Chris Jericho is happy to pay tribute to Owen Hart in the best way he knows how.
The 2023 Owen Hart Foundation Tournament has taken place during AEW’s summer tour of various Canadian cities. The finals of the men’s and women’s tournaments will take place on the July 15 episode of Collision in Calgary.
Chris Jericho was asked to share his thoughts on the tournament and honoring Owen Hart during an interview with CTV News Saskatoon. Jericho said AEW’s mission was to honor Owen the right way, and they wanted to give his whole life the respect it deserves.
“We spoke with Martha for about 18 months, Tony Khan and myself, to kind of broker this deal and get her on board. She is just a lovely person. Oje and Athena, Owen’s kids, are amazing people as well. Our goal was to kind of paint Owen Hart in a positive light, rather than have people just dwell on the last few minutes of his life, which was a tragedy. Prior to that, he was a pioneer and one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all time, a huge influence on a whole generation of wrestlers, including myself.
Mission Statement
“I think our mission was to let people remember and celebrate Owen properly. I think that’s what we’ve been doing. We started the Owen Hart Cup last year, it was a huge success, both for the men and for the women.
“This year, as we wind throughout the prairies, Saskatoon included, to get to the finals, which will be Saturday in Calgary, so it’s very much poetic justice for that as well. So it’s just something extra that we wanted to do with AEW and shine a positive spotlight on Owen, rather than just have people talk about the bad things that happened. There’s so much good, and if it wasn’t for Owen, I probably wouldn’t be here talking to you right now. So it’s kind of my tribute to him, getting people to remember and celebrate his name in the best of ways.”
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