Tam Nakano Almost Retired After Knee Injury

The former World of Stardom champion has revealed that she considered retiring after injurying her knee in October.

By: James Carlin

This year, Tam Nakano won the Joshi Puroresu Grand Prize (aka the Women’s MVP) in the 2023 Tokyo Sports Awards. The award was previously given to STARDOM wrestlers Io Shirai, Mayu Iwatani, Yuzuki Aikawa, Giulia, Utami Hayashishita and Syuri, with Tam Nakano being the latest from the company to win the prestigious recognition.

Speaking with Tokyo Sports, the Top Kawaii of the Cosmos said that she wanted to retire, “I called Rossy Ogawa and said to him, ‘Please let me return [the Red Belt]. I’m not going to do this any longer. I want to quit’. I was really afraid of getting into the ring and being injured again, so I just thought about retiring. But there were so many people that gave me words of encouragement and supported me that I decided to continue wrestling.”

Nakano also said that her fellow wrestlers supported her during her absence from the ring. “When I was away, Nanae Takahashi got in contact with me and took me to the beach. Then KAIRI told me ‘There’s no need to worry. You can tell me everything.’ Saori Anou would tell me three good things about me when we talked, and Natsupoi took me out to eat yakiniku (grilled meat).

I really believe that STARDOM is a company where everyone supports each other to the fullest.” h/t Tokyo Sports

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