Haruka Eigen

Real Name - Haruka Eigen

Lifespan - 1/11/1946 - 11/28/2016

5'10" 242 lbs. - Kashimagun, Ishikawa, Japan

Athletic Background - Sumo (Makushita)

Teacher(s) - n/a

Professional Background - Tokyo Pro(`66-`67), US(`67), JWA(`67-`73), Central States(`73), St. Louis(`73), New Japan(`73-`84), Japan Pro(`84-`87), All Japan(`87-`00), NOAH(`00-`06)

Aliases - Great Togo, Masaru Eigen

Peak Years - `67-`74

Place in History - After the death of Rikidozan, pro-wrestling in Japan hit a dangerous slump. Giant Baba was the star revitalizing it, but former JWA kingpin Toyonobori and Antonio Inoki tried their own method, forming a rival company. That expansion that had not been allowed during the Rikidozan days created an opening for new youngsters who got their start with the short-lived Tokyo Pro. Haruka Eigen was just a former sumo trying to find a job like any twenty-something would be. He was just getting started, when the company collapsed and he almost called it quits. However, Eigen was able to get picked up by JWA, working the undercards and even heading abroad for seasoning. In America, again under the name Great Togo, he teamed with Mr. Hito (Katsuji Adachi) exchanging tag titles with Bob Geigel and Rufus R. Jones as JWA was in its final days. When Eigen returned to Japan, he joined Seiji Sakaguchi and others in New Japan and resumed his undercard status. He left with Riki Choshu and did some freelancing before finally settling in All Japan's midcard tag matches. In his 40s, Eigen was simply a good hand who'd never played an important role, but had always been in important places. Eventually, he was put in comedy tag matches opposite of other Showa-era relics Rusher Kimura and Mitsuo Momota (his eternal rivals). Known for his spitting when taking chops, Eigen became a popular character for All Japan and NOAH, reaching his fifth decade as an active wrestler.  While he was a fixture on the undercards, Eigen promoted towns and was a key office person for both companies.  After retiring, he has focused on his role as the company's Sales Department Director. Unfortunately, he and General Manager Ryo Nakata became the focal characters when it was revealed NOAH had dealings with the yakuza and both were demoted. The scandal hastened the downward spiral of NOAH, which is still limping along nearly a decade later.