Everyone loves a good origin story. But before she took to the skies in the squared circle and earned her name as"The Genius of the Sky," the name IYO SKY and wrestling would have never been used in the same sentence without the encouragement of SKY's sister, who led her down the path of becoming a pro wrestler.
"I've never watched wrestling before becoming a wrestler," the former WWE Women's World Champion told Chris Van Vliet on his "Insight" podcast. "My sister invited me to become a wrestler. Before that, I never watched wrestling. I totally didn't know what is pro wrestling."
Her eldest sister, who is three years older than SKY, invited the future "Miss WarGames" to a dojo event, where SKY's love for the sport grew. Three months after training, at 16, she had her first in-ring match. However, it took time for her to get her boots on the ground in the ring before becoming Japan's most talked-about and idolized female wrestler.
"My debut match was awful," SKY chuckled. "Everything was so bad. I cannot explain. I didn't know. So, both shoulders on the mat count 1,2,3, well failed... I didn't know about that rule. I didn't know anything about wrestling."
Although she felt embarrassed and frustrated by her first match, it only inspired her to improve. She went on to work for Japan's highly proficient female promotion, World Wonder Ring STARDOM, where she became the company's first-ever Grand Slam Champion. After winning every title STARDOM had to offer, SKY ventured to WWE and kept setting records as the first-ever Japanese female wrestler to win their WrestleMania match, while also carrying the company's top women's championships on "WWE NXT" and the main roster, cementing her as both a Triple Crown and Grand Slam Champion. Now sisters- at-arms, SKY and Rhea Ripley (collectively known as RHIYO) are gunning for their opportunity to start the new year as the new WWE Women's Tag Team Champions.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Insight with Chris Van Vliet" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
