THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
October 1, 2022 at 17:28 JST
Antonio Inoki in a 2019 interview with The Asahi Shimbun (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Japanese wrestling legend-turned-politician Antonio Inoki, who famously took on Muhammad Ali in a much-ballyhooed bout, died of heart failure on Oct. 1. He was 79.
The clash with Ali in 1976 was billed as the bout of the century, but the event itself was a dud as Inoki spent most of the time on his back in the ring trying to trip up the heavyweight champion boxer.
Inoki become an Upper House member in 1989, leading his own Sports and Peace Party. He made a total of 33 visits to North Korea to organize sports events and meet with government officials in Pyongyang.
He also was on friendly terms with Cuba’s Fidel Castro and Russian President Boris Yeltsin.
Born Kanji Inoki in Yokohama, he and his family moved to Brazil when he was a teenager. He debuted in pro wrestling in 1960 and his longtime rivalry with Giant Baba led to a boom in pro wrestling.
Inoki retired from the ring in 1998, but made a political comeback in 2013 after joining the Japan Restoration Party and winning an Upper House seat.
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