1. Chris Jericho

2. Guy Maddin

3. Brit Kornell

Not many wrestlers can say they’ve wrestled in the WWE, WCW, ECW, CMLL, NJPW, ROH and AEW. But only one has wrestled in all of those and the WFWA in Winnipeg. That distinction belongs exclusively to Chris Jericho.

Now Jericho has another honorific to show off alongside his championship belts: he’s Uniter readers’ favourite Winnipegger abroad.

Born Christopher Irvine in Manhasset, N.Y. to Winnipegger and NHL left winger Ted Irvine, Chris grew up in Winnipeg and attended Westwood Collegiate and Red River College before donning the tights. He took his wrestling moniker Chris Jericho from Walls of Jericho, the debut album by German power-metal band Helloween.

In his 33-year-and-counting wrestling career, Jericho has achieved stardom and prestige, grappling with the greatest of his generation, those from before his time and the present crop of superstars.

Jericho has also expanded into music, fronting the hard-rock band Fozzy since 1999, releasing eight full-length albums, most recently in 2022 with Boombox. His aural explorations of wrestling and culture have also spilled over into the world of podcasting. His wildly popular show Talk Is Jericho has been releasing episodes for 10 years.

However, Jericho has come under fire in recent years for his politics. While reluctant to acknowledge his leanings publicly, he has flirted with Trumpism, tweeting skepticism about the 2020 US election and hosting Donald Trump Jr. as a guest on his podcast. Online wrestling sleuths also discovered that he donated over $38,000 to Donald Trump’s reelection campaign. His  Republican leanings have reportedly led to feuds with other wrestlers and promoters.

But his sometimes problematic politics weren’t enough to turn off locals, who still clearly have affection for this local brawler-done-good.

Published in Volume 78, Number 12 of The Uniter (November 30, 2023)