Yoko Yamada
Born (1979-05-25) May 25, 1979
Tokyo, Japan
Other namesIron Beauty
ResidenceTokyo, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Height1.55 m (5 ft 1 in)[1]
Weight43 kg (95 lb)[1]
Fighting out ofTokyo, Japan
TeamPurebred
Years active2003–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total7
Wins6
By knockout1
By submission4
By decision1
Losses1
By submission1
Notable relativesYoko Minamida (aunt)
WebsiteOfficial blog
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Last updated on: September 4, 2011 (2011-09-04)
Yoko Yamada
Medal record
Representing  Japan
Women's arm wrestling
World Armwrestling Championship
Bronze medal – third place2004 Durban50 kg, right hand
Bronze medal – third place2004 Durban50 kg, left hand
Gold medal – first place2005 Tokyo45 kg, right hand
Silver medal – second place2005 Tokyo45 kg, right hand

Yoko Yamada (山田 よう子, yamada yōko, real name pronounced the same but written 山田 洋子, born on (1979-05-25)May 25, 1979) is a Japanese female arm wrestler, professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and occasional ring girl. Nicknamed The Sturdy Arm (剛腕, gōwan) and Iron Beauty,[2] she also works as a talent for the Tokyo-based agency KT Project (KTプロジェクト, kt purojiekuto).

Yamada has been the Japan Arm Wrestling Association (JAWA) female champion since 2002 and became the World Armwrestling Federation (WAF) champion in the 45 kg right hand division and second place in the left hand division in 2005.

Background

Yamada was born on May 25, 1979 in Tokyo, Japan.[3][4][5] Yamada practiced swimming until 1994 and played badminton during high school. After finishing high school, she was unsure what to do next until 1999 when she, at 20 years old, met an arm wrestler in a restaurant that inspired her and made her decide to try arm wrestling.[2][5]

Arm wrestling

In 2000, Yamada got the fourth place in the JAWA All-Japan Championships in the women's left hand 50 kg and women's right hand 45 kg and 50 kg divisions.[6]

In 2001, Yamada got the third place in the JAWA All-Japan Championships in the women's right hand 50 kg category.[7]

In 2002, Yamada got the first place in the All-Japan Championships in the women's left hand 50 kg category and second place in the right hand 50 kg category.[8]

Yamada repeated her previous performance in 2003, this time winning in both right and left hand 50 kg categories and also placing second in both hands 55 kg categories.[9]

Yamada placed fourth in the 50 kg category in both left and right arm classes at the WAF World Championship 2003 held in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.[10][11]

In 2004 Yamada once again won the women's right and left hand -50 kg categories and also was the runner up in the left hand -55 kg division.[12]

Also in 2004, Yamada was third place in both left and right hand 50 kg women's divisions at the WAF World Championships held in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.[13]

Continuing her winning streak, in 2005 Yamada won the 23rd All-Japan Arm Wrestling Championships in left and right hands -45 kg categories and right hand -50 kg.[14]

At the WAF World Armwrestling Championship 2005 held in Tokyo, Japan Yamada won the 45 kg right hand division and placed second in the left hand division.[2][15][16]

In the All-Japan championships 2006, Yamada won the first place in the women's right hand -50 kg, -55 kg, -60 kg and women's left hand -50 kg.[17][18]

Yamada was unable to participate in the 2006 World Championship since the minimum weight was raised to 50 kg.[2]

Once again dominating in the All-Japan Championships, in 2007 Yamada won in both hands in the -50 and -55 kg categories and also achieved second place in the right hand -60 kg category and fourth in the +60 kg.[19]

In 2008 Yamada controlled all the women's categories in both hands at the All-Japan Championships, winning the first place in all categories for both hands, with the exception of the +60 kg categories where she got third place in both hands.[20]

Yamada once again showed her dominance in the All-Japan Championships 2009, winning in both hands the -50 kg and -55 kg divisions.[21]

In 2010 Yamada once again won the same categories that she won in 2009 performance at the 28th All-Japan Arm Wrestling Championships.[22]

Mixed martial arts career

After watching mixed martial arts (MMA) on TV, she became interested on them.[5] Inspired by Gary Goodridge, another arm wrestling champion that competed in MMA, Yamada elected to use Goodridge's theme, Queen's "We Will Rock You", for her MMA entrance theme.[23]

Yamada made her MMA debut on April 2, 2003 at Smackgirl's event Smackgirl: Third Season II, where she defeated Kazumi Sakaguchi by guillotine choke submission in 69 seconds.[24][25]

Two years later, Yamada's second victory came on August 17, 2005 at Smackgirl 2005: Dynamic!!, submitting Haruka Onuki with a rear naked choke in the first round.[26][27]

Debuting in Shooto, Yamada continued her winning streak by defeating Mayuko Kasaki via submission (guillotine choke) in the first round at G-Shooto Plus 05 on February 24, 2006.[28][29]

At G-Shooto Japan 05 on May 6, 2006 Yamada defeated Azusa Anzai in only ten seconds with an armbar submission, earning her fourth consecutive win.[30][31]

Yamada first defeat was at the hands of Maho Muranami on August 19, 2006 at the event Wrestle Expo 2006, where Muranami submitted Yamada with an armbar in the first round.[32][33]

Almost two years later, Yamada got another win when she knocked out Nana Ichikawa in the first minute of their bout at Deep Glove 2 on June 15, 2008.[34][35]

Debuting with Jewels promotion, Yamada defeated Miyoko Kusaka by unanimous decision on December 11, 2009 at Jewels 6th Ring.[36][37]

Shoot boxing

On August 19, 2011, Yamada faced Mio Tsumura alias "Mio Kubota" in a shoot boxing match at the 2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup. She was defeated by disqualification after failing to obey the referee's commands.[38][39]

Professional wrestling

Yamada debuted in pro-wrestling with S Ovation's and Mariko Yoshida's promotion Ibuki on July 2, 2006.[40][41]

Yamada continues to perform occasionally as a freelancer.[42]

Talent

Yamada works as a talent girl and is affiliated to the KT Project agency.[1] She has appeared as a gravure model in some DVDs and photobooks.[43][44][45][46][47]

Yamada also appeared as a ring girl at the event Deep Glove 3 on September 20, 2008.[48][49]

Internet show

From April 7, 2007 to June 30, 2007 Yamada hosted an Internet television show called Yoko Yamada's Happy Girl (山田よう子のHAPPY GIRL, yamada yōko no happy girl) which was produced by Internet broadcaster Ah! To Odoroku Hōsō Kyoku (あっ!とおどろく放送局).[50]

Personal life

Yamada is bisexual.[2] She has two brothers[2] and Yoko Minamida was her aunt.[23]

Yamada was subjected to bullying in junior high school and it caused her to stop going to school for some time.[2] During her teens Yamada beat the leader of a girl's gang and four of the girl's friends for which she was sent to a juvenile correctional facility.[2]

After her parents divorced, her father disappeared for five years due to money problems occasioned by his gambling habits until he had a stroke that left him hospitalized and with cognitive problems and Yamada has taken care of him since then.[2]

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
7 matches 6 wins 1 loss
By knockout 1 0
By submission 4 1
By decision 1 0
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 6-1 Miyoko Kusaka Decision (unanimous) Jewels 6th Ring December 11, 2009 2 5:00 Tokyo, Japan
Win 5-1 Nana Ichikawa KO (punch) Deep: Glove 2 June 15, 2008 1 1:00 Tokyo, Japan
Loss 4-1 Maho Muranami Technical submission (armbar) Wrestle Expo 2006 August 19, 2006 1 1:14 Tokyo, Japan
Win 4-0 Azusa Anzai Submission (armbar) G-Shooto: G-Shooto 05 May 6, 2006 1 0:10 Tokyo, Japan
Win 3-0 Mayuko Kasaki Submission (guillotine choke) G-Shooto: Plus05 February 24, 2006 1 4:37 Tokyo, Japan
Win 2-0 Haruka Onuki Submission (rear-naked choke) Smackgirl 2005: Dynamic!! August 17, 2005 1 4:12 Tokyo, Japan
Win 1-0 Kazumi Sakaguchi Submission (guillotine choke) Smackgirl: Third Season II April 2, 2003 1 1:09 Tokyo, Japan

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 山田よう子 (in Japanese). Japan: KT Project. Archived from the original on 2008-05-26. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Kawaguchi, Judit. "Words to live by: Yoko Yamada". Japan: The Japan Times. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  3. ↑ 山田よう子のルーム（プロフィール） (in Japanese). Japan: Yoko Yamada's blog. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  4. ↑ アームレスリングチャンピオン山田よう子からのメッセージ【動画】 (in Japanese). Japan: Bodymaker online. Archived from the original on 2020-03-02. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  5. 1 2 3 "Interview 山田 よう子" (in Japanese). Japan: Chap. Archived from the original on 2013-05-25. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  6. ↑ 第１８回全日本アームレスリング選手権大会. Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  7. ↑ 第１９回全日本アームレスリング選手権大会. Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  8. ↑ 第20回全日本アームレスリング選手権大会. Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  9. ↑ 第2１回全日本アームレスリング選手権大会. Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  10. ↑ "WAF World Championships 2003". Results. South Africa: South African Armwrestling. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  11. ↑ "WAF World Championships 2003". Results. United States: Armwrestling.com. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  12. ↑ "第22回JAWA全日本アームレスリング選手権大会". Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  13. ↑ "WAF World Championships 2004". Results. United States: Armwrestling.com. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  14. ↑ "第23回JAWA全日本アームレスリング選手権大会". Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  15. ↑ "XXVII World Armwrestling Federation World Armwrestling Championship Results". United States: USA Arm Wrestling. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  16. ↑ "World championship 2005 Tokyo Japan". Results. United States: Armwrestling.com. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  17. ↑ "Results: JAWA nationals 2006, Japan". United States: World of armwrestling. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  18. ↑ "第24回JAWA全日本アームレスリング選手権大会". Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  19. ↑ "第25回JAWA全日本アームレスリング選手権大会-大会結果-". Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  20. ↑ 第26回全日本大会結果（11月2日 東京・すみだリバーサイドホール） (PDF). Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  21. ↑ 第2７回全日本大会結果（墨田リバーサイドホール）11月22日 (PDF). Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  22. ↑ 第28回全日本大会結果 (PDF). Tournament results (in Japanese). Japan: JAWA. Retrieved 2010-12-26.
  23. 1 2 【山田よう子・やまだようこ】アームレスリング（2010年8月30日～9月4日オンエア）. Sports Real Talk (in Japanese). Japan: Nippon Broadcasting System. 2010-08-30. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  24. ↑ Ihara, Yoshinori (2003-04-11). "(レポ＆写真) [SMACK GIRL] 4.2 六本木：辻結花、WINDY下し日本人中量級最強に". Reports (in Japanese). Japan: Bout Review. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  25. ↑ ＳＭＡＣＫ ＧＩＲＬ 「Ｔｈｉｒｄ Ｓｅａｓｏｎ－ＩＩ」 第２試合 ＳＧＳルール. Kakutogi (in Japanese). Japan: sportsnavi.com. 2003-04-02. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  26. ↑ Ihara, Yoshinori (2005-08-19). (レポ＆写真) [スマック] 8.17 代々木：ローラ、薮下破りミドル級女王に. Reports (in Japanese). Japan: Bout Review. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  27. ↑ "SMACKGIRL 2005 ～Dynamic!!～ オープニングファイト第１試合 ＳＧＳ公式ルール －５２キロ契約 ５分２Ｒ". Kakutogi (in Japanese). Japan: sportsnavi.com. 2005-08-17. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  28. ↑ Ihara, Yoshinori (2006-02-25). "(写真) [G-SHOOTO] 2.24 新木場：高橋KO勝ち。村浪と永易が準決勝へ". Reports (in Japanese). Japan: Bout Review. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  29. ↑ "【G-SHOOTO】高橋圧勝！永易＆村浪が準決勝に進出". Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2006-02-24. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  30. ↑ Ihara, Yoshinori (2006-05-07). "(レポ＆写真) [G-SHOOTO] 5.6 新宿：薮下、ロクサンに判定負け". Reports (in Japanese). Japan: Bout Review. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  31. ↑ "【G-SHOOTO】ロクサン、藪下に快勝！ストロー級T決勝は玉田VS吉田に". Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2006-05-06. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  32. ↑ "【レッスル・エキスポ】女子格闘技が4勝2敗で女子プロを下す！ハッスル石井TKO勝ちデビュー". Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2006-08-19. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  33. ↑ 対抗戦は２勝４敗で女子プロレス勢が負け越し＝レッスルエキスポ グラビアアイドル・西島未智が黒星デビュー. Kakutogi (in Japanese). Japan: sportsnavi.com. 2006-08-20. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  34. ↑ "大野崇、総合デビュー戦は1R TKO負け". Reports (in Japanese). Japan: Bout Review. 2008-06-15. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  35. ↑ "【DEEP GLOVE】安廣が猫ひろしにタジタジ。総合初挑戦の大野は惨敗". Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2008-06-15. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  36. ↑ "女子総合格闘技ジュエルス ６ｔｈ ＲＩＮＧ 第１試合 JEWELS公式ルール -48kg契約 5分2R". Kakutogi (in Japanese). Japan: sportsnavi.com. 2009-12-11. Archived from the original on 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  37. ↑ Sargent, Robert (2009-12-11). "Jewels: "Sixth Ring" Results". Articles. Canada: MMARising.com. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  38. ↑ Sargent, Robert (2011-08-19). "Erika Kamimura Wins 2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup". Articles. Canada: MMARising.com. Retrieved 2011-09-04.
  39. ↑ 【シュートボクシング】女子立ち技最強は神村エリカ！ハム・ソヒに逆転勝利. Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2011-08-19. Retrieved 2011-09-04.
  40. ↑ Pozen, Frank (2006-07-04). "Lady Gong presents joshi show on July 2". Canada: Frank Pozen's Big Bad Blog. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  41. ↑ エスオベーション(息吹) (in Japanese). Japan: Encyclopedia of Women's Wrestling. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  42. ↑ Pozen, Frank (2009-02-01). "Brackets announced for Sendai Girls juniors tournament". Canada: Frank Pozen's Big Bad Blog. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  43. ↑ "山田よう子 WILD BODY [DVD]" (in Japanese). Japan: amazon.co.jp. 25 February 2005. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  44. ↑ "山田よう子写真集 (NIPPON SPORTS MOOK 118) [ムック]" (in Japanese). Japan: amazon.co.jp. 25 February 2005. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  45. ↑ アイドル●ニッポン!!水泳大会～４２の谷間～ (in Japanese). Japan: Liverpool. Archived from the original on 2011-01-04. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  46. ↑ "Fighting Person 16" (in Japanese). Japan: Battle. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  47. ↑ "Fighting Person 13" (in Japanese). Japan: Battle. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  48. ↑ "【DEEP GLOVE】篠原光の愛娘はドロー、ジョシュのマネージャーは判定勝ち". Results (in Japanese). Japan: God Bless the Ring. 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  49. ↑ "【DEEP GLOVE】篠原光の愛娘はドロー、ジョシュのマネージャーは判定勝ち" (in Japanese). Japan: gravity. 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
  50. ↑ "山田よう子のHAPPY GIRL" (in Japanese). Japan: odoroku.tv. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
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