Antonio Inoki

Kanji Inoki was born into an affluent family in Yokohama on 20 February 1943. Of the 11 siblings (seven boys and four girls), he was second-youngest and the sixth son. Their father Sajiro Inoki was a politician and businessman who worked in the coal industry. Sajiro died when Kanji was five years old.

Inoki was taught karate by an older brother while in 6th grade. By the time he was in 7th grade at Terao Junior High School, he was 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) tall. He joined the basketball team but switched to track and field as a shot putter. He eventually won the championship at the Yokohama Junior High School track and field competition.

The family suffered financial difficulties in the post-World War II years. At age 14, Inoki migrated to Brazil with his grandfather, mother, and brothers. His grandfather died during the journey to Brazil. Upon their arrival, the family began to work 12 hour shifts daily on a coffee plantation in São Paulo. Later on, Inoki won regional championships in Brazil in shot put, discus, and javelin and won the All Brazilian championships in shot put and discus.

Inoki's brother Juichi Sagara was a karate master and is credited as one of the people responsible for bringing Shotokan to Brazil. Inoki's brother Pablo Inoki, a tenor and political activist, once led the Inoki-founded Sports and Peace Party.

Early career (1960–1971)

Inoki met Rikidōzan at the age of 17 in Brazil and went back to Japan for the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance (JWA) as his disciple. He trained in the JWA dojo under the renowned Karl Gotch, complementing further his training under amateur wrestler Isao Yoshiwara and kosen judoka Kiyotaka Otsubo. One of his dojo classmates was Giant Baba. After Rikidozan's murder, Inoki worked in Baba's shadow until he left for an excursion to the United States in 1964.

After a long excursion of wrestling in the United States, Inoki found a new home in Tokyo Pro Wrestling in 1966. While there, Inoki became their biggest star. His first major feud in Japan was against Johnny Valentine, NWA United States Champion in Toronto. Inoki defeated Valentine on 19 December 1966 in Osaka to claim a version of the title. The company folded in January 1967, due to turmoil behind the scenes, and Inoki abandoned the title.

Returning to JWA in late 1967, Inoki was made Baba's partner and the two dominated the tag team ranks as the "B-I Cannon", winning the NWA International Tag Team Championship belts four times.

On 16 May 1969, during the 11th World Big League, Inoki stopped Giant Baba's fourth consecutive victory and won his first tournament.

In July 1969, when NET (currently TV Asahi) started broadcasting Japanese professional wrestling, Inoki was the ace of NET's wrestling broadcasts, as Baba's matches were monopolized by Nippon TV under the agreement between the JWA and Nippon TV. On 2 December 1969, he challenged Dory Funk Jr. for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, and on 26 March 1971, won the NWA United National Championship from John Tolos, establishing the title in Japan.

Inoki married American woman Diana (also known as Linda) Tuck in 1965. The couple had a daughter, but Inoki and Tuck separated after two years. Inoki's daughter died at age 8.

Inoki was married to actress Mitsuko Baisho from 1971 to 1987, and together they had a daughter, Hiroko. Inoki married for a third time in 1989, with his third wife giving birth to Inoki's first son. The couple divorced in 2012. Inoki's son attended Columbia University in New York City. In 2014, Inoki took Haroon Abid, nephew of his Pakistani rival Zubair Jhara Pahalwan, under his guardianship. Inoki's fourth wife, Tazuko Tada, died on 27 August 2019.

Inoki has two grandsons, Hirota and Naoto Inoki. Hirota was a swimmer for Santa Monica College, having previously set school records in swimming at El Segundo High School. In June 2023, Hirota was appointed to the board of directors of the Inoki Genki Factory. In January 2024, it was reported that Naoto was training in professional wrestling under Katsuyori Shibata, having previously trained under the staff of the L.A. Inoki Dojo. Naoto additionally trains in mixed martial arts (MMA) at Black House MMA. On 20 July 2024, Naoto made his professional wrestling debut, defeating Casanova at a Backyard Squabbles event.

Inoki had a real-life friendship turned rivalry with former tag team partner Shohei "Giant" Baba, with Inoki vowing to never enter one of Baba's All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) rings. In one of his last major public appearances prior to his death, Inoki appeared at an AJPW-promoted memorial show for Baba in February 2019; Inoki paid his respects to his former friend from ringside, unwilling to break his personal vow to never step inside an AJPW ring.

Inoki converted to Shia Islam in 1990 during a pilgrimage to Karbala, the Shiite holy city in Iraq. He had traveled to Iraq to negotiate the release of several Japanese hostages. While in Iraq, Inoki undertook the Islamic moniker Muhammad Hussain Inoki (Arabic: محمد حسين اينوكي, romanized: Muhamad Husayn Aynwky), later reportedly describing himself as both a Muslim convert and a Buddhist. In 2014, Inoki said he was "usually a Buddhist".

Inoki operated a wrestling-themed restaurant in Shinjuku, Tokyo, named Antonio's Inoki Sakaba Shinjuku. Inoki additionally founded the Anton Trading Company, a food distribution business. One of its major successes was helping to further popularize American-made Tabasco Brand Pepper Sauce in Japan. Inoki's company not only distributed and promoted the sauce for many years in the country, but Inoki himself also appeared as a celebrity spokesperson for Tabasco. His cartoon likeness was used in Tabasco's print advertisements, and he appeared in at least one Japanese television commercial for the sauce.

Inoki is the namesake of two islands, the Inoki Friendship Island in Cuba and the Inoki Island in Palau. In 2021, it was reported that spinal issues had confined Inoki to a wheelchair.

House of Councillors

1989–1995: First stint

Following in his father's footsteps, Inoki entered politics in 1989, when he was elected into the House of Councillors as a representative of his own Sports and Peace Party in the 1989 Japanese House of Councillors election. Inoki's win secured him among the highest offices ever won by a professional wrestling personality in politics. The Sports and Peace Party later formed a parliamentary alliance with the Democratic Socialist Party. On 14 October 1989, Inoki was stabbed during a political event in Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture. Emulating Muhammad Ali, Inoki traveled to Iraq in 1990 in "an unofficial one-man diplomatic mission" to negotiate with Saddam Hussein for the release of Japanese hostages before the outbreak of the Gulf War. He personally organized a wrestling event in Iraq to entice Saddam to free the 41 captive Japanese nationals, this ultimately proved to be a success with 36 Japanese nationals freed. Inoki subsequently retained his seat in the 1992 Japanese House of Councillors election. He failed to win re-election in the 1995 Japanese House of Councillors election following a number of scandals reported in 1994, and left politics for the next eighteen years.

2013–2019: Second stint

On 5 June 2013, Inoki announced that he would again run for a House of Councillors seat in the National Diet under the Japan Restoration Party ticket. Inoki won the election to return to Japan's Upper House as an MP.

In November 2013, he was suspended from the Diet for 30 days because of an unauthorized trip to North Korea. He had visited on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the armistice in the Korean War, and had met with senior North Korean figure Kim Yong-nam during his visit. This was Inoki's 27th visit to North Korea; he explained that the North Korean abductions of Japanese citizens had caused the Japanese government to "close the door" on diplomacy with the North, but that the issue would not be resolved without ongoing communication, and that he saw his relationship with North Korean-born Rikidōzan as a crucial link to the people of the North.

He was reportedly considering running for governor of Tokyo in 2014 following another visit to North Korea.

Inoki joined the splinter of the Japan Restoration Party, Party for Future Generations, in 2014. In January 2015, he helped to establish a new party named the Assembly to Energize Japan, which he left in 2016, to sit in the Independents Club.

In September 2017, Inoki re-established his position that Japan should make more of an effort to have co-operative dialogue with North Korea, in the wake of North Korea launching ballistic missiles over Hokkaido. This was succeeded by another of Inoki's controversial trips to the nation.

In June 2019, Inoki announced his retirement from politics.