| Megumi Kudo | |
|---|---|
| Ring name(s) | Megumi Kudo |
| Billed height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) |
| Billed weight | 60 kg (130 lb) |
| Born | September 20, 1969 Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan |
| Resides | Chiba |
| Trained by | Jaguar Yokota |
| Debut | August 8, 1986 against Kaoru Maeda |
| Retired | April 29, 1997 against Shark Tsuchiya |
Megumi Takayama, better known under her stage and maiden name Megumi Kudo (工藤めぐみ Kudou Megumi), and by her nickname Kudome, is a Japanese entertainment personality, and was a professional wrestler who worked most of her career for Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling.
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Kudo practiced basketball during high school. When she was 16 she joined All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling but found little to no success there. She was released in March 1988 because she had not enhanced her wrestling ability enough.
After being released from AJW in March 1988, she took a hiatus from pro wrestling and worked as a kindergarten teacher.
However she still felt the desire for pro wrestling, and joined Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling in March 1990. She was quickly pushed to the top of the card, it is generally considered that this was because of her looks. However she worked and trained hard, developing her skills significantly. She ended up being the top star of FMW's women's division, and one of the most recognised female wrestlers in Japan during her heyday.
In October 1990, she took part in Japan's first mixed tag team match, teaming with Ricky Fuji, losing to Tarzan Goto and his wife Despina Montagas.
In 1992 she released a music CD titled "Keep On Running"; that same year, she was the leading lady in the action film, A Human Murder Weapon. She had also released several modeling photobooks, which she poses for.
Kudo worked all kinds of matches, but she was mostly known for brutal death matches, where the ring ropes were replaced with barbed wire. Her notable feuds were against Shark Tsuchiya, Combat Toyoda and Sumie Sakai.
On April 29, 1997 she had her retirement match against Tsuchiya in a "No ropes 200V double hell double barbed wire barricade double landmine glass crush death match". This refers to a match fought under hardcore rules wherein the ropes are removed and replaced by 200V electrified, double-layered barbed wire; and the ring surrounded by double layers of landmines and broken glass. She vacated both of the titles she held in a retirement ceremony on June 13, 1997.
After retiring from professional wrestling Kudo has worked on various television programs, including as a color commentator for pro wrestling events. She also hosts a weekly radio show in Japan.
Since 1998, she is married to fellow wrestler Bad Boy Hido, whom she met in their FMW days.