Throughout the month of February, Diva Dirt will spotlight one Black women’s wrestler a day. This won’t be a countdown, but just a way to shine light on the past and present Black women of the industry. With that said, these daily articles will not be in any particular order.
Representation matters to marginalized groups, and here at Diva Dirt we focus on giving those individuals the recognition they deserve.
- Jan. 30 – Jacqueline
- Jan. 31 – Lash Legend
- Feb. 1 – Nyla Rose
- Feb. 2 – Sharmell
On this 3rd of February, we are honoring, Awesome Kong.
Awesome Kong, whose real name is Kia Stevens, debuted in 2002 and went on to have a nearly 20-year wrestling career. Early on, she auditioned for WWF during Tough Enough Season 2, where Jim Ross reportedly told her she was “too fat.” Kong later said that the rejection became a major source of motivation and pushed her to succeed.
Early years for Kong included years in Japan and on the U.S. indies with promotions such as SHIMMER, Chickfight, and WSU. Kong also wrestled for NWA under the name Amazing Kong and rivaled MsChif. She became the NWA Women’s World Champion in 2007 prior to her time in TNA.
TNA is where Awesome Kong made the biggest splash to her career. Her feud with Gail Kim is arguably considered one of the best women’s feuds in wrestling history. She is a two-time Knockouts Champion and a TNA Knockouts Tag Team Champion. She was inducted into the TNA Hall of Fame in 2021.
Kong had a brief stint under the name of Kharma in WWE and even though her time was short there, it was still memorable. Late in her career before her official retirement in 2021 she wrestled for AEW during its start.
Kong was a voice for Black women wrestlers during a time when there wasn’t as much representation and stood tall against stereotypes.