As of this writing, World Wonder Ring STARDOM is in the midst of their Goddesses of Stardom Tag League tournament. The tournament began in late October and will wrap up on December 8th.
One of the teams participating is the duo of Syuri and Saki Kashima. As the Goddesses of Stardom Tag League is underway, I had the opportunity to chat with Syuri (translations by STARDOM).
Syuri was asked for her thoughts going into the month and a half long tournament and how she feels about her and Saki Kashima’s performance in the 2023 tourney.
Last year, Saki Kashima and I took part in the Goddesses of Stardom Tag League as ‘Anecon’ and I’m happy that we get to team again this year.
We recently challenged for the Goddesses of Stardom Tag Team Championships (versus Momo Watanabe & Thekla in September), but sadly we lost. I still want the two of us to become champions though, because we support and trust each other. When our two movesets are combined, it creates something entirely new and I think that’s enough for us to be able to win the tournament and eventually the titles together!
October 26th was the start of the tag league and that date marked 16 years to the day since Syuri’s pro wrestling in-ring debut.
She reflected on the last 16 years of her career. She expressed gratitude to those she’s been able to meet in and outside of the ring. There is a lot more she hopes to accomplish in the space.
It’s been sixteen years since I made my debut, and it surprises me how long I’ve been wrestling for.
At the same time, I’m very happy that I had the chance to become a professional wrestler; I am who I am today because of pro wrestling. I’ve been able to experience so many things, and it’s because of the fans that I’m here today.
I have a lot of gratitude for the people I’ve met in and out of the ring. However, there’s still things I want to do — goals I want to achieve — and I want to continue being in the ring until I feel as though I’ve fulfilled my life as Syuri the pro wrestler.
Back in April, Syuri made her way over to the USA for a string of matches. She competed at STARDOM American Dream and wrestled Masha Slamovich for GCW.
She enjoyed her trip to America and performing in the respective matches she did. Syuri wants to continue showing fan bases around the world what she can do.
I was so excited to be wrestling in the United States, and I could feel the energy in the crowd when I was there — both for STARDOM and against Masha Slamovich in GCW.
I want to wrestle against a lot of different wrestlers in America, and I’d love to continue to show the wrestling style of Syuri to people all over the wrestling world.
In April 2023, STARDOM presented its All-Star Grand Queendom event from the Yokohama Arena.
Some of the matches that were on the bill included Tam Nakano versus Giulia for the World of Stardom Championship, Mayu Iwatani versus Mercedes Moné for the IWGP Women’s Championship and there was a submission match between Syuri and Chihiro Hashimoto.
Syuri said her match with Hashimoto is something she’ll never forget. When it comes to the idea of how she’d like to approach an updated match between them to either top or make it different from the previous bout, she said the following:
Chihiro Hashimoto is one of the best wrestlers in the world, and I’m very happy that the stars aligned for me to fight her inside Yokohama Arena; it’s a memorable match for me that I’ll never forget.
If we have the opportunity to wrestle again, then I’d like to show something even better that only the two of us can do in the ring. I want to show a hard-fought and heated match that goes beyond the limits.
The 2024 STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix concluded with Maika emerging victorious as the tournament winner.
There were more than two blocks this go-round and in the Blue Stars A block, Syuri was tied with Starlight Kid for first place. She spoke about the format change and if she enjoyed having more than two blocks.
The 5★STAR tournament this year was a new format… I hope that I’m able to properly adapt the new format and schedule so that I can win next year!
To start off 2024, STARDOM ran a show at Tokyo Dome City Hall. The headlining match of the night saw Mayu Iwatani defend the IWGP Women’s Championship against Syuri.
In an interview with NJPW1972.com, Iwatani expressed that the match with Syuri is the best of her career. Syuri is honored that Iwatani spoke highly of the bout and thinks a lot of people were inspired by it.
That was a very special match to me (facing Mayu Iwatani at 2024 Tokyo Dome City Hall show), and I’m honored that she called it the best match of her career. We both gave it everything that we could, and I think a lot of people were inspired by it so I hope a lot of people will watch it.
However, I’m sad that I wasn’t able to win the match. Next time, I’ll do even better than that match — and I’ll win the IWGP Women’s Championship.
To wrap up the interview, the questioning shifted over to Syuri’s pro fighting career. She’s competed in UFC, done kickboxing and Pancrase.
She was asked if there’s any desire to return to fighting or is that a period of her life that she’s content with keeping as is. Syuri is happy with what she’s achieved as a fighter and does not have the desire to return to it anytime soon.
I’ve finished my career as a fighter. I was able to become champion in both kickboxing and mixed martial arts, challenging the best fighters in the world in Krush, Pancrase, and the UFC.
It was an incredible experience because I had the chance to do something truly unforgettable that not many people have the ability to do.
So for me, I’m happy with what I achieved as a fighter and I don’t have the desire to return anytime soon. But the experiences I got then is what allows me to do what I do best now; I’ll continue looking and moving forward with that in mind.
Saki Kashima and Syuri are sitting at four points in the Goddesses of Stardom Tag League B block. The promotion’s next show is on November 16th in Osaka, Japan.
To keep up with all things Syuri-related, she can be found on Instagram @syuri_official and on X @syuri_wv3s.
