Shinya Hashimoto, 1965-2005

The Japanese wrestling industry is mourning the loss of Shinya Hashimoto, who died of a suspected brain aneurysm on Monday. He was only 40.

Regarded as the 'Japanese Elvis' by fans due to his vague resemblance to The King, Hashimoto was a mainstay of New Japan Pro Wrestling throughout the '90s, winning the IWGP championship, and co-founded the ZERO-ONE promotion with Shinjiro Otani a few years ago. He also competed outside of Japan, wrestling for Stu Hart's Stampede territory and independents in the States in the late 1980s, while some might remember him as Hiroshi Hase's partner in the NWA Tag Team title tournament at the 1992 Great American Bash.

Hashimoto became a free agent last year after a squabble with ZERO-ONE, and was apparently planning a return to New Japan after recovering from shoulder surgery. While his death is a shock, it has emerged that he was under a lot of stress in recent months, and his family has a history of cerebral haemmoraging.

Slam! Wrestling has more on the story, while Puroresu Power has reviewed the Japanese press' reaction and posted a special Power Hour tribute show (large file; there's a stream available for dial-up users). There's also a piece by David Ditch at InsidePulse on why Hashimoto earned the tag of 'legend' in the annals of puroresu.