Kenny Omega

Kenny Omega
Omega in 2019
Born
Tyson Smith

(1983-10-16) October 16, 1983 (age 41)
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Citizenship
  • Canada
  • Japan
EmployerAll Elite Wrestling
TitleExecutive Vice President
Ring name(s)Kenny Omega
Scott Carpenter[1]
Billed height6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[2]
Billed weight224 lb (102 kg)[2]
Billed fromWinnipeg, Manitoba, Canada[3]
Trained byBobby Jay[4]
Dave Taylor[4]
DebutFebruary 2000[5]
Twitch information
Channel
Years active2024–present
Genres
Followers28.1K
Last updated: May 21, 2024

Tyson Smith (born October 16, 1983), better known by the ring name Kenny Omega, is a Canadian-born professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is also an executive vice president. He is currently out of action indefinitely due to diverticulitis.[6]

Before joining AEW in 2019, Omega was known for his tenure in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) from 2014 to 2019, during which he held the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship, as well as other titles. A member and one-time leader of the Bullet Club stable, he incorporates elements from video games in his persona. Throughout his career, Omega has also performed as part of independent promotions worldwide, including DDT Pro-Wrestling, Jersey All Pro Wrestling, and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, as well as larger promotions, such as Ring of Honor, Impact Wrestling, and Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. While wrestling in the last two promotions, he held the Impact World Championship and AAA Mega Championship, and during the spring and summer of 2021 he held the AEW World, Impact World, and AAA Mega titles simultaneously as a triple champion.[7] His 2011 Wrestling Retribution Project tournament championship now serves as the revived Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling's world championship, the PWA Champion's Grail. In AEW, he has held the AEW World Championship, AEW World Tag Team Championship, and AEW World Trios Championship, making him AEW's inaugural Triple Crown winner.[8]

Hailed as one of the best professional wrestlers in the world,[9][10] Omega was named Sports Illustrated's Wrestler of the Year in 2017 and topped Pro Wrestling Illustrated's list of top 500 male wrestlers the following year and in 2021. He has also attained the latter publication's Match of the Year distinction three times; one of those matches, in which Omega competed against Kazuchika Okada in a two out of three falls match at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall in June 2018, received a seven-star rating from sports journalist Dave Meltzer, the highest rating Meltzer has ever awarded a professional wrestling match. He was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2020.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference SC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference ITR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference AXS was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference slam-van dre griend was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference NJPW was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Former AEW World Champion Kenny Omega 'Out Indefinitely' with Diverticulitis". December 15, 2023.
  7. ^ Lindsey, Philip. "What's Next for AEW, Impact Partnership After Kenny Omega's World Title Win?". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  8. ^ "AEW All Out Media Scrum". Youtube. September 4, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  9. ^ Kelly, Chris (September 26, 2019). "Upstart AEW is taking WWE head on — with a focus on diversity and inclusion". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 27, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2020. Along with Rhodes and the Young Bucks, AEW would eventually tout ... Kenny Omega, one of the world's best wrestlers who built his career in Japan.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference instantclassic was invoked but never defined (see the help page).