John Tenta
| John Tenta | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Birth name | John Anthony Tenta Jr. |
| Born |
June 22, 1963 Surrey, British Columbia |
| Died | June 7, 2006 (aged 42) Sanford, Florida |
| Cause of death | Bladder cancer |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Avalanche The Canadian Earthquake Earthquake Earthquake Evans The Gargoyle Golga John Tenta Kototenta (sumo) Kototenzan (sumo) The Shark |
| Billed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Billed weight | 468 lb (212 kg) |
| Billed from |
Vancouver, British Columbia (as Earthquake) Mount Everett, Washington (as Avalanche) Great Barrier Reef (as Shark) |
| Trained by |
Giant Baba Jumbo Tsuruta Great Kabuki Terry Gordy |
| Debut | 1987 |
| Retired | 2004 |
| Kototenzan Toshimitsu | |
|---|---|
| 琴天山 俊光 | |
| Personal information | |
| Height | 1.97 m (6 ft 5 1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 192 kg (423 lb; 30.2 st) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Sadogatake |
| Record | 21-0-7 |
| Debut | November 1985 |
| Highest rank | Makushita 43 (July 1986) |
| Retired | July 1986 |
| Championships | 1 (Sandanme) 1 (Jonidan) 1 (Jonokuchi) |
| * Up to date as of May 2013. | |
John Anthony Tenta Jr. (June 22, 1963 – June 7, 2006) was a Canadian professional wrestler and sumōtori best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation as Earthquake. After a promising start to his sumo career, using the name Kototenzan, Tenta switched to professional wrestling and became a high-profile star for the WWF, feuding with Hulk Hogan and winning the WWF Tag Team Championship with partner, and personal friend, Typhoon. His professional wrestling career also encompassed runs in World Championship Wrestling, where he was known as Avalanche and The Shark, All Japan Pro Wrestling and a return to WWF as Golga. Tenta died in 2006 after a long battle with bladder cancer.
John Tenta was born in Surrey, British Columbia. Named after his father, he was a large baby weighing 11 pounds, 3 ounces at birth. Inspired by professional wrestlers Gene Kiniski and Don Leo Jonathan, Tenta decided to pursue wrestling at age 6. He learned freestyle wrestling at North Surrey Secondary, becoming a Canadian junior champion in 1981. Shortly after his 18th birthday, he finished sixth in the super-heavyweight category at the World Junior Wrestling Championships at Vancouver.
Tenta won an athletic scholarship to Louisiana State University (LSU), where he competed in NCAA-level collegiate wrestling. At LSU he was nicknamed "Big John" Tenta, lettering on the Tiger varsity wrestling team and participating on the football team. LSU had dropped varsity wrestling to comply with Title IX in 1985, forcing Tenta to choose a new sport. Tenta then walked on to the LSU football team, where he played in some junior varsity games as a defensive lineman. He was also known as a "quiet giant" while employed as a bouncer at an LSU college bar, The Bengal. Tenta also played rugby union for the LSU Rugby Club.
...
Wikipedia