Akira Taue
| Akira Taue | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 8, 1961 Chichibu, Saitama, Japan |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | Akira Taue Tamakirin (sumo) |
| Billed height | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) |
| Billed weight | 120 kg (265 lb) |
| Trained by | |
| Debut | January 2, 1988 |
| Retired | December 7, 2013 |
Akira Taue (田上 明, Taue Akira; born May 8, 1961) is a Japanese retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his runs in All Japan Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Noah, where he worked for all of his career in both promotions.
A former sumo wrestler who went under the name Tamakirin Yasumasa (玉麒麟 安正, Tamakirin Yasumasa), he retired from sumo to make his debut in pro-wrestling, where he went under his real name. He is a former Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, a former GHC Heavyweight Champion. He is one-half of the Holy Demon Army (聖鬼軍, Sei Ki Gun), alongside Toshiaki Kawada, where they won six World Tag Team Championships and two World's Strongest Tag Determination Leagues. In 1993, he was officially dubbed as one of the members of the Four Heavenly Kings (プロレスの四天王, Puroresu no shiten'nō) of AJPW, alongside Kawada, Mitsuharu Misawa, and Kenta Kobashi.