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GHC National Championship

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The Global Honored Crown (GHC) National Championship ( Japanese : GHCナショナル王座 , Hepburn : GHC Nashonaru Ōza ) is a professional wrestling championship in the Japanese promotion Pro Wrestling Noah . It was created on October 3, 2019 and inaugurated on November 2 when Takashi Sugiura defeated Michael Elgin . The title is defended exclusively in Japan. Rather than being another "heavyweight" championship, Noah classifies the title as an openweight title, with both heavyweight and junior heavyweight wrestlers being eligible to challenge for it.

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35-620: In January 2019, LIDET Entertainment took over the ownership of Noah, and on October 3, Riki Choshu announced on behalf of LIDET Entertainment, the creation of the GHC National Championship, with the inaugural champion to be crowned on November 2, 2019, at Noah the Best 2019, in a match between Michael Elgin and Takashi Sugiura . It was later announced that the title would be an openweight title, with both heavyweight and junior heavyweight wrestlers being eligible to challenge for it. The title

70-771: A wrestler and went under his Korean name Kwak Gwang-ung. He ended the tournament with a record of one win and two losses, and was disqualified due to the penalty points system. When Yoshida returned to Japan, he became captain of the Senshu wrestling team in his fourth year at university and won the Freestyle and Greco-Roman 100 kg class tournaments at the All Japan Championship in 1973. Yoshida debuted in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) in August 1974 against El Greco. In

105-465: A Japanese mother and Korean father. His father left Korea's Chūseihoku-dō for Japan in 1939 and worked as a garbage man for much of his life. Yoshida has said that he faced discrimination from teachers in elementary school due to his Korean heritage. He took part in baseball and judo as a teenager and after training in the judo department at Giyang Junior High School, he moved to the wrestling department of Yamaguchi prefecture's Sakurakaoka High School as

140-425: A Japanese promotion when he turned on Inoki and Fujinami in a six man tag match. Choshu spent the rest of the year feuding with Fujinami while attracting additional supporters to his faction, then known as New Wolves. Choshu was joined by Masa Saito , to provide a more senior rival for Antonio Inoki, along with Kuniaki Kobayashi and Gran Hamada, who would feud with Tiger Mask in the junior division. Strong Kobayashi

175-470: A barbed wire deathmatch in 2000. Choshu accepted and wrestled Onita in a deadly squash, where Choshu ended up winning. He then balanced wrestling and booking for NJPW, until his departure in 2002, stemming from the departures of Keiji Mutoh and Satoshi Kojima , among others, to AJPW, which caused his position of head booker taken away. After leaving NJPW, he formed Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling in 2003, which would later be changed to Riki Pro, after

210-655: A chair and injure his ribs, setting up Choshu as a babyface within the promotion he had invaded a year earlier. In April 1986, the Calgary Hurricanes, who were also members of Choshu's stable, invaded AJPW as a new faction setting up a three-way battle between Japanese factions that lasted throughout the Summer of 1986. In early 1987, Choshu left AJPW to return to NJPW, with some members joining him, others staying behind in AJPW, and others retiring. Upon returning to NJPW in 1987, Choshu

245-736: A few schools that could teach specialised law, and the University of Tokyo taught law in English and the Ministry of Justice Law School taught law in French. Meanwhile, Senshu was the first college where Japanese teachers taught specialised subjects in the Japanese language, and it was also the first college to establish a school of economics in Japan. After 1885, Senshu was moved its campus from Ginza to Kanda , and built

280-696: A long trip to the United States, leaving the New Wolves without a senior leader. Though the New Wolves had only lasted a few months, NJPW's business had doubled, setting the tone for the future of puroresu where Japanese vs Japanese rivalries within a promotion would become a booking staple. In June 1983, Choshu and former IWE faction member Animal Hamaguchi quit NJPW to form a breakaway promotion, but on July 1, 1983 they returned to NJPW TV as Ishin Gundan (Revolutionary Army) with Choshu and Hamaguchi immediately gelling as

315-540: A site foreman, booker and part-time wrestler. Choshu once again left NJPW in 2010 and primarily worked in Tatsumi Fujinami ’s Dradition , as well as his own self-produced Power Hall events as a freelancer . Choshu was a second generation Zainichi Korean . He was naturalized in 2016. Mitsuo Yoshida was born Kwak Gwang-ung ( Korean :  곽광웅 ), the youngest of four children in Tokuyama , Yamaguchi Prefecture to

350-491: A special student. He eventually came in second place in the 73 kg class of the Nagasaki National Freestyle wrestling tournament, which attracted attention from university wrestling officials and he later enrolled at Senshu University School of Commerce on a wrestling scholarship. Yoshida joined the amateur wrestling team at Senshu University shortly after enrolling and was teammates with Mitsushi Hirasawa,

385-610: A tag team. They were joined by Tiger Toguchi (Kim Duk), Killer Khan, and Kuniaki Kobayashi, who continued his feud with Tiger Mask (Sayama). In October, former olympian Yoshiaki Yatsu joined the group. NJPW did record business as Ishin Gundan vs Seiki Gundan (NJPW) continued to dominate booking through September 1984, when Choshu suddenly left, taking most of Ishin Gundan with him to form the Japan Pro-Wrestling (JPW) promotion that "invaded" All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). Choshu attended an AJPW event on November 1, 1984 where he

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420-716: Is a South Korean - Japanese retired professional wrestler who is best known for his longtime work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) as both a wrestler and a booker . He is considered one of Japan’s most influential wrestlers for his work in the 1980s and 1990s and is known as the first wrestler to popularize the Sasori-Gatame , better known in English as the Scorpion Deathlock or Sharpshooter . After leaving NJPW in 2002, he formed Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling (WJ), but eventually returned to New Japan in October 2005 as

455-699: Is located in Kanda-Jinbōchō and formed a college town with Hosei University , Chuo University , Nihon University and Meiji University . After the World War II , Senshu established the Ikuta campus in Kanagawa Prefecture to cope with the increasing number of students. Today, Senshu has grown into a comprehensive university with 7 undergraduates, 5 graduates, 1 professional graduate school. In 2010, Senshu declared ‘Development of Social Intelligence’ as its vision for

490-463: Is the current champion in his first reign. He defeated Ulka Sasaki at NOAH Star Navigation on September 14, 2024, in Tokyo, Japan . As of November 28, 2024. Riki Choshu Mitsuo Yoshida ( 吉田 光雄 , Yoshida Mitsuo , born Kwak Gwang-ung ( Korean :  곽광웅 ; Hanja :  郭光雄 ), December 3, 1951) , better known by his ring name Riki Choshu ( 長州 力 , Chōshū Riki ) ,

525-666: The G1 Climax , winning every single match in the tournament. In 1997, he won his third IWGP Tag Team title with Kensuke Sasaki . In January 1998, he retired from the ring; for his retirement match, he wrestled five matches in one night, winning four out of five matches, defeating Tatsuhito Takaiwa , Yutaka Yoshie , Jushin Thunder Liger and Kazuyuki Fujita , only to fall to his former tag team partner Takashi Iizuka . He would focus on booking matches for NJPW after that. Retirement did not last long, as Atsushi Onita challenged Choshu to

560-621: The IWGP Heavyweight Championship . On May 27, the match ended in a no contest, in which the title was held up. Fujinami won the rematch on June 24. In July 1989, he won his first IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Salman Hashimikov of the Soviet Union. The same month, he would also win his second IWGP Tag Team title with young up-and-comer Takayuki Iizuka . Two more IWGP Heavyweight title reigns would follow between August 19, 1990 and January 4, 1992. In August 1996, he won

595-465: The 2017 video game Yakuza Kiwami 2 , alongside Genichiro Tenryu , Keiji Mutoh, Masahiro Chono and Tatsumi Fujinami. Senshu University Senshu University (専修大学, Senshū Daigaku ), generally referred to as Senshu (専修) or Sen-Dai (専大), is a private university located in Chiyoda , Tokyo , Japan. Founded in 1880 as Senshu College ( 専修学校 , Senshu Gakko ) , which was recognised as one of

630-686: The Black Gate (黒門 Kuromon ), which was reconstructed in 2010 as the Kanda Campus Monument. In 1888, Senshu was recognised as one of the Five Great Law Schools. In 1918, the government enacted the University Establishment Ordinance and eight universities, which including Keio University and Waseda University were approved as a universities in 1920, and Senshu was also approved as a university in 1922. The Kanda campus

665-485: The Five Great Law Schools by four co-founders, it is one of the oldest universities in Japan. The university has a total of about 20,000 students coming from the Greater Tokyo Area . Senshu is organised into seven undergraduates, five graduates, and one professional graduate school; and twelve research institutes. The university currently has partnerships with 35 universities and institutions in 19 countries. Some of

700-727: The United National titlein the semi-main event under Baba versus Rusher Kimura. The Budokan show aired the next day on atwo-hour prime time TV special as the popularity of AJPW soared due to the popularity of Japanese vs Japanese storylines. Choshu's jump to AJPW had immediately shifted the balance of power from New Japan to All Japan, forever changing the booking style of All Japan, which had historically relied on Japanese vs foreigner rivalries but would go on to feature Japanese vs Japanese rivalries even after Choshu jumped back to New Japan in 1987. In January 1986, Jumbo Tsuruta turned heel, running in on several of Choshu's matches to attack him with

735-460: The University's partners include: the University of Bristol (England), the University of Barcelona (Spain), Peking University (China), and the University of Oregon (United States). Since its founding, Senshu University has sent out about 290,000 graduates, with alumni in diverse fields such as politics, business, culture, entertainment, sports, and mass media. Senshu University alumni include

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770-400: The early eighties, NJPW had run a very successful Japanese vs Japanese program pitting Inoki and NJPW wrestlers against Rusher Kimura and IWE wrestlers, who were actually employed by NJPW following the dissolution of IWE. In late 1982, NJPW Chairman and booker Hisashi Shinma decided to have Choshu turn heel and create a new faction. On October 28, 1982, Choshu became the first "traitor heel" in

805-519: The establishment of a new educational institute. In 1879, they received support from Yukichi Fukuzawa and they established the Night Law School in Fukuzawa's Keio-Gijuku . In 1880, the Night Law School became independent of Keio-Gijuku and merged with two private schools to form Senshu College, which was established as an Anglo-American law school and economics school. At that time, there were only

840-498: The failure of some of their big shows. He ran Riki Pro until 2005 when he returned to NJPW as a site foreman, booker and wrestler. In 2007, Choshu joined the Legend stable with Masahiro Chono , Jyushin Thunder Liger and AKIRA . Choshu also promotes an occasional series of events called "LOCK UP", which feature talent from New Japan and other promotions. New Japan supported this financially until 2008 before withdrawing. In 2012, Choshu

875-611: The father of future NJPW wrestler Mitsuhide Hirasawa . In 1971, he won the All Japan Student Wrestling Championship in the 90 kg class. Thanks to his victory in the tournament, Yoshida was selected to represent Japan in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich , Germany. Officials however refused to let him compete for Japan on account of him being part Korean . Nevertheless, South Korea instead invited him to join their freestyle team and he represented South Korea as

910-412: The first champion. He is also tied with Kenoh for the most reigns with two, and has the longest combined reign at 371 days. Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. 's sole reign is the longest at 352 days, while Masaaki Mochizuki 's reign is the shortest at 16 days. Jack Morris is the youngest champion at the age of 30 years old, while Masakatsu Funaki was the oldest, winning the title at 52 years old. Manabu Soya

945-511: The former Minister of Defence , eleven sitting Diet members, 195 professional athletes, and twenty four company chief executives. As of 2023, 70 Senshu alumni have participated in the Olympic Games and 9 alumni have won medals. The university was founded in September 1880, as Senshu College by four co-founders: Nagatane Soma , Tanetaro Megata , Inajjiro Taziri and Shigetada Komai . In

980-522: The late 19th century, the Meiji government encouraged students to study abroad to gain advanced Western knowledge. With the institution, they all have studied at universities in the United States such as Columbia University (Soma), Harvard University (Megata), Yale University (Soma, Taziri) and Rutgers University (Komai). In 1875, they founded the Japan Law Company in the United States and envisioned

1015-508: The mid-1970s, he was sent to North America to gain experience. Wrestling under his real name (Mitsuo Yoshida, sometimes referred as "Mitsu"), he appeared in George Cannon 's "Superstars of Wrestling" promotion in Windsor, Ontario as a heel , managed by Superstar (or Supermouth) Dave Drasen. Choshu had a brief feud with the top fan favorite of Cannon's promotion, Luis Martinez. The ring name at

1050-506: The time of debut was Mitsuo Yoshida (吉田 光雄), but from April 1977 after returning from overseas training, he adopted his famously known ring name Riki Choshu after Choshu (長州) in honor of the Choshu Forces , another name for his hometown Nagato . In the 4th World League match, which he participated in when he returned to Japan, he finished third with Nikolai Volkoff, behind winner Seiji Sakaguchi and runner-up The Masked Superstar . In

1085-608: Was a part of the Takeshi Puroresu Gundan. After NJPW split ties with Takeshi Kitano over the December 27 Sumo Hall riot, Choshu slowly climbed back up into the main event picture. In June 1988, he won his first IWGP Tag Team Championship with Masa Saito , with whom he had also partnered during a brief stint in the American Wrestling Association (AWA). At the same time, he feuded with Tatsumi Fujinami over

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1120-460: Was also added to the faction, but retired before wrestling for them. On January 2, 1983, Killer Khan also turned heel on Fujinami in a tag team match to join the New Wolves. The group continued to feud with NJPW for several months, with Choshu finally defeating Fujinami by count out on April 3, 1983 to win the International title. Three weeks later, Saito lost a loser leaves town match to cover for

1155-413: Was booked in a series of matches for LEGEND The Pro Wrestling and Dradition . On June 26, 2019, Choshu teamed with Tomohiro Ishii and Shiro Koshinaka in a six-man tag team match against Tatsumi Fujinami, Keiji Mutoh, and Togi Makabe. Fujinami's team won when Makabe pinned Choshu. In the post-match, Choshu officially announced his retirement from professional wrestling. Choshu appears as a gang member in

1190-492: Was challenged by Genichiro Tenryu . Tenryu was second among AJPW's top Japanese stars, behind Jumbo Tsuruta, with Baba moving to more of an emeritus role. Choshu defeated Tenryu by count out in 9:21 on February 21, 1985 in the main event of a JWP show that was not televised, but is available via bootleg tapes. Tenryu continued as Choshu's main rival through the summer of 1985. On June 21, 1985, AJPW held their first show at Budokan in almost ten years with Choshu challenging Tenryu for

1225-399: Was scheduled to be defended exclusively in Japan and was part of a plan by LIDET Entertainment to attract a new audience. On November 2, 2019, Sugiura defeated Elgin to become the inaugural GHC National Champion, before losing the title to Katsuhiko Nakajima on May 9, 2020. As of November 28, 2024, there have been a total of thirteen reigns between eight eleven champions. Takashi Sugiura was

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