That creator is none other than Naoya Ogawa, an interesting name when it comes to pro wrestling history. Born in 1968, Ogawa first gained fame in judo, where he won gold at four different World Championships between 1987 and 1991, and even earned a silver medal at the 1992 Olympic Games. At the age of 29, he was recruited to New Japan Pro Wrestling by Antonio Inoki, debuting in 1997; he would continue to wrestle until 2015, and along the way became a former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and even a former NWA World Heavyweight Champion. In between, he found some success in MMA, working for PRIDE and going 7-2 in his career.

Somehow, he also found time to innovate the STO, which may not rank as highly as some of the World Titles he won, but may have been more influential, given how often the move is now used. Of course, innovation may not be the right word, as while Ogawa was the first to popularize the move in pro wrestling, it was very commonly used in the world of judo. In fact, the move has its own name in the sport, referred to as Osoto Otoshi, aka the “large outer drop.” Ogawa used the move regularly while in judo, and when he ventured into pro wrestling decided to take the move with him, adopting it as his regular finisher.