Former WWE superstar Chyna passes away

Joanie Laurer, best known to the WWE Universe and the entire world as Chyna, was found unresponsive last night and has in fact left us....
Chyna makes her way to the ring as the 17th entrant in the 2000 Royal Rumble, her second on / photo: wwe.fr

Waking up to this news was certainly a shock and writing it isn’t any easier. Joanie Laurer, best known to the WWE Universe and the entire world as Chyna, was found unresponsive last night and has in fact left us.

Rumors are already swirling on what may have lead to her passing, but let’s not speculate right now.

For those who didn’t tune in during the Attitude Era, she may seem more like myth than legend and they were more privy to her downward spiral and ventures into the adult side of the entertainment industry rather than the sports side. But for those of us who grew up watching her, she was an icon, larger than life. The Ninth Wonder of the World and Eddie’s Mamacita.

Chyna is the first and to date only woman to have ever held a WWF Intercontinental Championship reign. She was the only woman to ever participate in the King of the Ring tournament, as well as the first woman to participate in the Royal Rumble, twice over no less, and it would be over a decade before another woman stepped foot between those ropes for that yearly iconic battle. She was the only woman to ever be the #1 contender for the WWF Championship. She was a force to be reckoned with in that ring, to be sure.

Yes, her personal life has made for many a good tabloid fodder, as well as her post-WWF career choices. Should that be the only aspect of her life she’s judged on? Certainly not. We all make mistakes and there’s no shame in anything she did as she did learn and aspired to do better, be better. She did become that better person having moved on to teach English over in Japan and she kept working hard to be the person she envisioned herself to be.

Her life was far from conventional. May her legacy be as well.

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Just another WWE smark in a IWC world gone mad. Find me poppin' off on Twitter some Mondays, most Tuesdays, for Smackdown PPV's (Let's not forget the Big 4!), and a whole hell of a lot of wrestling RT's. You've been warned. Got something to say to me? lauren.rae.83@gmail.com
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