Gail Kim is arguably the most well-regarded TNA Knockout of all time, and now she’ll have the accolade to prove it. During the weekend of Impact Wrestling’s Bound for Glory event, Kim will be inducted into the TNA Hall of Fame.
Congratulations to @gailkimITSME for being named the newest inductee into the #TNAHOF pic.twitter.com/l0khwdQB9R
— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) June 15, 2016
Gail Kim was the very first TNA Knockouts Champion, winning at, oddly enough, Bound for Glory in 2007. Kim helped raise the ever-wavering bar for women’s wrestling, especially with her memorable series against Awesome Kong. After her return to TNA, she also had a great series of matches against Taryn Terrell, pushing her opponent to a new level in her career. I fully admit I’ll never not love the finish to their ladder match, and their Last Knockout Standing match was, pardon the pun, a real stand-out:
https://youtu.be/KN_ebQawveo
Gail Kim would eventually become a 5-time TNA Knockouts Champion. Kim also won the now-defunct TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship once with her partner at the time, Madison Rayne. In 2015, she competed in the TNA World Title Series for a chance to become the first female TNA World Heavyweight Champion. Alas, Kim was eventually eliminated by then-X Division champion Tigre Uno.
After the announcement, Kim took to Twitter to express her appreciation for the recognition:
Thanks to everyone last night for the HOF love. I was overwhelmed with emotion so thanks to all the fans, friends and colleagues 4 the love!
— Gail Kim-Irvine (@gailkimITSME) June 15, 2016
I can't really express gratitude in a tweet so can't wait for #BoundForGlory to have an opportunity to share how I feel ❤️❤️❤️
— Gail Kim-Irvine (@gailkimITSME) June 15, 2016
That’s all well and good, but after looking at the full list of TNA Hall of Fame members, they might want to make sure her contract’s locked in tight for the next little while.