n<p>Inoki built personal connection with North Korea over the years and visited the country repeatedly to help resolve Japan&#8217;s longstanding issue of past abductions of Japanese nationals to the North.<\/p>\n<p>He retired as a wrestler in 1998, but remained active in politics until 2019.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>    .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A popular Japanese professional wrestler and lawmaker Antonio Inoki, who faced a world boxing champion Muhammad Ali in a mixed martial arts match in 1976, has died at 79. Inoki brought Japanese pro-wrestling to fame and pioneered mixed martial arts matches between top wrestlers and champions from other combat sports like judo, karate and boxing. &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-wrestling-icon-and-japanese-politician-dead-at-79\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Antonio Inoki, wrestling icon and Japanese politician, dead at 79<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[6],"tags":[27993,5589,21631,46,27994],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":83784,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-famed-japanese-wrestler-turned-politician-dies-aged-79\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":0},"title":"Antonio Inoki: Famed Japanese wrestler turned politician dies aged 79","date":"October 1, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"CNN \u2014 Former Japanese professional wrestler Antonio Inoki has died aged 79, according to his organization. Inoki - who was one of Japan's most well-known wrestlers - famously faced boxing great Muhammad Ali in a mixed martial arts match in 1976. The New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) \u2013 an organization promoting\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83476,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-famed-combat-sports-trailblazer-dies-at-79\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":1},"title":"Antonio Inoki, famed combat sports trailblazer, dies at 79","date":"October 1, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Antonio Inoki, a combat sports trailblazer, influential politician and larger-than-life figure in his native Japan, died Friday at the age of 79, it was announced by New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the promotion he founded.The cause of Inoki's death was not released, but he had fallen ill in recent years and was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83663,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/antonio-inoki-passes-away-at-79-years-old-won-f4w\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":2},"title":"Antonio Inoki passes away at 79 years old &#8211; WON\/F4W","date":"October 1, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Antonio Inoki, the founder of New Japan Pro Wrestling who became one of the biggest pro wrestling stars in the history of Japan, has passed away.Yahoo News Japan confirmed Inoki passed away on Saturday morning in Japan. Inoki, 79, had been battling health problems in recent years and had been\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"inoki","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.f4wonline.com\/.image\/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cfl_progressive%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_700\/MTkyNzEwMDI5Njg0NTE2MDQw\/inoki.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":89349,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/sara-lee-wwe-tough-enough-winner-and-former-nxt-wrestler-dead-at-30\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":3},"title":"Sara Lee, WWE &#8216;Tough Enough&#8217; winner and former NXT wrestler, dead at 30","date":"October 7, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Sara Lee, a former WWE \"Tough Enough\" winner who performed on the company's NXT brand for nearly a year, has died, her mother announced on social media. Lee was 30.Lee's mother, Terri, made the shocking revelation on her Facebook account.\"It is with heavy hearts we wanted to share that our\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41844,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/stuntman-and-the-godfather-of-grappling-dies-at-89-the-hollywood-reporter\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":4},"title":"Stuntman and \u201cThe Godfather of Grappling\u201d Dies at 89 \u2013 The Hollywood Reporter","date":"August 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Gene LeBell, the colorful judo champion, wrestler and stuntman who trained Bruce Lee, fought Elvis Presley and John Wayne in the movies and was an inspiration for Brad Pitt's character in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, has died. He was 89. LeBell died in his sleep early Tuesday morning\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Entertainment&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2246,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/former-all-pro-running-backs-adrian-peterson-leveon-bell-to-box-in-exhibition-on-july-30\/","url_meta":{"origin":83608,"position":5},"title":"Former All-Pro running backs Adrian Peterson, Le&#8217;Veon Bell to box in exhibition on July 30","date":"July 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The announcement comes less than two months removed from Frank Gore, the NFL's No. 3 all-time rusher, winning his professional boxing debut via first-round knockout on May 15.Bell and Peterson's first foray into the ring will be an exhibition, though, just like Gore's against former NBA player Deron Williams in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/10\/antonio-inoki-913.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83608"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83608\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}