Iyo Sky to return to Tokyo for WWE house shows October 17 and 18

Japanese-born WWE star Iyo Sky will return to Tokyo later this month for a pair of WWE house shows on October 17 and 18, the performer said in a recent interview, where she also reflected on a career that has taken her from Japan's independent rings to the center of WWE's global stage. Sky described retaining the WWE Women's World Championship in a triple threat match at WrestleMania 41 as the greatest moment of her life and spoke about the technical and cultural adjustments required to succeed in the United States.

Sky, born Masami Odate in Kamakura, rose through Japan's independent circuit alongside her sister before joining WWE's developmental brand NXT in 2018 under the ring name Io Shirai. Over the past seven years she has evolved from a developing talent into a leading figure of WWE's women's division, with a run that included cashing in a Money in the Bank contract in August 2023 to win the WWE Women's Championship and holding the Raw Women's Title for 245 days. In March she defeated Rhea Ripley to claim the Women's World Championship and then successfully defended it at WrestleMania 41 against Ripley and Bianca Belair.

"I'm apparently the first Japanese woman to win at...