Mitsuharu Misawa: The Supreme Triple Crown Champion

Translated from the book by Kagehiro Osano (Former editor-in-chief of Weekly Gong) 

Childhood, amateur wrestling, Tiger Mask II, the Super Generation Army, the Triple Crown Champion, the Four Heavenly Kings of Pro Wrestling...the adolescence of a man who devoted himself to professional wrestling! 

INTRODUCTION

"The Eternal Strongest Champion Jumbo Tsuruta," published in May 2025, was a new and direct challenge for me, who, as a former reporter for All Japan Pro Wrestling in Weekly Gong, had not been able to effectively convey the wrestler, Jumbo Tsuruta. The book was published twenty years after his passing, but it has been read by far more people than I had imagined, and the overwhelming response has not only helped me to reaffirm the greatness of Jumbo Tsuruta as a professional wrestler, but also served as a memorial for him. 

This time, I'm working on Misawa Mitsuharu. He was one year younger than me, and unlike Tsuruta, he joined All Japan Pro Wrestling the year after I started working part-time at the Gong editorial department, so he was a familiar presence. During his Tiger Mask days, I casually called him "Tiger!", but after he unmasked in May 1990, "Misawa-kun" didn't feel right, and I couldn't just call him "Misawa" without his first name, so I started calling him "Mitsu-chan"  just like his friends in private. He called me "Osano-kun!" and remained friends with me even when my relationship with All Japan was strained after I became the reporter covering SWS*. 

As he rose to become the ace of All Japan and the president and ace of Pro Wrestling Noah, I would address him in public as "Misawa-san" and use honorific language. However, when I did, he would grin and ask, "Osano, what's wrong?" He'd treat me as he would normally, which sometimes made interviewing him difficult. Of course, he made a clear distinction between work and personal life, but I was glad that deep down he treated me like a friend.

Looking back, after an interview three months before his death, he asked me " "Osano, do you have work today? If not, do you want to go out for drinks for the first time in a while?" We went bar-hopping at cabaret clubs in Okachimachi, Tokyo, which turned out to be the last time we would spend together. I've suddenly written a lot of personal details, but this book is not intended to be about reminiscing about my memories with Misawa, it examines his roots as a member of the wrestling club at Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School (now Ashikaga University High School), his days as a young wrestler who was said to have "changed All Japan's undercard," his controversial period as the second Tiger Mask, his Super Generation Army period that revitalized All Japan after Genichiro Tenryu left, and his time as the Four Heavenly Kings, who remained true to pure pro wrestling even during the martial arts boom and captivated wrestling fans... This book analyzes and examines the life of Mitsuharu Misawa in each era. It also portrays All Japan Pro Wrestling in the 1980s and 1990s through his lens. And rather than depicting Misawa's entire life, I've deliberately narrowed my focus to the period leading up to his match with Toshiaki Kawada at the Tokyo Dome on May 1, 1998. I think you'll understand why if you read to the end.    

Misawa was also a pro wrestler who was difficult to put into words, in a different sense than Tsuruta. Particularly during his time as one of All Japan's Four Heavenly Kings, he expressed everything through offense and defense in the ring, and rejected verbal pro wrestling, but even in interviews he answered frankly and matter-of-factly, without any lip service or embellishment. Even when things were actually difficult, he didn't use fancy words and spoke naturally, which made it difficult to come up with impactful headlines.

Even when he fought with all his heart and soul, he never said things like "for the fans" or "if the fans want it." Even if he did say it, he would express it as, "He never said "for the fans" or "if the fans want it." Even if he did say it, he would express it as "The cheering supports me. It gives me a strong sense of motivation that tells me I can't continue like this, so I want to cherish that" or "I want to continue working hard so I don't succumb to those cheers." Misawa Mitsuharu was the kind of person who didn't want to be embarrassed by expecting something in return, so he would simply say, "I don't want to have any regrets" or "It's for my own good." After one match at the Nippon Budokan, Misawa was sprawled out in the waiting room, and when I asked him, "Are you sure you okay with going this far?" He stared up at the ceiling and said, "Why go this far? Well, it's easiest to just listen to the pin without reading into it. Because that's how the match ends, right? But I'd hate to regret it later, thinking, "Maybe I could have kicked out then. That's why I kick out".        

Misawa Mitsuharu never boasted, never whined, never complained, and never took on a lofty stance. He was natural, and casually put his life on the line in his wrestling. He was the coolest wrestler to interview, and a person I respected beyond my professional sphere.

At the end of 2021, marking the 13th anniversary of his death, we will analyze and examine Misawa's professional wrestling at the time, incorporating testimonies from various people involved, and at the same time, we will once again explore how that strong professional spirit hidden within him was nurtured... We would like to shed light on the determination of the man, who was healed by the supreme professional wrestling known as the "Four Heavenly Kings of Wrestling." 

NOTES

SWS: Genichiro Tenryu's first promotion after leaving All Japan, to be replaced by the far better WAR.

CHAPTERS

1. Ashikaga Institute of Technology Wrestling Club

2. Younger days in All Japan Pro Wrestling  

3. Second Generation Tiger Mask

4. The slump and the move to heavyweight

5. Growth

6. Misawa's leap and the dynamism of the Super Generation Army

7. The Four Heavenly Kings Pro Wrestling 

8. The Ultimate Pro Wrestling 

9. Epilogue

10. Conclusion 

CHAPTER ONE 

Ashikaga Institute of Technology Wrestling Club

His Mother's Way of Living is at the Core

Whenever Mitsuharu Misawa is mentioned, one thing that always comes up is his "unyielding mental strength." He never complained or whined, and quietly did what he had to do. Where did his tendency to take responsibility for things while claiming it was "for myself" come from? "Well, it would be an interesting story if I said my family environment made me strong, but I don't really think that's the case," Misawa himself said, without embellishing the story and casually denying the hot-blooded sports tale. However, it seems that his complicated upbringing shaped his foundation. 

Misawa was born on June 18, 1962, in Yubari, Hokkaido. Yubari was his mother's hometown. His father worked for the Hokkaido Colliery Steamship Company, and at the Yubari Coal Mine. However, Misawa's official profile states that he was "from Koshigaya, Saitama Prefecture." The Yubari Coal Mine lost its competitive edge due to repeated gas explosions* and the spread of imported coal, and was forced to close in 1963. Following large-scale layoffs, Misawa moved to Saitama Prefecture with his parents and older brother, who was two years older than him. He was only a year old at the time. Misawa's earliest memory is from when he was four or five years old* and already living in Koshigaya. He lived there until he graduated from junior high school and entered Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School (now Ashikaga University High School), and Koshigaya likely became his hometown.  

However, Misawa's childhood memories are not all happy ones. His parents divorced when he was in the first grade of elementary school. His father was an alcoholic, and he only remembers him coming home drunk and beating his mother. He also recalls that his father once tried to leave with his older brother, and his mother desperately tried to stop him. After the divorce, his mother, Akiko, raised their two sons on her own. Working in a factory during the day and as a waitress at a traditional Japanese restaurant at night*, Misawa had very little time to spend with her.   

I remember visiting Misawa's new home in June 1988 for an interview, where he had just gotten married. "I'm the patriarch, so I don't even boil water, but this is for the sake of the interview," he said, boasting to his wife Mayumi as he smoothly peeled an apple* without cutting it all the way through. It was a feat he could only pull off because he had been cooking for himself since he was little, due to his mother's absence. 

Because his mother worked, and his older brother would go out and play with his classmates, Misawa spent a lot of his time alone playing by himself, running around the cemetery, climbing trees, and going on long bike rides. He himself seems to have enjoyed it in its own way, but perhaps his later years, when he would gather many friends and drink merrily into the early hours of the morning in Tokyo's Kinshicho or Okachimachi districts almost every night on his days off, were a reaction to the loneliness of his childhood.

Misawa's first interview was in the October 1981 issue of Monthly Gong. At the time, Gong had a serial feature called "GONG Surprise Interviews," which featured young wrestlers from three promotions — New Japan, All Japan and International Pro. On August 18, nine days before his debut, he was interviewed at the All Japan Pro-Wrestling training camp in Kinuta, Setagaya Ward. Unfortunately, the interviewer at the time was not me, but Kazutomo Kobayashi, who would later become a reporter covering New Japan. When asked "Who do you respect?" Misawa answered, "Jumbo Tsuruta... Other than professional wrestlers, it's my mother. I come from a single parent family, and she worked hard to raise me". 

Yuichi Watanabe, a classmate on the wrestling team at Ashikaga Institute of Technology, recalls, "One night after practice, Misawa was lying on the bench press outside the dojo. He didn't seem to be lifting a barbell, so I wondered what was wrong, and looked closer. I saw he was crying, so I asked him, "What's wrong, Misawa?" and he said, "I come from a single-parent family, so I was thinking about my mother and wondering if she was okay". He said he had wanted to become a professional wrestler from the moment he entered school, saying, "Of course I love professional wrestling, but I also want to make money quickly so my mother can live a comfortable life." Unfortunately for his father he would say, "If that bastard ever comes back, I'm going to beat him to a pulp!" He didn't go into specifics, but I'm sure something pretty serious happened to him as a child."

Misawa likely grew up with a mother who never complained, who worked from morning to night, and who desperately protected them, even in a complicated family situation. It's safe to say that his mother's refusal to complain and her determination to protect those she held dear, are at Misawa's core. Meanwhile, regarding his father... Misawa wasn't the type to talk about his family life, but when the topic of his children going on to higher education came up, he made a memorable remark: "You know, I don't know how to interact with my children as a father."

   

Pro Wrestling is a Sport

Misawa had no experience in martial arts before entering Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School. As an elementary school student, he competed in sprints and high jumps, winning the high jump at the Koshigaya City Championships when he was in fifth and sixth grade. He was also able to do backflips from elementary school, so his jumping ability and athletic ability were apparently innate. 

When Misawa entered junior high school, he chose to join gymnastics clubs, participating in three events: vault, horizontal bar, and floor exercises. These skills would prove useful in his later years in professional wrestling. 

Misawa's first encounter with professional wrestling was when he was in the second year of junior high school and watched All Japan on Nippon Television. The earliest wrestlers he remembers are "The Human Windmill" Bill Robinson and "European Emperor" Host Hoffman, so it's likely that the first time he saw Hoffman was at the "NWA Champion Series" in May-June 1976, when Hoffman visited Japan for his second run with All Japan, and his fifth time overall. The following "Summer Action Series," which began on July 1st, saw Robinson, who had previously visited Japan eight times internationally* and once with New Japan, make his first visit to Japan with All Japan.

"As a pure fan, I liked wrestlers who used aerial techniques not found in other martial arts. Tatsumi Fujinami returned to Japan from America in triumph around the time I joined the high school wrestling club (March 1978), so he was a wrestler I admired, but I didn't particularly admire anyone when I was in middle school.  I happened to be watching TV and thought, 'I want to do that.' I didn't watch New Japan much, though. Looking back, it was a foolish idea for a middle schooler (wry smile), but honestly, when I watched TV, I had a strong feeling of, 'If it were me, I would do it like that.' But you can't say that when you're young. You can't tell your seniors or reporters, 'I became a professional wrestler because I felt a strong desire to make it even more interesting.' (laughs)"

For Misawa, a young second-year junior high school student, professional wrestling was not a "spectator sport", but a sport to be studied, and he watched it from the perspective of a wrestler. It's generally believed that Misawa wore long green tights after the Tiger Mask II unmasking, because he admired Hoffman*, but Watanabe, a fellow wrestling club member, said, "I didn't know if I liked him or not, but I watched Hoffman's matches and we talked about how good he was." 

In any case, Misawa decided to become a professional wrestler as soon as he graduated from junior high. t is unclear whether he was also thinking, "I want to start earning money quickly and make things easier for my mother", but during his career counselling session in his third year of junior high, he wrote "professional wrestler" in the "aspirations" column. His homeroom teacher scolded him, saying, "Don't be silly! Think it through!", his mother also opposed the idea saying, "You should at least go to high school." In the end, Misawa accepted the desperate persuasion of his homeroom teacher and his mother, who insisted that he "go to a high school with a strong amateur wrestling program, learn the basics, and then become a professional wrestler," and so he enrolled at Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School, a prestigious school for wrestling.

A Scholarship Student at a Prestigious School           

Founded in 1963 by Oshima Yamato, (currently a council member elected to the Kanto region of the Japan Wrestling Association), the Ashikaga Institute of Technology's wrestling club is a prestigious school with a track record of success. Yoshiaki Yatsu won the freestyle tournament in 1973, the 75kg freestyle at the Inter-High School Championships in 1974, and the school boasts a track record of winning the Inter-High School Team Championships for two consecutive years in 1976 and 1977. Misawa enrolled in 1978.

Yuichi Watanabe*, who joined the wrestling club at the same time as Misawa, shared his recollections. He is the father of Watanabe Shuto, who is active in martial arts events such as RIZIN. He served as captain of the wrestling club in his third year (Misawa was vice-captain) and continued wrestling even after entering Nihon University. He then became a pro fighter under Satoru Sayama* and went on to become the first Shooto Welterweight (now Shooto World Lightweight) Champion. He currently serves as the director of Seiken Shinin-ryu Kogikan, and fights as Masked Shooter Super Rider in Sayama's Strong Style Pro Wrestling (Real Japan Pro Wrestling). Though they took different paths, they continued to keep in touch, and Watanabe was someone Misawa trusted.

"I did a little judo in middle school and took part in a tournament in Ashikaga. I was an athlete from Ota, Gunma, and it was a time before the internet, so I didn't know much about it, but the person I beat happened to be the Tochigi Prefecture champion. I was a white belt, and I had beaten a very famous black belt athlete, so word got to the ears of Professor Oshima at Ashikaga Institute of Technology, who said, "Find that athlete! My father had taught judo in his hometown of Ashikaga when he was younger, so a local judo enthusiast he knew said, "The athlete in question is the son of someone I know, so I'll introduce you to him," and that's how I got to know him. I joined the club after being introduced to Mr. Shima." 

third-year students to compete in the National Athletic Meet to be held in his hometown of Tochigi, two years later in 1980. While it's understandable why Watanabe, with his judo experience, was scouted as a scholarship student, Watanabe explains why Misawa, who had no martial arts experience whatsoever, was also scouted as a scholarship student.  

"Back then, there wasn't the kind of kid-friendly wrestling you see today, so it was common for people to do judo through middle school and start wrestling in high school. It was unusual for Misawa to start wrestling from gymnastics. But the the team was made up of people who were somewhat famous in middle school for baseball or handball."

Coach Oshima didn't limit himself to specific genres, but instead scouted athletes he thought had potential. As a result, eight students enrolled as scholarship students, but a year later, only four remained: Misawa, Watanabe, 56kg wrestler Takao Kashiwabe, and heavyweight wrestler Koichi Okawa.

"The first time I met Misawa was at the wrestling dojo, and he told me he used to do gymnastics. I asked him, 'Why did you go from gymnastics to wrestling?' He said, 'I'm not particularly interested in (amateur) but I want to be a professional wrestler, so I'm doing amateur wrestling as training to become a professional wrestler.' It really seemed like he had no interest in wrestling itself," Watanabe laughs.

Misawa took part in a practice match shortly after joining the dojo, without even knowing the rules. Despite being a beginner, he won a match, which pleased the coach, and it seems that expectations were indeed high.

"From the very beginning, Misawa was noticed by his teachers, who thought, 'This guy is going to be strong!' It's hard to imagine, but Misawa was just so strong. Maybe because he had done gymnastics, he had incredible arm strength. And because he had a long reach, when they taught him a single-leg tackle, the moment his hand got caught on the opponent's leg, he would quickly pull him down and take him down, so it seems like the teachers had a special eye on Misawa from his first year. After that, Misawa would take down his opponent with a single-leg tackle, grab the back of his opponent who had their back turned, and roll him up into a cradle hold for a pinfall. Or he would stop his opponent from going in for a tackle, then quickly spin around and roll him up, becoming a wrestler who excelled at this tactic.  He had strong arm strength and the longest reach in that weight class (70kg), so he would get around his opponent's back, grab their neck and legs and spin them around to get the pin. But "He was always so calm and collected" Watanabe said with a laugh. 

It was a rule that scholarship students in the wrestling club had to live in the dormitory. Watanabe recalls, "The dormitory was a house on the school grounds. I think it was about six tatami mats in size. We'd lay out futons and sleep there with four or five people. I slept below the bottom shelf in the closet. For meals, the school lunch center delivered lunch boxes in the morning, I ate the same large portion as the teachers at the staff cafeteria, and in the evening we went to a nearby restaurant, which had it ready and we ate that. Back then, there wasn't much nutrition like there is today, so we didn't eat much. We were always hungry. Sweets and juice were prohibited, but the teachers would go home at night, so we'd often go to a shop behind the school that was open until about 10 p.m. and buy bread, sweets, and juice. We called it the "back store." Even though I was an amateur, I was like a professional student, like I came to high school just to wrestle."

Looking back on his life, Watanabe recalls running around the schoolyard from 6:00 AM until nearly 8:00 AM before attending classes. After lunch, he would lift weights. In the afternoon, after classes ended, he would practice from 4:00 PM until around 8:00 PM. He would do 20-minute rounds of sparring two or three times in a row. At least two in a row. During that time, Mr. Urano was constantly complaining. He was a hard worker, so it was impressive that he could complain for so long. The only days off were only days off were New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The only day morning practice was off was Sunday. "We'd do sparring and other training for three hours from 9:00 to 12:00, but then we'd have free time, so we'd have a bit of a break on Sundays."      

The "Mr. Urano" mentioned in Watanabe's story is Kazuo Urano, a member of the Ashikaga Institute of Technology's wrestling club's sixth class and a student of Coach Oshima. After graduating, he went on to wrestle for the Kokushikan University wrestling club. When Misawa and Watanabe were members of the wrestling club, Coach Oshima was in charge of managing the university and high school teams in a sort of general managerial role, while Coach Urano was actually in charge of coaching the high school team. As we'll discuss later, he was apparently quite strict.

Morning practice typically began with a 6:00 a.m. run, but sometimes they would wake up to find the bus already running in front of the dormitories. They'd be put on without any notice, climb a mountain called Nagusa, and then get off at the bottom of the pass and be made to run. Apparently, the distance to school was exactly 20 km, so it was pretty tough. Watanabe remembers that, "We arrived at around 6:30 am. They would say, 'You'll miss class if you don't run back within the next two hours!' There were no cell phones back then. 'Call us if you need anything!' They would give us just a 10-yen coin to use a public phone and the teachers would go home on the bus (wry smile). We'd be taken away on the bus straight after waking up, and some of us would get stomach-aches while we were running. So I'd do things like pee in the river and wash my ass with the river water with my bare hands, it was just crazy (laughs). That was my daily routine, so I slept most of the time during class. If I slept too openly I would get in trouble, but back then the teachers were pretty tolerant, so before matches they'd say things like, 'Watanabe, you have a match tomorrow, right? Sleep, sleep. If you lose, I'll get blamed, so you better get some rest' (laughs). At that time, all I wanted to do was sleep, even if it was just for a little while, except for practice and meals".  

Toshiaki Kawada, Misawa and Watanabe's junior, also remembers this "guts running"; "You get left deep in the mountains, so if you're not familiar with the area, you can't come back. Seniors can make it because they know the area, but if you're not familiar with the area, no matter how much you run, you'll just go in a completely different direction and never make it back. So, if you don't run back quickly, you can't get fruit juice...and when I say fruit juice, I mean a few cheap tetra packs of 100% fruit juice, and everyone drinks it in the order they arrive, but if you come back late, there's nothing to drink." 

Misawa's incredible stamina must have been the result of these intense training sessions during his high school years.

The proposal to join All Japan

Amidst this lifestyle, Misawa absconded from the dorm at the end of his first year. He didn't run away because practice was too tough, but because he just didn't find amateur wrestling interesting. In fact, Misawa would often say, "To be honest, amateur wrestling is a boring sport. Why do you even get points for something like that?" He had endured a year of perseverance in order to pursue professional wrestling, but thinking that doing it for another two years would be a waste of time, Misawa went to the All Japan office, which was then located in the International Building in Roppongi, Tokyo, and asked directly to join.

Watanabe remembers this moment clearly.    

"We heard he was going to the All Japan office. He said he'd be back by the next morning's practice," but he never returned. The teachers started making a fuss, asking, "Where did Misawa go?" So, even though we knew, when we woke up, he was gone. The teachers were worried and searching for him. Eventually, Misawa returned that night and talked with the teachers in the instructor's room. I don't think they scolded him. Later, when Misawa returned to the training camp, I asked him, "How was it?" and he said, "I met with Tsuruta. He said, 'I understand how you feel, but you need to graduate from high school.' He promised me he'd let me in if I did, so I'll work hard until I graduate." 

Misawa met with Motoko Baba, Yoshihiro Momota, and Jumbo Tsuruta at the All Japan Wrestling office, where Tsuruta advised him, ""Just make sure you graduate from high school. I started wrestling after college, and I've never thought it was too late." Misawa decided to continue wrestling until graduation and returned to the dorm. 

Kawada Discusses His Impression of His Senior, Misawa

In April 1979, Misawa, who was in his second year of high school, had a fateful encounter.    

Toshiaki Kawada, who entered the school that year, joined the wrestling club. Though their personalities were completely different, the two men shared a common thread. Both grew up in single-parent households, Misawa decided he wanted to become a professional wrestler in his second year of junior high. While Kawada, who played on the baseball team at Fujioka Daiichi Junior High School and competed in sumo tournaments, also became interested in professional wrestling in his second year of junior high. He was deeply moved by The Funks (vs Abdullah the Butcher & The Sheik) when he saw them perform on TV in the World Open Tag Team Championship. From then on, Kawada began watching All Japan Pro Wrestling broadcasts every week, and also never missed a single New Japan Pro Wrestling broadcast. By the time he was in his third year of junior high school, he began seriously considering becoming a professional wrestler. He then purchased training equipment with the money he earned from his part-time job delivering newspapers, and began training on his own, successfully increasing his weight from 75kg to 35kg. With no particular desire to join any particular promotion, he sent letters to All Japan and New Japan asking if they were hiring new recruits, and when they responded, he took the entrance test for New Japan. 

In the fall of 1978, Kawada visited the New Japan Dojo in Setagaya, Tokyo, and easily passed the basic physical fitness test, which included 500 squats, 10 sets of 30 push-ups, flexibility, neck exercises, and bridges. But then he got into trouble when he beat a young wrestler in the sparring session that followed.

The man who appeared before him was Yoshiaki Fujiwara. Kawada was brutally beaten to a pulp, but it was Fujiwara who gave him his first taste of professional wrestling. Though Fujiwara left him bloodied, Kawada had passed the test. He passed his interview with Kotetsu Yamamoto at the office, and a few days later, New Japan contacted him, telling him to come after he graduated. However, the gods of professional wrestling didn't let Kawada in so easily. Like Misawa, his middle school teachers persuaded him to at least graduate from high school. "After three years of high school, you can go into professional wrestling. It's not too late," they said, and Kawada decided to attend Aichi University of Technology. Before enrolling, he went shopping at school to buy the supplies he'd need for high school life. That's when Coach Oshima called out to him, took him to the wrestling club room, and introduced him to Mitsuharu Misawa, a year ahead of him. "This guy also wants to become a professional wrestler," he said.

Kawada wasn't initially a scholarship student, but within a few weeks of joining the club, his teacher said to him him, "I'll make you a scholarship student, so why don't you live in the dormitory?" He accepted, expecting his tuition to be cheaper. Kawada recalls, "When I say "dormitory", I don't think it's the kind of dormitory you'd imagine. The volleyball club had a proper prefabricated dormitory, but the wrestling club's dormitory was a really old house, probably built in the early Showa period! It had wooden doors, and even the window frames were made of wood. It was a really old, dirty place. It was more like a storage shed (wry smile). So, Watanabe, me, and one other person lived in a 4.5 tatami mat room. I think Misawa and his group were in a slightly larger room, so there were about four of us"

Kawada also shared his impression of his high school senior, Misawa: "I don't know if Misawa was a decent person, or if the other seniors were decent people, but I feel that he didn't get along with the others. Misawa was the type of person who didn't want to have to do his own things, like doing his own laundry or going shopping. He would make his juniors do his errands, and since he didn't do the things the other seniors did, it made it seem like Misawa was the only one who was trying to look cool. He'd even get into fights with Watanabe, and he and Okawa would beat Misawa up (wry smile). One senior even forced me to eat a booger he'd found on the wall, saying, 'Eat it, I put it there a few days ago!' That's just how the seniors are."

Watanabe also remembers a fight with Misawa, saying, "Okawa and I were messing around with a junior about something, and Misawa jumped on us like, 'Don't talk like that!' and we started arguing... He grabbed me by the collar, so we started fighting, and Okawa and I hit Misawa hard (wry smile). I also got dropkicked by Misawa. We were doing some repetitive tackle practice, but the coach said, 'Finish by a certain time,' and went outside. If the coach was gone, we'd get bored, right? So we all started joking around,  I don't remember what happened, but Misawa and I got into a bit of an argument. So I turned my back like, 'Shut up!' and he actually dropkicked me (wry smile). I was defenceless when he hit me with it, and I went flying. Misawa often did dropkicks jokingly, but I think I was the only one who got seriously hit by one," he laughs. Given this kind of relationship, it's safe to say it was inevitable that Misawa and Kawada, both aspiring professional wrestlers, would become close. 

Kawada recalls, "Misawa was the only one in the dorm who had a TV, so we watched pro wrestling together. Rather than a particular wrestler we liked, both Misawa and I had a strong desire to become like them. Misawa wanted to join All Japan, but I think I was about half-and-half between All Japan and New Japan...but we never played at wrestling". Watanabe says that, "in this way I got to see Misawa and Kawada close up, before they went pro".  

Kawada recalls Misawa as an amateur wrestler, not just someone who was pretending be a pro wrestler, "He did moves that only someone with long arms and legs could do. He was a year older than me, so I felt I couldn't compete with him because he'd started a year earlier, but I don't think he was trying to master amateur wrestling. In Misawa's case, didn't he start wrestling with the goal of becoming a professional wrestler? It's the same for me, but once I started wrestling, I became passionate about it. But I think Misawa was wrestling while looking beyond wrestling."

Misawa and Kawada have a history spanning more than 20 years, from when they first met in the wrestling clubroom of Aichi University of Technology in April 1979 to their final one-on-one match at Pro Wrestling Noah's Tokyo Dome on July 18, 2005. Many things have happened during that long time, but what still comes to mind is the image of Kawada calling out affectionately, "Misawa-san, Misawa-san!" and Misawa yelling, "You shut up!" It's a sweet, senior-junior relationship that's continued since high school.

Yoshiaki Yatsu, six years his senior, becomes his coach.

During his second year, Misawa met another person he would become involved with after going professional: Yoshiaki Yatsu. Misawa was a member of the wrestling club's 18th class, while Yatsu was a member of the 12th class, making him six years older than Misawa. 

As mentioned above, Yatsu achieved impressive results, winning the 75kg freestyle at the Chiba National Athletic Meet in 1973 as a second-year student at Aichi University of Technology, and then the 75kg freestyle at the Inter-High School Championships in 1974 as a third-year student. However, he wasn't a scholarship student; he joined the club through the general public.

"I wasn't particularly beefy, but I happened to be quite big, so I was lured in by the invitation to join the club. The wrestling club was popular because it was at a and at the time there were about eighteen classes per year, so even if there were about four people from each class who wanted to join, about seventy people would gather all at once. Then, before summer vacation, half of them, about thirty five joined, and then after the summer vacation none remined. Of my classmates, only thirteen people stayed, but three or four of them were scholarship students. My only experience in sports was a little bit of judo in middle school, but once I get hooked on something, I'm the type to pursue it thoroughly. You have the right to quit halfway through, so let's join together! All my classmates who had said arrogant things like, 'I'm going to aim for the world' all quit and enjoyed their youth. But as I gradually started to achieve good results in the Kanto Tournament, Inter-High School Championships, and National Sports Festival, those guys started to look up to me and I was like the secret boss. I wasn't particularly tough, but everyone respected me", Yatsu recalled with a wry smile as he looked back on his high school days. 

After graduating from Aichi University of Technology and entering Nihon University in 1975, he won the 90kg class at the World Junior Championships Trials. In 1976, he won the 90kg class at the All-Japan Championships in April, was placed 8th in the 90kg class at the Montreal Olympics in July, and won the 90kg+ class at the All-Japan Student Championships in August-September. In 1977, he won three tournaments: the All-Japan Championships in the 100kg class, the All-Japan Student Championships in the 90kg+ class, and the All-Japan University Championships in the 90kg+ class. In 1978, he won three tournaments (all in the freestyle category): the All-Japan Championships in the 100kg+ class, the All-Japan University Championships in the 90kg+ class, and the Asian Games in the 100kg+ class, demonstrating outstanding performance worthy of being called the strongest heavyweight in Japanese wrestling history. 

"I went to Montreal five years after I started wrestling, and no one goes there in four or five years. What's more, I was in the 90kg weight class, which is a little above middleweight, like the heavyweight class, so there was a deep pool of athletes. Tsuruta went to Munich as a Greco-Roman wrestler, but Giant Baba and Ichiro Hasuda, the president of the Amateur Wrestling Association, were close. The Amateur Wrestling Association was short on funds at the time, so they made Tsuruta the Munich representative and sent him to All Japan  to add some prestige. Back then, if you were the Japanese champion and the association recommended you, you could go to the Olympics. It sounds a bit blunt, but Tsuruta was well on his way. In fact, Tsuruta played basketball, so he had good jumping ability and was tall. He also had natural stamina, and because he was a Greco-Roman wrestler, he could perform all types of suplexes. And he was also smart. It was only natural that Baba wanted him, and I think he was the ideal person for a pro wrestler" he said, sharing some behind-the-scenes stories. 

After graduating from university in April 1979, he enrolled at Ashikaga Institute of Technology (now Ashikaga University) to continue his wrestling career, aiming to compete in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. 

"Back then, it wasn't that hard to find a job, so you could get into the Gunma Prefectural Police, the Self-Defense Forces, a bank, an insurance company... you could get into anywhere. My dad worked for Tobu Railway, and he once asked me if I wanted to join the company and start a wrestling club. But he said, 'Don't take on a job that will make people hate you,' so I thought, 'Well, a school teacher would be fine.' My title was assistant researcher at a university, a researcher who studied wrestling. He said, 'I'll create a curriculum, so please teach me wrestling.' I didn't do anything else. (laughs)So they sent me here and there to train, and if the Moscow Olympics hadn't been boycotted, I would have had some solid accomplishments and taken on the role of wrestler, and taught wrestling in the Yatsu class...So I started as an assistant, then became a lecturer, assistant professor, and professor. But timing is usually off in my life (wry smile)."

So how did Yatsu, a university employee, end up coaching Misawa, a high school student?   

"Misawa was a scholarship student because he was tall, had good athletic ability, and had done artistic gymnastics so he was likely to have a strong core. I was a university employee, but I was told, 'You absolutely have to make Misawa the champion at the National Sports Festival!' I ended up taking care of Misawa, Okawa, and Kawada, who was one year younger than Misawa. Kawada wasn't a scholarship student at first, he joined from the general public when I became a staff member. I had to have him compete against a variety of wrestlers, not just with me, so I would often take Misawa, Okawa, and Kawada in my car to Nihon University, Kokushikan University, Senshu University, etc. I had Misawa compete against the university's heavyweights and bullied him hard at training camps. I also coached the wrestling club at Ashikaga Institute of Technology, but since it was just starting up, there were only seven or eight first-and second-year students, and it wasn't at high school level, so I taught Misawa and the others at the high school dojo."

Enjoying Youth Even in Hard Times

So, how did Misawa and Kawada look in the eyes of their coach, Yatsu?

Kawada has a strong competitive spirit, so he'd come at me crying and saying, "One more time, please!" And then he'd do it again with all his might. Kawada was straightforward, so it was easy to teach him. But Misawa was rather sensitive, so even though he cries, it's more like he wants to see his girlfriend. He had a girlfriend since middle school (laughs). I can't remember what her name was. So when I first met him, Misawa was a complete failure. At the time, he wasn't even thinking about winning; his mind was on his girlfriend  (laughs). So when I beat him up, I think he cried a lot."

In response, Watanabe said, ""Compared to Yatsu's level, he was probably a complete failure. My impression is different: Misawa wasn't particularly sensitive; he just wasn't interested in wrestling (wry smile). It was really like warming up for professional wrestling. Practice was tough, and every day was really tough, but I think Misawa was somehow clear-headed. His mind was always on professional wrestling, and of course he knew he had a girlfriend, and sometimes he'd go and see her after practice (laughs)."

Misawa also wrote in his autobiography, "The only thing that supported me in high school was my girlfriend, whom I'd been dating since my second year of junior high." 

Even though he was exhausted from practice, he would take the last train to Kasukabe, where she lived, and travel over an hour to sneak into her room on the second floor. Simply put, it was a "sneaking visit." Then, without sleep, he would return to Ashikaga on the first train of the night and join in on morning practice. Watanbe recalls with a laugh, "Even if he got on the first train back, he wouldn't make it in time for morning practice. The school is only about a five-minute walk from the station, so he'd meet up with us just as we were finishing our first lap of the run (laughs). He would sometimes come to watch our matches and brag about it. He'd say, 'There are plenty of girls with pretty faces, but there's no one in the world with such a nice personality.'

Even in the midst of his hard daily life, Misawa actually enjoyed going on dates and enjoying his youth. Misawa had the temperament of a Showa-era pro wrestler, who would go all out in matches and have fun once he got off the ring. You can almost hear him say with a grin, "When you're young, you really have to have fun."  

Severity that makes opponents sympathize with him

When Yatsu first started teaching, he called Misawa "completely useless." How did that change?

"With Coach Oshima at the top, Urano, the high school coach, and myself, I was originally in a position to teach at university, so I didn't have much contact with the high school wrestlers other than Misawa, Kawada, and Okawa, but the target of turning three of them into champions was a tough one. In Misawa's case, it was the mental aspect, I told him "Absolutely believe in yourself!" Misawa was the type to take down his opponents with a single-leg tackle and score points, while Kawada was more of a thrower....hit the ground and then take them down with both hands. At first Misawa showed no desire to win, but gradually his skills honed, and a determination to win was born. Once you reach the point where you awaken to the world of competition, you'll do anything from there on. It's hard to awaken them. If you lose, you'll get all sulky and say, "I don't want to do it," but once you start winning, you'll start thinking, "I want to win even more!" The important thing is to give people the joy of winning" Yatsu said.   

However, when I asked Misawa about his high school days, he said, "It was like I was expected to win, so I couldn't lose. Sometimes I won because athletes from other schools sympathized with me." He often spoke of the pressure of having to win rather than the joy of victory.   

Watanabe also said, "If we lost, we'd be told to 'keep doing a bridge on the floor!' and our seconds would yell, 'What are you doing?!' and beat us up. I was made to practice repeatedly during the matches (wry smile). My opponent would grab me hard, and the teacher would say, 'Break that and grab his arm!' but I just couldn't do it well. After the first round, I came back and they'd say, 'What are you doing? Go for it!' and during the one-minute interval, I'd be made to practice repeatedly without sitting down, with my seconds saying, 'That's it, you can do it, go for it!' That was the norm back then. There were many times when teachers from the opposing school would see us getting scolded even after we won and say, 'Well done, you did well, you worked so hard to win,' and say something like, 'Well done, you did well,' and that was a great thing. And teachers who were older than Urano would apparently say, 'Why don't you give him a little praise?'" When I confronted Yatsu about this, he replied with a laugh, "It wasn't me who was punching him, it was Urano-san (wry smile). I would put on a performance like that. That way students from other schools would sympathize with me and say, 'Why did you go to such a strict place?'" 

Kawada says that even though Coach Urano was strict, he liked him. He shared his memories, including an anecdote about Misawa: "I wonder how many years ago it was... He passed away young, but he was a strict, serious, and amazing teacher when it came to practice. He would hit and slap me, and because it was a religious school (Buddhist), he was always hitting me with a keisaku (a stick used to hit the shoulders and back during meditation). Even though Mr Urano would hit me and slap me, I preferred him that way. Even in that situation, Misawa was very resourceful. He'd often sneak out of the dorm to see his girlfriend, then sneak back while we were being trained hard in the morning (laughs). But even though Misawa was so resourceful, he got hit by Mr Urano just once.  It was during a training session at the Self-Defense Forces Physical Education School, where they held a "first-out" competition. Misawa, who normally didn't put in much effort, came back, and got away with one lap, so that was the only time he came in first. Then Mr. Urano got mad at him. I think that was the only time Misawa got yelled at for being so resourceful (laughs)."

Ashio Copper Mine Escape Incident

As Misawa drank, he slowly recounted his high school memories. One of the most amusing stories was the incident in which all the members of the wrestling club, living in the dorms, left a note saying, "Give us freedom," and ran away to the Ashio Copper Mine. 

It was before the final exams of the second semester of their second year, and naturally the wrestling club members who were immersed in practice couldn't possibly perform well. Even Coach Urano noticed the members' poor performance, and other teachers would say, "It's great that the wrestling club is strong, but you are also students, and you have to study too". Urano told them to eat their dinners and then study, and ended practice, which usually ended at 8 PM, at 6:30 PM. But the members weren't going to study. They were immersed in a sense of freedom by watching TV, listening to music, and reading manga. According to Kawada's testimony, Misawa was watching a match between Fujinami and Kengo Kimura on TV.        

Coach Urano came to see what they were doing and yelled at them, "You bastards! I told you to study, what are you doing!?!?!" Rather than feeling remorseful, the team members got worked up and said, and "You've got to be kidding! We finish early sometimes, so what's wrong with having a little fun? We can't do this anymore! Morning practice starts in the morning, so let's all go somewhere before then!". They then woke up around 5 a.m. before morning practice began and escaped the dormitory. Kawada, a first-year student, had no choice but to follow his seniors and join them, but he says, "I was the only junior there, so I think they needed someone to do odd jobs."

They boarded the Watarase Keikoku Railway and headed deep into the mountains, getting off at Ashio. They rented a tent at a campsite, lied and said they were "camping with the Nihon University mountaineering club, but ran out of food," and had rice balls made for them at a nearby inn. They caught dragonfly larvae in the river, grilling them and eating them. They also caught a snake, but were unable to butcher it and let it go. 

They then moved to Kiryu* and discussed buying a new tent and living somewhere else, but their plans were discovered when a team member contacted them on a public phone, and Coach Urano and his team patrolled the town. The team were spotted eating in the cafeteria and were taken back to the dormitory. 

Watanabe recalls, "Actually, I ended up not going to the cafeteria because I was looking for a tent, so I got away, but I got curious and went to check out the school at night, and the only light on was in my classroom. So I went inside, and there was a message on the  blackboard saying that your parents are worried about you and that no one is angry, so please come back". I thought  'Maybe I should go back.' The lights were on in the instructors room too, so I went in, prepared to be in trouble. I went in. I said, 'I'm sorry,' and Mr. Oshima, Mr. Urano, and my dad, who were there, all cried and said, 'I'm so glad, I'm so glad!' So, it wasn't an anti-climax, but it made me realize for the first time, "What?! They are crying? The teachers were really worried about me." From then on, I started practicing really hard. It seems like Misawa and the others, who were brought back earlier, weren't scolded either."

The entire team had about 150,000 yen in their pockets, and they were actually planning to run away for about a month. It's a typical story of reckless high school students, but ultimately, this incident deepened the bond between the coaches and the team members.

Yatsu reflects, "We were isolated, so we just wanted to get out. I think practice was tough, because we were at an age where we wanted to have fun. That's how it is now. Sometimes I lose sight of myself. 'Why do we have to do this when the other students are taking a break?' I couldn't come to a conclusion. When we win, the conclusion comes. If we lose, the conclusion doesn't come. Ultimately, we have to strive for perfection."   

Despite struggling to lose weight, he performed well at the Inter-High School Championships

In 1980, Misawa entered his third year. The year was a crucial one, with the Tochinoha National Athletic Meet being held at the Ashikaga Institute of Technology Gymnasium in October. Scouted by Coach Oshima as a scholarship student for the tournament, Misawa lived up to expectations, becoming a key player and vice-captain in his third year. Watanabe became the captain. Of course, the captain was determined by his track record, but it was also traditional at the university, to also be the fastest runner. 

Yatsu said, "The captain leads the team during morning practice runs. Slow runners aren't good at practice, so naturally, a fast lightweight runner becomes captain. Watanabe was strong in the bantamweight division and had fast legs, and Misawa was a very tolerant person, so I think that's why he was popular with his juniors. Misawa was a sensible person (laughs). But it's amazing, isn't it? I understand that unconventional people can grow, but it's amazing that someone so sensible could grow that much." 

""Misawa became vice-captain because he was the second fastest, strong, and had leadership skills. So I was the official captain, or rather, the de facto captain, and Misawa was the secret captain. He was loved by the younger students. I was disliked (wry smile). I was kind of bullying... I was strict." (Watanabe)

Under the Watanabe-Misawa leadership, the Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School also competed in the Inter-High School Championships, held at Ikeda High School in Tokushima from August 2nd to 5th, prior to the National Sports Festival. Watanabe won the 60kg freestyle, Kashiwabe won the 56kg freestyle, and Misawa unfortunately finished third in the 70kg freestyle. Misawa struggled with weight loss. He said, "I want to go pro, so I want to compete in a heavier weight class if possible." However, team competitions at the time were seven-person, with divisions divided into 48kg, 52kg, 56kg, 60kg, 65kg, 70kg, and heavyweight. Misawa usually weighed around 80kg, but Okawa was in charge of the heavyweight division.   

At the time, Ashikaga Institute of Technology's regular wrestlers — heavyweight wrestler Okawa, who joined the team as a scholarship student, 60kg wrestler Watanabe, and 56kg wrestler Kashiwaze —were all guaranteed to win. However, the 60kg wrestler Kawada, a sophomore, and a 52kg wrestler, also a sophomore, were inconsistent in the 48kg wrestling class, with wins and losses galore. Misawa was crucial to achieving four wins, and to achieve this, he lost nearly 10kg and competed in the 70kg wrestling class. He reportedly lost 11kg for this Inter-High School Championship. 

Misawa's true potential wasn't in individual matches, but in inter-school team competitions. Ashikaga Institute of Technology hadn't won the Inter-High School Championships as a team since winning back-to-back titles in 1976 and 1977, so this was Misawa and the other third-year students' last chance.

The first climax was the third round against Akita University of Economics and Law High School (now North Asia University Meiso High School). Kashiwabe and Watanabe won, and with two wins, it was Misawa's turn. The plan was that if Misawa won, Okawa would ultimately prevail. 

Misawa's opponent was the winner of the National High School Championships held in Niigata in the spring. Despite being at a disadvantage, Misawa calmly responded "Yes" to the cheers of his teammates, who called out, "We're counting on you!" He then calmly returned to the ring with a stunning deciding win. In the end, Okawa won as expected, advancing to the semifinals. Standing in their way was Tsuchiura Nihon University High School in Ibaraki.

Tamon Honda vs arch rival Tsuchiura Nihon University!

Because the coaches of Ashikaga Institute of Technology Affiliated High School and Tsuchiura Nihon University were senior and junior at university, they held summer training camps at the Ashikaga Institute of Technology Affiliated High School and winter training camps at Tsuchiura Nihon University every year. Tamon Honda who was one year younger than Misawa and in the same year as Kawada at Tsuchiura Nihon University, was renowned as a strong heavyweight wrestler. He joined All Japan Pro Wrestling in May 1993, just before turning 30. He later transferred to Noah and worked with Misawa, but pro wrestling fans likely associate him with his time as an Asian tag team champion with Kenta Kobashi. 

However, when it came to wrestling, he was known as the "God of Amateur Wrestling" and the "Emperor of Amateur Wrestling." 

The son of Daisaburo Honda, who competed in the canoeing team at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, and a cousin of the father of professional soccer player Keisuke Honda, Tamon comes from a long line of athletes, making him a true wrestling prodigy. He learned wrestling from a young age, even before there were children's wrestling classes available. While attending Okusu Junior High School in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, he won the Junior High School Championships in the freestyle 73kg+ category twice in a row (as a second- and third-year student in 1977 and 1978). He went on to Tsuchiura Nihon University, where he won the National Athletic Meet in the freestyle 87kg+ category and the National High School Selected Tournament in the freestyle 75kg+ category twice in a row in 1980 and 1981, and also won the freestyle 75kg+ category at the Inter-High School Championships in 1981. 

After graduating from high school, he joined Nihon University's wrestling club, and in his third year, he represented Japan in the 100kg freestyle at the Los Angeles Olympics, where he placed fifth. After graduating, he was accepted as a scholarship student into the Japan Self-Defense Forces Physical Training School, where he competed in the 100kg freestyle at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the 130kg freestyle at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, making him an incredible three-time Olympic attender.

This is what the "God of Amateur Wrestling" had to say about Misawa in High School, "As you'd expect from someone who had done gymnastics, Misawa's agility was undeniably excellent. Back then, there weren't many people nationwide who started wrestling at a young age, so it was the tall, athletic kids who had played judo or baseball who thrived in the heavyweight division. Those kids couldn't win in their first year because they didn't know wrestling, but they got stronger in their second and third years. That's why Misawa was always a favorite to win in his second and third years. Since he had no judo experience, he wasn't the type to use throwing techniques. He focused on breaking down his opponent, getting in and grabbing their legs, and countering an incoming attack by going behind them. His wrestling style was solidly grounded in fundamentals. Back then, matches were held in three periods, so they were much longer than they are now, but I still didn't get tired. I was also fast among heavyweights. So even if I lost the first period, Misawa would win by the end. The person who competed with Misawa for the Kanto Tournament championship was a finalist for the Barcelona Olympics in the 82kg class. He was my senior in the Self-Defense Forces, and Misawa and I were good friends."

Now, in the semi-final between between Ashikaga Institute of Technology and Tsuchiura Nihon University, Ashikaga Institute of Technology's Kashiwabe, Watanabe and Misawa won, making the score 3-3. If Kawada had won in the 65kg class, Misawa's victory would have been enough to secure victory, but Kawada lost to a third-year student from Tsuchiura Nihon University.     

Kawada remembers this team match well and says, "It was my fault we lost." However, just as Misawa had lost weight to compete in the 70kg class, Kawada was forced to lose nearly 10kg to strengthen his 65kg class. Furthermore, while he had always won in practice against a fellow second-year 5kg wrestler from Tsuchiura Nihon University, who was also competing in this tournament, Kawada lost this match due to the appearance of a year-older wrestler with whom he had a poor matchup. To Kawada's credit, in 1981, the year after he became a third-year student, he won the prefectural tournament, the Northern Kanto tournament, and the Kanto tournament, except for a runner-up finish at the Inter-High School Championships in the 75kg freestyle, where weight loss was not an issue. Like Misawa, he served as vice-captain.

Returning to the 1980 Inter-High School Championship semi-finals...Tsuchiura Nihon University not only had Tamon, but also Takashi Kobayashi, who had won the gold medal in the 48kg freestyle at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, in the 48kg class. Looking back, it was a tournament with an incredible lineup. 

With the score tied at 3-3, Okawa and Tamon faced off in the final heavyweight match. Okawa had defeated Tamon by pinfall at the Kanto Tournament in June, so Aichi University of Technology Affiliated High School was confident of victory even with the score tied at 3-3, but it was Tamon who came out on top. In the end, Tsuchiura Nihon University won the Inter-High School Championships, and Aichi University of Technology Affiliated High School finished in third place.         

BOLD: A Sense of Responsibility Demonstrated in Team Competitions

Misawa demonstrated his strength in key team matches, such as the third round and semi-finals of the Inter-High School Championships. However, as mentioned above, he came third in the 70kg freestyle at the Inter-High School Championships. Although he won the team competition at the Kanto Championships in June, he only came second in the 70kg freestyle individual competition, and he struggled to achieve results in individual competitions. Watanabe analyzes the reasons for this:

"When I went on a solo trip to Florida during spring break in March 1980, before my third year, there was a black wrestler on the opposing team with bulging muscles who looked scary. I said to myself, 'I don't want to wrestle against that guy,' and it turned out that was Misawa's opponent. I said to him, 'Misawa, are you okay? It's him!' and he simply replied, 'Yeah, I'm okay.' He had no nerve, no fire in his heart. He won by decision, and came back. I said, 'You're amazing, Misawa!' He seemed to respond, 'Yeah, he's not that strong,' and remained pretty calm. In the team competition at the Inter-High School Championships, he easily beat the champion of the National Selection Tournament. In team matches, he always seemed to win flawlessly against strong opponents, so you'd think he'd win the individual matches by a landslide, but he'd lose for no apparent reason (wry smile). It's probably just his personality, but when he felt like, 'If I don't win, the team can't win!', he'd win. I think he had a sense of responsibility in team matches. He wasn't like, 'Let's do it!' He just worked hard and steadily. His mind was on wrestling, so winning personally didn't really matter. Of course, he was trying to win, but maybe that's why Yatsu expressed it as, 'He wasn't trying to win.'"

Kawada added, "Winning in crucial situations... Misawa definitely had that kind of superhuman strength you have in an emergency, even in high school." 

Watanabe also said, "If it's for something, if it's for someone, you give it your all... Of course, he wrestled because he loved it, but in his later years, even when his body was worn out, he continued wrestling for the sake of wrestling. I feel like he sacrificed himself for wrestling."

Even after winning the National Athletic Meet, his mind is on All Japan Pro Wrestling.

The Tochinoha National Athletic Meet, the culmination of Misawa's three years of high school, was held at the Ashikaga Institute of Technology Gymnasium from October 13th to the 16th. Until the Inter-High School Championships in August, he had been trying to lose weight in the 70kg weight class in order to prepare for the team competition, but since this National Athletic Meet was only for individual competitions, he didn't need to lose weight and entered the 87kg freestyle class. He defeated Junichi Yoshida of Hokkaido to take the championship.  Because this weight class is only available in the junior wrestling division of the National Athletic Meet, some people say, "He won because there were only five participants," but Yatsu flatly disagrees.

"Well, I don't know what level they were at, but they entered the prefectural tournament anyway, and they won in a tournament with 47 representative wrestlers selected, so that's quite an accomplishment. I also won the adult 100kg class at that National Athletic Meet, but at the time, winning nationally was a given, so I felt more pressure to help the wrestlers I was looking after win. That's why when Misawa won, I was like, 'Oh, I'm so glad!' I couldn't help but give him a hug (laughs)."

Misawa was happy about winning, but ultimately, he never fully fell in love with amateur wrestling.

"I went to the office for some business and saw Misawa's resume and photo," says Tarzan Goto, who was one of Misawa's seniors at All Japan Pro Wrestling. "I glanced at a photo and saw that he had a well-trained physique. Listening to everyone's conversations, it was clear that there were high expectations, and I heard Fuchi tell his senior, Masao Ito, 'Someone really impressive is coming, so you'd better train Goto. Otherwise, you'll embarrass yourself." Even Kochinaka (Shiro) said he couldn't compete with someone junior to him. Hearing him say, "I might embarrass myself if I do it," made me realize once again, "This is some pretty amazing talent coming in!" There weren't many young wrestlers, so I was honestly happy to see a new apprentice joining," Goto recalls.

Fuchi departed for his overseas training on September 20th. This means that Misawa had already sent his resume to All Japan before the National Athletic Meet. His heart was already set on All Japan. However, it was Misawa's coach, Yatsu, who entered professional wrestling before Misawa after the National Athletic Meet. Yatsu was selected to represent Japan in the 100kg freestyle at the Moscow Olympics held in July and August that year, but Japan boycotted the event*, meaning his selection was futile. Rather than aim for the Los Angeles Olympics four years later, the 24-year-old Yatsu said, "I want to test my current abilities as a professional." And so he accepted New Japan Pro-Wrestling's invitation. Yatsu's joining of New Japan Pro-Wrestling was announced on October 23rd, one week after the National Athletic Meet, at the Keio Plaza Hotel in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Yatsu recalls, "When Misawa won, I thought, 'Now I can go into pro wrestling with a big responsibility accomplished!' The difference between me and Misawa is that Misawa always wanted to be a pro wrestler, but I didn't make it to the Olympics and ended up in pro wrestling after being stranded. Misawa and Kawada wanted to be pro wrestlers from the moment they started wrestling. It seems Misawa admired Tsuruta, and Kawada was originally a fan of (Antonio) Inoki, but when he took the entrance test in middle school, he was beaten badly by Fujiwara, and he developed a strange admiration for him, saying, 'Fujiwara is amazing!' I wasn't interested in pro wrestling at all at the time, so I was like, 'Is it really that amazing?' (laughs). So I don't think they thought I'd go into professional wrestling until Japan boycotted the Moscow Olympics." 

While Yatsu joined New Japan, amateur wrestling was reluctant to let Misawa go. After winning the 87kg class at the National Athletic Meet, he was recruited by Nihon University, Senshu University, Kokushikan University, and others as a promising talent for the 88kg or 90kg classes. Even the Self Defense Forces asked him, "Why don't you wrestle while getting paid?"      

At the time, the person enthusiastically inviting Misawa to join the JSDF was Tatsuo Sasaki, a former star wrestler who competed in three consecutive Olympic Games: the annual Tokyo Olympics, the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, and the 1972 Munich Olympics. Jumbo Tsuruta had hoped to transfer from Chuo University's basketball team to the wrestling team, but was prevented from joining due to campus politics. Sasaki coached him at the JSDF Physical Training School. Tsuruta was later welcomed into the Chuo University wrestling team and represented Japan in the Greco-Roman wrestling (over 100 kg) class at the 1972 Munich Olympics, so Sasaki can be considered a mentor to Tsuruta. Sasaki reportedly called Tsuruta and said, "I'm inviting Misawa, but he says he wants to go into pro wrestling, so even if he goes there, don't let him in. Tell him to join the JSDF." However, Tsuruta clearly remembered Misawa coming to his office as a freshman in high school and personally pleading with him to join. "Sasaki-san told me that, but I made a promise, so I'm happy for you to come to All Japan," he told Misawa.

Regarding Misawa joining All Japan, Yatsu said, "From my perspective, Kawada had more talent in amateur wrestling. He originally did sumo, so he has strong legs. But in professional wrestling, Misawa, who did artistic gymnastics, had the advantage because he had long arms and legs. Kawada wasn't bad at sports either, but Misawa's movements were much more graceful, right? That's why I thought it was better for Misawa to go to professional wrestling than to go to university and continue wrestling. Misawa had wanted to go to All Japan since high school. And Kawada had said he wanted to go to New Japan before I joined. But I joined first, so he probably got annoyed. Kawada was good friends with Misawa, so I think he went to All Japan a year later through that connection, but I got in first, so he probably got annoyed. Kawada was good friends with Misawa, so I think he used that connection to go to All Japan a year later."

Watanabe recalls with a laugh recalling Misawa at the time he decided to join All Japan, "I was also an Inoki fan up until middle school, and there was a time when I aspired to be a professional wrestler, but that dream died down when I entered high school. Misawa was an All Japan fan, while Kawada and I were New Japan fans. Misawa was generally kind to all his juniors, but he was strict with Kawada, which I guess was because of the differences between the All Japan and New Japan camps (laughs). But I think the two of them got along well. Before Misawa went to All Japan, I said to him, 'If you go to All Japan, I can get in without buying a ticket, right?' and he said, 'Yeah, I'll let you in.' So I jokingly said, 'Is are you there to put up the ring?' and he looked serious and said, 'Even if I end up putting up the ring, I love pro wrestling, so that's fine.' And that promise was kept, and whenever I went to see All Japan, tickets were already prepared for everyone, not just for me, and also tickets that my acquaintances had asked for. Misawa said he didn't mind, he would pay for it. Even when I said that I would pay, he got mad and said, 'If you keep saying that, I will stop being friends with you! I promised to let you in for free!'. So, halfway through, I stopped asking for tickets (bitter laugh). Towards the end, I bought tickets in advance without calling, or bought them directly at the venue."

Watanabe then explained why he was so happy to be interviewed; "I've always thought of Misawa as a comrade-in-arms. Well, we spent three impressionable years together, competing together in the National Athletic Meet and the Inter-High School Championships. But now, how can I put it? He's like a god. I'm grateful just to be able to talk about him like this. The year he passed away (2009), I actually had a lot of interviews. I didn't like it, or rather, it was painful to remember. But Sayama-san (Satoshi) told me `The fact that you have this opportunity means Misawa chose you, so you should tell the truth. It's a way to honor him,'' so I made up my mind and did the interviews.      

At the time, I was thinking, 'I wish this interview would end quickly,' but now, over a decade later, I can talk about it normally. Back then, Misawa was a close friend, a comrade in arms... I guess I didn't want to talk about it because it would be painful to think that he was gone. But now, he's like a god to me, so when I was approached about this interview, I was like, 'Hey, Misawa, you chose me. Thank you.' I was like, 'I'll tell them everything, but I won't say anything I shouldn't, so it's okay.' Well, even if I did, it probably wouldn't make it into the article, either,' I said to myself (smile)."

Looking back on Misawa's three years at Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School, Yatsu says: "Misawa is now a symbol* of the Ashikaga Institute of Technology High School wrestling club. My junior, Toshiaki Ishikawa, is the current coach and he asked me, "Is it okay, senpai?" but I told him it was fine, just make Misawa big, that's the most important thing. His only amateur achievement is winning the National Athletic Meet, but it's fine if it's Misawa's alma mater, not mine. Even though I have far better achievements, the world will see this as "the school that Misawa went to." So we need to make Misawa even more prominent on our website. Misawa is in a different league than the average pro wrestler. To be honest, I didn't recognize Misawa until a certain point. The reason is that I had a strong image of him as a "crybaby" in high school. But if you change your perspective and look at his achievements as a pro wrestler, no one can compete with him. Misawa is way above me in the world of pro wrestling. I'm proud to have had a junior like him close to me and to have been able to interact with him."

Notes

Gas explosions: Just two years before Misawa was born, forty two people were killed in an explosion. 

Koshigaya: This aligns with an early interview in Weekly Pro, when he said he doesn't remember living in Hokkaido.

Akiko: This is very much like Kenta Kobashi's childhood experiences, so perhaps this is why he and Misawa were so close. 

Apple/Bike Rides: See "Donmai Donmai" for personal reflections on Misawa's childhood. 

Internationally: Means he probably came over either with a tour with his home promotion, or else did exhibition matches for various promotions. 

Hoffman green: Akitoshi Saito debunked this rumor in 2024. Misawa had been told by a monk that green was auspicious. One fan had it that Misawa said that he was inspired by Horst Hoffman somewhat tongue in cheek, and it has since entered lore. 

Yuichi Watanabe: Real Japan's Super Rider

Satoru Sayama: Tiger Mask I

4.5 tatami mat room: Roughly about 6.96 square meters

Ashio Copper Mine: What the English Wikipedia does not mention is that in 1980, the mine was opened as a tourist attraction. 

Kiryu: Gunma

Japan's boycott: Japan boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics primarily due to the U.S.-led campaign protesting the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in late 1979, with the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) ultimately deciding against sending a team to align with Western allies and avoid condoning Soviet aggression, despite some internal debate and public opinion favoring participation. 

Misawa the symbol: They made their team colors green.