29 Wrestlers Who Died In 2019
7. Jacques Rougeau Sr. (1 July)
The death of Jacques Rougeau Sr. was announced by his family in early July. Rougeau, a doyen of Montreal wrestling, peacefully passed away at the age of 89 on Canada Day. He had been battling pulmonary fibrosis.
Born 27 May, 1930, Rougeau - like his sons Jacques (The Mountie) and Raymond - made a fraternal start to his early wrestling career, tagging with brother Johnny throughout the late '50s and early '60s. Jacques had initially deemed he couldn't make a living from the industry, but Johnny persuaded him to give it another try in his own All-Star Wrestling promotion.
Throughout the '70s, Rougeau was a star of Montreal's International Wrestling Association, claiming its International Championship on five occasion. His popularity parlayed into a tour of New Japan Pro Wrestling, where he feuded with some of the company's biggest draws, including Antonio Inoki.
Rougeau retired in 1984, around about the time his sons Jacques Jr. and Raymond were making a name for themselves in the business; they'd collectively find success in WWE as the Fabulous Rougeaus, and the former enjoyed a brief solo run as The Mountie. A third son, Armand, also wrestled, though his career was cut short by injury in 1987.
In 1999, Jacques Sr. came out of retirement for a special contest alongside sons Jacques and Raymond, opposite Jimmy Garvin, Ronnie Garvin, and Michel DuBois.