Aoife Cusack (born 23 October 1996) is an Irish

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

. She is currently signed to

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

, where she is performing on the

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...

brand, under the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

Lyra Valkyria. She has additionally wrestled under the ring names Valkyrie Cain, Lady Valkyrie, and Valkyrie.

Professional wrestling career

Early career (2015–2020)

After being a student of

Fight Factory Pro Wrestling Fight Factory Pro Wrestling is an Irish professional wrestling promotion run by Phil Boyd on 16 May 2004 and based in Ireland. FFPW promotion tours theatres, leisure centres, and town halls. History file:Phil Boyd entering the ring.jpg, 120px, ...

for one year, Valkyrie made her debut in 2015 (adopting the ring name "Valkyrie Cain", after the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of the ''

Skulduggery Pleasant ''Skulduggery Pleasant'' is a series of dark fantasy novels written by Irish author Derek Landy. The books revolve around the adventures of fledgling detective Valkyrie Cain, her mentor Skulduggery Pleasant, along with other friends and allie ...

'' book series by

Derek Landy Derek Landy (born 23 October 1974) is an Irish author and screenwriter, best known for the ''Skulduggery Pleasant'' book series. Career Landy has written two screenplays that have been made into films, the IFTA award-winning '' Dead Bodies'' an ...

WWE (2020–present)

Valkyrie was reported signing with WWE on 20 January 2020, now operating under the ringname "Aoife Valkyrie". However, Valkyrie competed in her first match on

NXT UK ''NXT UK'' is a professional wrestling television programme that was produced exclusively in the United Kingdom by the American promotion WWE. It aired on BT Sport and 5Action (previously known as Paramount Network). In the United States, the s ...

on 17 January 2020, defeating Amale. She then defeated

Isla Dawn Courtney Florence Stewart (born 2 February 1994) is a Scottish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, performs on the NXT brand under the ringname Isla Dawn. Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2013–2016) On 17 Oct ...

the next night on 18 January 2020, and defeated Amale again on the same night. On 26 March 2020, Valkyrie defeated

Nina Samuels Samantha Allen (born 17 October 1988) is an English professional wrestler. She is most well known for her time in WWE where she performed on the NXT UK brand under the ring name Nina Samuels. Professional wrestling career British Empire Wre ...

. In February 2020, Valkyrie toured with WWE's US-based NXT brand for the first time, wrestling on two

house show A house show or live event is a professional wrestling event produced by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive du ...

s in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. Valkyrie defeated

Aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...

on 14 February in

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

, followed by defeating Jessi Kamea, MJ Jenkins, and Taynara on 15 February in a

six-woman tag team match Much like the singles match, tag team professional wrestling matches can and have taken many forms. Just about any singles or melee match type can be adapted to tag teams; for example, hardcore tag team matches are commonplace. Tag team ladder ma ...

at a

Fort Pierce Fort Pierce is a city in and the county seat of St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. The city is part of the Treasure Coast region of Atlantic Coast Florida. It is also known as the Sunrise City, sister to San Francisco, California, the Suns ...

house show, where she teamed up with

Mia Yim Stephanie Hym Lee (née Bell; born April 16, 1989) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name "Michin" Mia Yim. She is a member of The O.C.. She is also known for her tim ...

and Rita Reis. Valkyrie made her return to television on the 17 September 2020 episode of NXT UK in a winning effort against

, and on 29 October 2020 she competed against Dani Luna, again in a winning effort. Valkyrie remained undefeated until 29 April 2021 when she lost to

Meiko Satomura Meiko Satomura (里村明衣子, Satomura Meiko, born November 11, 1979) is a Japanese professional wrestler. She is currently signed to the American promotion WWE performing on the NXT brand and the Japanese promotion Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestlin ...

. Valkyrie remained with NXT UK until its closing in fall 2022, then moving to the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

later in the year to wrestle in

under the ring name Lyra Valkyria.

Championships and accomplishments

* Pro-Wrestling: EVE ** Pro-Wrestling: EVE Tag Team Championship ( 1 time) - with Debbie Keitel * Pro Wrestling Ulster ** PWU Women's Championship (1 time) *

Over the Top Wrestling Over the Top Wrestling, commonly abbreviated to OTT, is an Irish professional wrestling promotion based in Dublin, Ireland, that was founded in 2014. The promotion mixes elements of traditional pro wrestling, comedy and sports entertainment. Over ...

** OTT Women's Championship (1 time) * Zero1 Ireland/Fight Factory Pro Wrestling ** Irish Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Valkyrie, Aoife 1996 births Living people Irish female professional wrestlers Sportspeople from Dublin (city) 21st-century professional wrestlers Irish expatriate sportspeople in the United States