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Tomomi Tsuruta

Tomomi Tsuruta

Born: March 25, 1951
Died: May 13, 2000
in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
Tomomi "Tommy" Tsuruta (鶴田 友美, Tsuruta Tomomi), better known by his ring name Jumbo Tsuruta (ジャンボ鶴田, Janbotsuruta), was a Japanese professional wrestler who wrestled for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) for most of his career, and is well known for being the first ever Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, having won the PWF Heavyweight Championship, the NWA United National Championship, and the NWA International Heavyweight Championship, and unifying the three titles. He is also known for being one-half of the first World Tag Team Champions with Yoshiaki Yatsu, having won the NWA International Tag Team Championship and the PWF Tag Team Championship, and unifying the two titles. Tsuruta participated in many sports, such as swimming, basketball, and sumo, while attending Hikawa Senior High School in Yamanashi-shi, Yamanashi Prefecture. While at Chuo University, he began an amateur wrestling career. He won the All Japan Amateur Wrestling Championship in freestyle and Greco-Roman as a superheavyweight (at the time, an unlimited class for those weighing over 100 kilograms) in the years 1971 and 1972. He also competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. He finished the Greco-Roman tournament with no wins. Scouted by AJPW promoter Giant Baba, he was sent to the local Amarillo, Texas promotion in the U.S. to train as a pro under Dory Funk Jr. Known as "Tommy Tsuruta", he worked in several major NWA territories including Detroit, St. Louis, and Florida as well as West Texas. He was among the first Japanese wrestlers to be cheered by an American crowd, due to his hard work ethic and wrestling ability. The name "Jumbo" was given to him by a fan contest in Japan to replace his given name, which was seen as too feminine. He defeated Nick Bockwinkel on February 23, 1984 to win the AWA World Heavyweight Championship in Tokyo, Japan. He would lose the title to Rick Martel on May 13, 1984 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Tsuruta and Yoshiaki Yatsu became the first World Tag Team Champions on June 10, 1988. During his 26-year career, he fought in 3,329 matches. Tsuruta was the first Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion (unifying the Pacific Wrestling Federation, NWA United National, and NWA International Heavyweight titles), defeating Stan Hansen on April 18, 1989 in Tokyo. He announced his retirement on February 20, 1999 and held a ceremony on March 6, 1999. His health deteriorated, however, as he had been diagnosed with Hepatitis B which eventually turned to full blown liver cancer as well as cirrhosis of the liver, and by the end of the year he was back in Japan. Due to strict laws over organ donation in Japan, meaning only relatives with matching blood types can donate, Tsuruta had to try and find a donor elsewhere. In April 2000, he left for Australia in search of a liver donor, and two months later, a donor was found in Manila in the Philippines. Tsuruta underwent surgery on May 13, but during the liver transplant he began bleeding uncontrollably, and died at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute in Quezon City, Philippines on May 13, 2000, from complications of the liver transplant at the age of 49.

Movies for Tomomi Tsuruta...

AJPW October Giant Series 1997 - Day 18
Title: AJPW October Giant Series 1997 - Day 18
Released: October 21, 1997
Type: Movie
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All Japan Pro Wrestling's October Giant Series rolls on with an epic clash between Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi.
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AJPW October Giant Series 1992 - Day 17
Title: AJPW October Giant Series 1992 - Day 17
Released: October 21, 1992
Type: Movie
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AJPW's annual October Giant Series comes to a close. Mitsuharu Misawa makes his first title defense against his tag team partner Toshiaki Kawada.
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WWF/AJPW/NJPW Wrestling Summit
Title: WWF/AJPW/NJPW Wrestling Summit
Released: April 13, 1990
Type: Movie
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A combined WWF, AJPW and NJPW supershow: April 13th, 1990 from the Tokyo Dome.
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CSW International Bash
Title: CSW International Bash
Character: Himself
Released: February 2, 1989
Type: Movie
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NWA Central States Wrestling presents an all-star card!
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AWA: SuperClash '85
Title: AWA: SuperClash '85
Character: Jumbo Tsuruta
Released: September 25, 1985
Type: Movie
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SuperClash '85 – The Night of Champions was the first SuperClash professional wrestling supercard event promoted by the American Wrestling Association (AWA). It was billed as AWA's flagship supercard, their biggest event of the year. The event was held at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois on September 28, 1985, only a few months after WrestleMania, which was promoted by the rival World Wrestling Federation (WWF) promotion. The show drew a paid attendance of 20,347, although it was announced as 25,000. SuperClash – Night of Champions was one of the co-promotional efforts by the AWA, National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and World Class Championship Wrestling (WCCW) to compete with the WWF's increasing national presence and popularity. The jointly promoted venture was known as Pro Wrestling USA.
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WCCW Star Wars (June 1983)
Title: WCCW Star Wars (June 1983)
Character: Jumbo Tsuruta
Released: June 17, 1983
Type: Movie
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Kevin Von Erich tangles with NWA World's Heavyweight Champion Harley Race with the 'Ten Pounds of Gold' up for grabs!
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