24 Wrestlers Who Died In 2020

Rocky Johnson, latterly best known as The Rock's father but a pioneering, successful African-American wrestler in his own right, died on 15 January in his Florida home of a pulmonary embolism. He was 75.

Born Wayde Douglas Bowles on 24 August 1944 in Nova Scotia, Johnson's first attraction to the ring was as a boxer, not a wrestler. Despite sparring with future greats Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, it was wrestling which truly interested the young Canadian - though once he made the switch, it was two boxers, Rocky Marciano and Jack Johnson, from whom he took his new (legal) moniker.

Just two years into his grappling career, Johnson was already a headline act across Canada. Known for supreme agility in spite of his frame - and one of the business' best dropkicks - Johnson was soon courted by all the brightest lights of the territorial era. He was the biggest act in Roy Shire's Big Time Wrestling, whilst his feud opposite Jerry Lawler rewrote the record books in Tennessee.

Johnson's star was undeniable, allowing him to overcome all barriers - and break them down for generations to come. He was the first man of his race to hold a title of any description in WWE, claiming the tag straps alongside Tony Atlas in November 1983. His son, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, would latterly become the first man of African American heritage to win the company's top prize.

In 2008, Johnson was inducted into WWE's Hall of Fame. His passing provoked an outpouring of tributes from across the length and breadth of the business, and Vince McMahon was amongst the mourners at his funeral.