At a ZERO-1 show in Sumo Hall in Tokyo, Japan today, wrestling legend Shinjiro Otani was seriously injured in a match with Takashi Sugiura for the Zero-1 Heavyweight Championship.
During the match, Sugiura performed a German Suplex to Otani into the turnbuckles and it seems as though Otani’s neck and head hit hard against the turnbuckles. After the move, Otani laid motionless on the mat. According to the Wrestling Observer, Otani told the referee that he could not move and could not feel his feet. The referee ended the match and Otani was taken to a hospital. No update has been provided for the injury.
Otani is a 49-year old legend who helped revolutionize professional wrestling in Japan in the 1990s as junior heavyweights ushered in a new era in the country with the likes of Jushin Thunder Liger, Ultimo Dragon, Koji Kanemoto, El Samurai, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Minoru Tanaka and others.
American fans probably know him most for being the first ever WCW Cruiserweight Champion and his classic Starrcade match with Eddie Guerrero. He and Tatsuhito Takaiwa were also the first ever IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. Otani’s last appearance in America came at a Game Changer Wrestling event against ROH Champion Jonathan Gresham in 2019.
Kanemoto was a mainstay in New Japan Pro Wrestling from 1992 until 2001 when he and fellow legend Shinya Hashimoto founded Zero-1 together. Otani has been President of Zero-1 since 2007, following the death of Hashimoto, and is one of the owners of the promotion, as well.