article_snippet.sent: Inoki has appeared in the U.S.-based WWE -- which describes Inoki as "among the most respected men in sports-entertainment" -- and is the founder of the Japan Pro Wrestling organization.
article_snippet.sent: Inoki entered Japan's Upper House for a second stint in politics in 2013.
article_snippet.sent: Inoki also famously fought Muhammad Ali in 1976, in one of the first-ever mixed-discipline matches, which would later pave the way for today's wildly popular Mixed Martial Arts contests.
article_snippet.sent: Before Inoki return to politics Inoki was a regular fixture on Japanese TV variety shows and has promoted a slew of products, from hot sauce to banks.
article_snippet.sent: Inoki also traveled to Iraq in 1990 to try to secure the release of Japanese hostages, and has more recently attempted to replicate former NBA star Dennis Rodman's "basketball diplomacy" by staging a wrestling tournament in North Korea.
article_snippet.sent: Inoki reportedly converted to Islam in the 1990s, although Inoki says Inoki practices both Islam and Buddhism.
highlights_snippet.sent: Celebrity politician and former wrestler