| Hikaru Shida | |
|---|---|
Shida in July 2010. |
|
| Ring name(s) | Hikaru Shida |
| Billed height | 1.64 m (5 ft 4 1⁄2 in)[1] |
| Billed weight | 55 kg (120 lb)[1] |
| Born | June 11, 1988 [1] Kanagawa Prefecture[1] |
| Trained by | Emi Sakura |
| Debut | July 20, 2008[2] |
Hikaru Shida (志田光 Shida Hikaru, born June 11, 1988)[1] is a Japanese professional wrestler and actress, who is currently working for Ice Ribbon, where she is the current ICE×60 Champion and one half of the International Ribbon Tag Team Champions. Shida also works as the host, play-by-play commentator and occasional referee of Ice Ribbon's 19 O'Clock Girls ProWrestling project.
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In her childhood, Shida practised both judo and kendo, reaching third-dan in the latter.[1] She later embarked on a career as an actress, most notably working on the television series Muscle Venus.[3] In 2008, Shida was cast in the leading role in a film titled Three Count, set in the world of professional wrestling and also starring veteran professional wrestlers Emi Sakura, Kyoko Inoue and Yoshiko Tamura.[1] For the role, Shida began training under Sakura at her Ice Ribbon dojo and after the conclusion of the taping, decided to find a new career in professional wrestling, joining Ice Ribbon with fellow cast members of both Muscle Venus and Three Count, Miyako Matsumoto and Tsukasa Fujimoto.[1]
Shida made her debut for Ice Ribbon on July 20, 2008, losing to Kazumi Shimouma.[2] As is customary for a rookie in Japanese professional wrestling, Shida's first months in the business included mainly losses with only one singles victory, over Miyako Matsumoto on November 15.[4] In March 2009, Shida finally started picking up victories more regularly, starting a partnership, and later a feud, with Makoto.[5][6][7] On September 13, 2009, Shida ventured into the world of mixed martial arts, when she took part in a grappling match at the Jewels promotion's 5th Ring event. Shida lost the match, after submitting to Ayuka Hamazaki's armlock in 38 seconds.[8]
During the summer of 2010, Shida made several appearances for the NEO Japan Ladies Pro Wrestling promotion.[9][10][11] Though pegged early on as the "Future Ace of Joshi Puroresu", Shida was the last of the Three Count threesome to reach a championship in Ice Ribbon.[12] On October 20, 2010, Shida and Tsukasa Fujimoto received their first shot at the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship, but were defeated by Emi Sakura and Nanae Takahashi.[13] In a rematch between the two teams on December 23, Shida and Fujimoto were victorious and become the new International Ribbon Tag Team Champions.[14] The following day the team, known collectively as Muscle Venus,[15] made their debut for the Smash promotion at Happening Eve, where they teamed with Sayaka Obihiro in a six woman tag team match, where they were defeated by Cherry, Tomoka Nakagawa and Toshie Uematsu.[16] Back in Ice Ribbon, Shida and Fujimoto went on to successfully defend the International Tag Team Championship against Hikari Minami and Riho on January 4, 2011, and against the teams of Mochi Miyagi and Ryo Mizunami, and Makoto and Riho on February 6, winning the One Night Tag Team Tournament in the process.[17][18] After defending the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship against Bambi and Makoto at a Kaientai Dojo event on March 20, Shida and Fujimoto lost the title to Emi Sakura and Ray six days later.[19][20]
On March 21, Shida was voted by Ice Ribbon fans as the opponent for visiting Smash wrestler Syuri. Shida would win the match with the Falcon Arrow.[21] The match eventually led to a partnership between the two Kanagawa wrestlers, and, after defeating Chii Tomiya and Makoto on April 16, Shida and Syuri went on to unsuccessfully challenge Emi Sakura and Ray for the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship on May 5.[22][23] The partnership also carried over to Smash, where Shida and Syuri defeated Io and Mio Shirai in a tag team match on May 3 at Smash.17.[24] On June 9 at Smash.18, Shida was defeated by Syuri in a first round match of a tournament to determine the inaugural Smash Diva Champion.[25] On September 24, Shida and Fujimoto attempted to regain the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship, but were defeated in the semifinals of a tournament for the vacant title by Manami Toyota and Tsukushi.[26] The following month, Shida and Fujimoto, along with Emi Sakura and Hikari Minami, traveled to Nottingham, England to take part in events promoted by Pro-Wrestling: Eve and Southside Wrestling Entertainment (SWE).[27][28][29] During 2011, Shida also took part in Ice Ribbon's interpromotional rivalry with the Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling promotion. On October 27, Shida, Emi Sakura, Hikari Minami, Tsukasa Fujimoto and Tsukushi represented Ice Ribbon in Sendai's Dantai Taikou Flash tournament, a single-elimination tournament, where different joshi promotions battled each other. The team was eliminated from the tournament in the first round by Team Sendai (Meiko Satomura, Dash Chisako, Kagetsu, Miyako Morino and Sendai Sachiko).[30] When Tsukasa Fujimoto regained the ICE×60 Championship on November 19, it was announced that Shida would be her first challenger on December 25 at RibbonMania 2011.[31] On December 7, Shida pinned Fujimoto in a tag team match, where she teamed with Maki Narumiya and Fujimoto with Mochi Miyagi.[32] At RibbonMania 2011, Shida defeated Fujimoto to win the ICE×60 Championship for the first time.[33] Three days later, Shida and Maki Narumiya defeated Emi Sakura and Tsukushi to win the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship, making Shida a double champion.[34]