Samoan-American actor and professional wrestler From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Arthur "Afa" Anoa'i, Sr. (November 21, 1942 – August 16, 2024) was a Samoan American professional wrestler and manager. He was best known as one-half of the tag team The Wild Samoans with his brother Sika. He competed in many different National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) affiliates and the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF).
Afa Anoaʻi | |
---|---|
![]() Afa (front) with his brother Sika in December 1983 | |
Born | Samoa | November 21, 1942
Died | August 16, 2024 81) Pennsylvania, U.S. | (aged
Professional wrestling career | |
Ring name(s) | Afa Afa the Wild Samoan |
Billed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
Billed weight | 326 lb (148 kg) |
Trained by | Rocky Johnson Peter Maivia Kurt Von Steiger |
Debut | 1962 |
Retired | 1994 |
He was born in Samoa and he moved with his family to San Francisco, California. Before becoming a professional wrestler, Anoa'i joined the United States Marine Corps at the age of 17.
After retiring, he started the Wild Samoan Training Facility with Sika. In 1999, along with Lynn Anoa'i, Afa started the Usos Foundation, which is a non-profit organization that aims towards turning young people away from drugs, gangs and poverty by giving scholarships to the Wild Samoans Training Center.[1]
On January 11, 2024, Afa was admitted to the hospital for pneumonia and had also suffered two small heart attacks.[2]
On August 16, 2024, it was announced that Afa had died from a heart attack in Pennsylvania at the age of 81.[3]
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