is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

female arm wrestler,

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 ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

and occasional

ring girl Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

Nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

d and Iron Beauty, she also works as a talent for the

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

-based agency . Yamada has been the Japan Arm Wrestling Association (JAWA) female champion since 2002 and became the

World Armwrestling Federation The World Armwrestling Federation (WAF) is an international federation of national and regional arm wrestling associations. Currently, WAF has members from 82 countries. WAF members World Armwrestling Championships World Armwrestling Fede ...

(WAF) champion in the 45 kg right hand division and second place in the left hand division in 2005.

Background

Yamada was born on in Tokyo,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Yamada practiced

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

until 1994 and played

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

during

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

. After finishing high school, she was unsure what to do next until 1999 when she, at 20 years old, met an arm wrestler in a restaurant that inspired her and made her decide to try arm wrestling.

Arm wrestling

In 2000, Yamada got the fourth place in the JAWA All-Japan Championships in the women's left hand 50 kg and women's right hand 45 kg and 50 kg divisions. In 2001, Yamada got the third place in the JAWA All-Japan Championships in the women's right hand 50 kg category. In 2002, Yamada got the first place in the All-Japan Championships in the women's left hand 50 kg category and second place in the right hand 50 kg category. Yamada repeated her previous performance in 2003, this time winning in both right and left hand 50 kg categories and also placing second in both hands 55 kg categories. Yamada placed fourth in the 50 kg category in both left and right arm classes at the WAF World Championship 2003 held in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. In 2004 Yamada once again won the women's right and left hand -50 kg categories and also was the runner up in the left hand -55 kg division. Also in 2004, Yamada was third place in both left and right hand 50 kg women's divisions at the WAF World Championships held in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Continuing her

winning streak A winning streak, also known as a win streak or hot streak, is an uninterrupted sequence of success in games or competitions, commonly measured by at least 4 wins that are uninterrupted by losses or ties/draws. Although sometimes claimed as a ...

, in 2005 Yamada won the 23rd All-Japan Arm Wrestling Championships in left and right hands -45 kg categories and right hand -50 kg. At the WAF World Armwrestling Championship 2005 held in Tokyo, Japan Yamada won the 45 kg right hand division and placed second in the left hand division. In the All-Japan championships 2006, Yamada won the first place in the women's right hand -50 kg, -55 kg, -60 kg and women's left hand -50 kg. Yamada was unable to participate in the 2006 World Championship since the minimum weight was raised to 50 kg. Once again dominating in the All-Japan Championships, in 2007 Yamada won in both hands in the -50 and -55 kg categories and also achieved second place in the right hand -60 kg category and fourth in the +60 kg. In 2008 Yamada controlled all the women's categories in both hands at the All-Japan Championships, winning the first place in all categories for both hands, with the exception of the +60 kg categories where she got third place in both hands. Yamada once again showed her dominance in the All-Japan Championships 2009, winning in both hands the -50 kg and -55 kg divisions. In 2010 Yamada once again won the same categories that she won in 2009 performance at the 28th All-Japan Arm Wrestling Championships.

Mixed martial arts career

After watching mixed martial arts (MMA) on TV, she became interested on them. Inspired by

Gary Goodridge Gary Henry Goodridge (born January 17, 1966), nicknamed "Big Daddy", is a Trinidadian-Canadian former heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist fighting out of Barrie, Ontario. Prior to kickboxing and MMA, he was also one of the top ranked ...

, another arm wrestling champion that competed in MMA, Yamada elected to use Goodridge's theme,

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

's "

We Will Rock You "We Will Rock You" is a song written by Brian May and recorded by British rock band Queen for their 1977 album ''News of the World''. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it number 330 of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and it placed at numbe ...

", for her MMA entrance theme. Yamada made her MMA debut on at

Smackgirl Smackgirl was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion focused solely on female fighters. The promotion also held grappling and amateur events along with its main line of professional MMA cards. After financial difficulties throughout 2008 the pr ...

's event ''Smackgirl: Third Season II'', where she defeated Kazumi Sakaguchi by

guillotine choke The guillotine choke, also known as Mae Hadaka Jime (前裸絞, "front naked choke"; compare to a rear naked choke) in judo, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from in front of the opponent, often on the ground but can also be done while stan ...

submission Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...

in 69 seconds. Two years later, Yamada's second victory came on at ''Smackgirl 2005: Dynamic!!'', submitting Haruka Onuki with a

rear naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC) is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word "naked" in this context suggests that, unlike other strangulation techniques found in jujutsu/judo, this hold does not require the use of a keikogi ...

in the first round. Debuting in

Shooto Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the ''Shooto Association'' and the ''International Shooto Commission''. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 198 ...

, Yamada continued her

by defeating Mayuko Kasaki via submission (guillotine choke) in the first round at ''G-Shooto Plus 05'' on . At ''G-Shooto Japan 05'' on Yamada defeated Azusa Anzai in only ten seconds with an

armbar An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, pr ...

submission, earning her fourth consecutive win. Yamada first defeat was at the hands of Maho Muranami on at the event ''Wrestle Expo 2006'', where Muranami submitted Yamada with an armbar in the first round. Almost two years later, Yamada got another win when she

knocked out A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

Nana Ichikawa in the first minute of their bout at ''

Deep Deep or The Deep may refer to: Places United States * Deep Creek (Appomattox River tributary), Virginia * Deep Creek (Great Salt Lake), Idaho and Utah * Deep Creek (Mahantango Creek tributary), Pennsylvania * Deep Creek (Mojave River tributary), C ...

Glove 2'' on . Debuting with

Jewels A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, a ...

promotion, Yamada defeated Miyoko Kusaka by

unanimous decision A unanimous decision (UD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and other sports involving striking and submission in which all three judges agree on which fighter ...

on at ''

Jewels 6th Ring ''Jewels 6th Ring'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by MMA promotion Jewels. It took place on at Shinjuku Face in Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan. Background The event featured the Rough stone grand prix tournament finals, in which Asami Kod ...

''.

Shoot boxing

On , Yamada faced

Mio Tsumura Mio Tsumura (born 14 April 1995), popularly known as MIO, is a Japanese kickboxer, currently competing in the atomweight division of K-1. A professional competitor since 2011, she is a multiple-time Shootboxing tournament winner, having won t ...

alias "Mio Kubota" in a shoot boxing match at the ''2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup''. She was defeated by disqualification after failing to obey the referee's commands.

Professional wrestling

Yamada debuted in pro-wrestling with S Ovation's and

Mariko Yoshida is a Japanese professional wrestler better known by the ring name . She is best known for her work with the ARSION professional wrestling promotion, where she was also head trainer. Professional wrestling career Yoshida debuted for All Japan W ...

's promotion Ibuki on . Yamada continues to perform occasionally as a

freelancer ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...

Talent

Yamada works as a talent girl and is affiliated to the KT Project agency. She has appeared as a

gravure model A model is a person with a role either to Promotion (marketing), promote, display or advertise commercial product (business), products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as a visual aid for people who are creating works of ...

in some

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

s and

photobook A photo book or photobook is a book in which photographs make a significant contribution to the overall content. A photo book is related to and also often used as a coffee table book. Early Early photo books are characterized by their use of ...

s. Yamada also appeared as a

at the event ''Deep Glove 3'' on .

Internet show

From to Yamada hosted an

Internet television Streaming television is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming media delivered over the Internet. Streaming television stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air a ...

show called which was produced by Internet broadcaster .

Personal life

Yamada is

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

. She has two brothers and

Yoko Minamida Yoko may refer to: People * Yoko (name), a Japanese feminine given name; variants include Yōko and Yohko * Yoko Gushiken (具志堅用高, born 1955), Japanese professional boxer * Yoko Taro (横尾太郎, born 1970), Japanese video game di ...

was her aunt. Yamada was subjected to

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an imba ...

in junior high school and it caused her to stop going to school for some time. During her

teens Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the ...

Yamada beat the leader of a girl's gang and four of the girl's friends for which she was sent to a

juvenile correctional facility In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile det ...

. After her parents divorced, her father disappeared for five years due to money problems occasioned by his

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...

habits until he had a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

that left him hospitalized and with

cognitive Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought, ...

problems and Yamada has taken care of him since then.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 6-1 , Miyoko Kusaka , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5-1 , Nana Ichikawa , KO (punch) , Deep: Glove 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 4-1 , Maho Muranami , Technical submission (armbar) , Wrestle Expo 2006 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:14 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4-0 , Azusa Anzai , Submission (armbar) , G-Shooto: G-Shooto 05 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:10 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3-0 , Mayuko Kasaki , Submission (guillotine choke) , G-Shooto: Plus05 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:37 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 2-0 , Haruka Onuki , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Smackgirl 2005: Dynamic!! , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:12 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1-0 , Kazumi Sakaguchi , Submission (guillotine choke) , Smackgirl: Third Season II , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:09 ,

, Japan ,