Hana Kimura Tribute Show to Take Place Later This Month
A tribute show in memory of the late Hana Kimura will take place this month, it has been confirmed.
The memorial show will take place on May 23, the third aversary of her passing in 2020. The show, titled PINX, has been put together by Hana's mother Kyoko Kimura, who is also a wrestler. The iconic Korakuen Hall will host the show with the following line-up:
- Battle Royal: Banana Senga, Tsutomu Ohsugi, Fuminori Abe, Mensore Oyaji, Super Delphin, Hanako Nakamori (PURE-J) Chihiro Hashimoto (SenJo), TBD
- Saori Anou vs. Miyuki Takase
- Mika Iwata & Mio Momono (MARVELOUS) vs. Aja Kong & X
- ASUKA (VENY), Natsupoi & Syuri vs. Kaori Yoneyama, Rina & Konami
- Strongest ANIKI 4-Way Tag: Masao Hanabatake & Shotaro Ashino vs. Ryo Mizunami & Sonoko Kato (OZ Academy) vs. Yuko Miyamoto & Ram Kaicho (Triple 6) vs. Koji Kanemoto & X
- Kyusei Hana Kimura (Sakura Hirota) vs. X
Hana Kimura took her own life in 2020 following abuse online stemming from her appearance on the Japanese reality show Terrace House: Tokyo. Earlier in the day of her death, Kimura had shared some of the hateful messages, including racist abuse, she had received stemming from her appearance on the show.
In December 2020, police arrested a man in his mid-20s for being part of the abusive messages that led to her death. The man admitted to sending some of the messages saying he "couldn't forgive Kimura's attitude on the program." The following year, he was issued a ¥9000 ($80 USD) fine, prompting outrage that the punishment was too lenient. Kimura's mother filed a suit and is seeking over ¥2.75 million (over $20,000 USD) in damages.
In June 2022, Japan's parliament passed a law in which "online insults" were punishable by one year imprisonment in response to Kimura's online bullying. Offenders convicted can also face a fine of up to ¥300,000 ($2,200 USD.)
