Born: 1984
Biography:
Ayumi Kurihara (栗原 亜弓, Kurihara Ayumi, ring name: 栗原 あゆみ) was born on July 13, 1984. She is a retired joshi puroresu wrestler best known for her tenures with Pro Wrestling Wave and NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling.
Kurihara began her professional wrestling career in 2005 when she entered training with the women’s pro wrestling promotion AtoZ. She then transferred to M’s Style, where she had the opportunity to learn from well-known Japanese female wrestlers such as Gami, Mariko Yoshida, Akino, and Michiko Omukai. At the young age of 20, Kurihara made her professional debut in a 1 Day Tournament, where she defeated Gami by reversing a pin attempt into a roll-up. However, she faced defeat in her following tournament match against Toshie Uematsu, who beat her with a flying body press.
In the fall of 2006, M’s Style closed its doors, but Kurihara continued her wrestling career as a freelancer. She competed in various promotions, including Neo, JWP Project, JDStar, Ibuki, and Pro Wrestling Sun. During this time, Kurihara incorporated a stronger finishing move into her repertoire. With guidance from Michiko Omukai, she learned how to perform a uranage, which became one of her signature moves.
In December 2006, Kurihara took part in a special show focused on the younger generation of wrestlers. She faced Shuu Shibutani in a match that the fans voted as the best of the night, and both women received trophies for their outstanding performance.
On July 16, 2007, while teaming up with Shuu Shibutani against Aoi Kizuki and Nagisa Nozaki at the Pro Wrestling NEO Summer Stampede ’07 show, Kurihara suffered a broken clavicle after receiving a hard flying clothesline from Kizuki. Despite the injury, Kurihara displayed incredible determination and finished the match, hitting three more missile dropkicks before securing the pinfall.
After a period of recovery, Kurihara returned to action on December 9, 2007, participating in the main event tag match in Michiko Omukai’s retirement show. Unfortunately, she re-aggravated her injury and required surgery. On December 20, 2007, Kurihara underwent surgery to reconstruct her clavicle using bone and bone marrow taken from her hip, along with a titanium plate and screws.
In mid-March 2008, Kurihara began her training again with Mariko Yoshida and at the U-FILE Dojo. She made her highly-anticipated return to the ring on December 14, 2008, at Tokyo Shinjuku Face for her personally produced show titled Starting☆Over. During the event, Kurihara wrestled twice, winning the opening bout against Shuu Shibutani. In the main event 2/3 Falls Tag Team match, she teamed up with Natsuki☆Taiyo, facing veteran wrestlers Akino and Nanae Takahashi.
In August 2009, Kurihara traveled to the United States to participate in the prestigious Shimmer Women Athletes promotion. Her time in Shimmer proved to be successful, as she achieved notable victories and continually impressed with her in-ring skills.
Throughout her career, Ayumi Kurihara displayed incredible resilience, overcoming injuries and setbacks. She continually pushed her limits and improved her craft, earning the respect of her peers and fans alike. Though retired now, her contributions to joshi puroresu and women’s wrestling will always be remembered.
Awards:
– Received the Best Match of the Night trophy for her match against Shuu Shibutani in December 2006.