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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1950-02-02)February 2, 1950[1] |
| Died | December 11, 2023(2023-12-11) (aged 73) Yokosuka, Japan |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name | Osamu Kido |
| Billed height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Billed weight | 105 kg (231 lb) |
| Billed from | Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan |
| Trained by | Karl Gotch |
| Debut | February 21, 1969 |
| Retired | 2010 |
Osamu Kido (木戸 修,Kido Osamu; February 2, 1950 – December 11, 2023) was a Japaneseprofessional wrestler who wrestled forNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He participated in the foundation of New Japan of 1972 and the foundation ofUniversal Wrestling Federation (UWF) in 1984. In 2005, after four years in retirement, Kido returned to the ring.
Osamu Kido made his debut forJapanese Wrestling Association on February 21, 1969, against Hirokatsu Shinkai (Motoyuki Kitazawa/Shoji Kai). WhenAntonio Inoki was expelled from JWA in 1971, Kido followed suit and helped Inoki form a new promotion calledNew Japan Pro-Wrestling in 1972. In 1975, Kido andTatsumi Fujinami were sent abroad to Europe, to participate in an international tournament in Germany. Afterwards, he went to the United States to train in Florida with the legendaryKarl Gotch, who called Kido "his son."
Kido returned to NJPW in February 1976. However, due to his simplistic wrestling style and lack of expression, he was relegated to opening and mid-card matches.
After eight years, Kido left NJPW to joinUWF at Karl Gotch's recommendation. In the UWF, Kido gained popularity with his mat skills. In 1985, he won the Three Tour Tournament.
After the UWF promotion fell apart, Kido and most of the UWF roster returned to NJPW in December 1985, setting the stage for the original NJPW vs. UWF feud. The feud showcased Kido higher up in the matches. On August 5, 1986, Kido teamed withAkira Maeda to win theIWGP Tag Team Championship, defeating Tatsumi Fujinami andKengo Kimura. They would hold on to the titles for over a month, before losing the titles back to Fujinami and Kimura on September 23, 1986. As Maeda and most of the UWF stars decided to restart the UWF as Newborn UWF in 1988, Kido decided to stay in NJPW, because "his father (Karl Gotch) wasn't there."
In 1992, New Japan entered another inter-promotional feud withWAR, and Kido proved to be NJPW's ace in the hole, as WAR lacked submission-based wrestlers. In 1993, Kido took part in theG1 Climax; he defeated WAR'sTakashi Ishikawa in the first round, but lost to eventual winner Tatsumi Fujinami in the quarterfinals. Later that year, he teamed with Fujinami for theSuper Grade Tag League; they tied for second place with thirteen points with the team ofMasahiro Chono andShinya Hashimoto. In 1994, he took part in the G1 Climax; he placed dead last in Block A with two points. Later that year, he teamed withScott Norton to take part in the Super Grade Tag League; they tied for second place with ten points with the team of Tatsumi Fujinami andYoshiaki Fujiwara.
In 1995, Kido teamed withKazuo Yamazaki for the Super Grade Tag League; they lost to Masahiro Chono andHiroyoshi Tenzan in the finals. Five years later, he took part in his last tournament in NJPW, the G1 Climax; he placed dead last on Block B with no points, tying withHiro Saito. On November 2, 2001, Kido wrestled his retirement match, teaming withRiki Choshu, wrestling Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura to a time-limit draw. Aside from a battle royal in May 2003, Kido would focus on training rookies at theNJPW Dojo, includingShinsuke Nakamura.
In 2005, Kido came out of retirement to wrestle for Big Mouth Loud. After BML dissolved in 2010, Kido retired from wrestling.
Kido died from cancer in Yokosuka, on December 11, 2023, at the age of 73.[2]
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