(NOAH) In the hometown ring; Nishinaga, a referee from Kanazawa, 30th anniversary on the 13th

9th September 2020
Yahoo Japan\Hokkoku Shimbun

Shu Nishinaga (52), from Kanazawa, is celebrating the 30th anniversary of his life as a referee for Pro Wrestling Noah. Nishinaga, who has judged numerous matches, will stand in the ring at the Pro Wrestling Noah event (supported by Hokkoku Newspaper) at the Ishikawa Prefecture Industrial Exhibition Hall in Kanazawa on the 13th. Preparing for the milestone anniversary ring which he will celebrate in his hometown he said about the current situation as he visited the Hokkoku Newspaper on the 8th to promote the Noah Kanazawa event, "Together with the wrestlers, I want to make a pro wrestling that energises the people watching."

As a student, Nishinaga had a part time job at All Japan which led to becoming a permanent member of staff, and one day Giant Baba asked him "Do you want to be a referee? Stand in the ring with the wrestlers. There is no reason to not accept it". He made his debut in August 1990.
Nishinaga was encouraged by the authority on referees, Joe Higuchi, to start and end a match with "whether it is is a champion or not, judge with confidence." With his attention to nimble footwork and accurate refereeing, he has earned trust while being "Easy to follow without creating an obstacle to the viewer."

After moving from All Japan to Noah, he has judged about 8,000 matches in 30 years. When the GHC Heavyweight Championship, Mitsuharu Misawa vs Kenta Kobashi was selected as the best bout in 2003, it is his best memory that from both wrestlers he was told "It's an award we got with you."

Currently, all wrestlers are undergoing PCR tests each month, and the pro wrestling world continues to entertain with trial and error. Nishinaga commented, "You can see extraordinary situations in which great wrestlers collide, human emotions and many dramas". He spoke with an unchanging love for professional wrestling. 

Picture credit: Yahoo.co.jp\Hokkoku Shimbun 

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