WWE Legends Biography: Trish Stratus
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00:0050,000 fans cheering the beautiful Gloria from Toronto, one of the greatest women champions
00:11ever.
00:12I love this and I love this.
00:16Before I started this business, I was pre-med and my ultimate goal was to become a doctor.
00:22What I wanted to do was make a difference in people's lives.
00:26And someone said to me once, they said, you know, in a day you can see maybe 10 to 15
00:29patients, you know, just make an impact.
00:30But in this business, we touch so many more people in different ways.
00:34We change people's lives.
00:35Trish was not just a superstar, but in a lot of ways, a WWE superhero, especially for women
00:43at that time.
00:44She inspired an entire generation.
00:47Growing up, I was a huge fan of Trish Stratus.
00:49I was just like, I want to be her.
00:51She was the golden standard for women in the industry at that time.
00:55Trish helped redefine the woman's division.
00:59Trish Stratus brought it to another level.
01:04Trish is a perfectionist.
01:06She is driven by work.
01:09I think the challenge is really what drives her.
01:13She has to be reminded to slow down.
01:16Even when her body is screaming at her that it needs a break, all smiles, you would never
01:22know she was suffering at all.
01:26Her colitis would act up and really be a challenge for her body to perform.
01:33Full body chills, like with the fever and sweating.
01:36And you go, wow, she accomplished all of this with that?
01:39But it shows you the superhuman that Trish is.
01:45The greatest women's champion in WWE history.
01:53Are you ready for this box?
01:54Yeah.
01:55Let's see what's in this box.
01:56Let's see.
01:57Oh.
01:58I want to show you this.
01:59This is, what is it?
02:00Your book about all your ages in school.
02:01Yeah.
02:02It's like, this is your age, Maddie.
02:03This is your age.
02:04Five?
02:05Yeah, between five and six in grade one.
02:06This is going to be you next year in grade one.
02:07That's how you think that would be someone you play with?
02:08Yeah.
02:09Yeah?
02:10You think so?
02:11Growing up, I was definitely a tomboy.
02:12I wanted to be one of the boys at all times.
02:14I met Trish, we had to have been about maybe six or seven years old when we met.
02:23Ron and I met in kindergarten.
02:28And Trish and Ron met because he was my best friend at the time.
02:36Trish was like one of the boys.
02:38I mean, she had to hang out with us, do what we were doing.
02:41Anything physical, she was on board.
02:44It's like, I look back now and I'm like,
02:46oh, I always was trying to be part of the boys' club
02:48and proving myself to be like,
02:50I belong here, look, watch this.
02:51We would play sports together, soccer, baseball.
02:55We watched wrestling together.
02:57I grew up in Toronto.
02:58Toronto's a real hotbed for wrestling,
03:00so my aunt would take us to Maple Leaf Gardens together.
03:03Discapacity, fraud, love, and a Tariq Nadar.
03:06Macho man, that's who I resonated with.
03:08We had the perfect mix of athleticism, showmanship,
03:11and I just, he was the guy for me.
03:13Having matches in my parents' room,
03:15always aggressive in all the sports.
03:18And in high school, she played soccer.
03:20She was good.
03:21I would go to the games and watch her
03:22and she was a little rough.
03:24I was known as a bit of a goon on the team.
03:26I was slide tackling like crazy all over the place.
03:29She was very popular at school.
03:32You know, everybody wanted to date Trish,
03:34at least in my opinion.
03:35I know I sure did.
03:37Hey.
03:38Aha, aha, look.
03:39There I am in bold, look.
03:40Look at that, closest friends.
03:41What does it say?
03:42Rod Fizzico.
03:43And what is the date?
03:43It's got the boyfriend date.
03:45I can't believe you write this down.
03:46August 29th.
03:48What year?
03:501992.
03:51What does that mean?
03:52He's my boyfriend.
03:54Wow.
03:55That's our anniversary, just for reference.
03:5892, that's my boyfriend.
04:00We were best friends, and then when we were 17,
04:02we transitioned to boyfriend and girlfriend
04:04and became officially boyfriend and girlfriend.
04:06We did everything together.
04:08We were detached at the hip.
04:10She was a little bit nerdy.
04:12She did a lot of studying.
04:13There wasn't a lot of partying, none of that.
04:16I had my eyes set on becoming a doctor,
04:18and that was from a very young age.
04:20Like, if you look back, I have a journal from grade three,
04:23and it says, I'm going to become a doctor.
04:26For the most part, I remember a great family life
04:30and a good time at home.
04:32It's like, you know, I think until when you get older,
04:34you realize, oh wait, let me look really closely
04:36and see things, and I noticed, you know,
04:38we spent a lot of summers and time with my cousins,
04:42and I realized a lot of it was to get away
04:44from my dad at the time, and my dad, you know,
04:46had a bit of a dark side.
04:48He was an alcoholic.
04:52Off and on, it was sometimes turbulent.
04:56He never showed up at home.
04:57Like, starting to neglect the family,
05:00like, doing family things was hard.
05:06My mom did her best to, like, not have us around dad
05:09and not see that side of dad,
05:11but yeah, it was definitely present,
05:14and at times, not great.
05:20As I got older, I started to realize
05:21how it wasn't a nice environment to be in.
05:23I realized it was affecting my studying.
05:26I'd be up late studying, and he'd be up late drinking,
05:29and so that wasn't conducive
05:31for a good work environment for me.
05:33One of these things, you just remember, like,
05:34this is getting in the way of my life.
05:38Looking back, seeing a situation just get out of control,
05:42I never want to be part of that and be the cause of that,
05:45and to this day, I don't drink,
05:47and I never really thought about why I didn't,
05:48and it is a little bit of, like,
05:49I just want to remain in control at all times,
05:51so that was, like, a decision I've made a long time ago.
05:55Then my mom and dad just decided to split.
05:57She finally made the move to not be around that a lot
05:59and not have her kids around that,
06:01so we left my dad.
06:03So my university life kind of just started without my dad,
06:06and I was able to focus on, like, going to pre-med,
06:09becoming a pre-med student and going to med school.
06:11That was my ultimate goal.
06:14So the pace that I tend to keep is fast and furious.
06:19Managing school and then being on the varsity team
06:22and being on the rep league soccer and working two jobs,
06:24and it was just this crazy pace I've kept my whole life.
06:27At one point, my body was like, yeah,
06:29that's too much for us,
06:30so I'm going to have to throw up a red flag.
06:32And I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis
06:35back in my university days.
06:39Colitis is an intestinal illness,
06:42and she was on a lot of medication at the time for it.
06:46It was difficult, for sure.
06:48I think initially I was always worried for her.
06:51I think that she knew her body well.
06:53She studied biology, kinesiology.
06:55She was very in tune with her body.
06:57She knew what her limits were.
06:59I think that she stayed within those parameters.
07:02The goal was to get me into remission
07:04where the flare-up would go away
07:06and then I could continue on with a normal life.
07:07So it was a little bit tough,
07:09but we finally got it under control.
07:13And I felt like I was in my groove
07:14and I found that balance that I needed to get to.
07:18And then in 1997, the worst thing
07:21that could have ever happened to me happened
07:23because I was set, my sights were set,
07:25I was set, my sights were set on my goal.
07:28And when I get set on a goal, it is like,
07:29there's no stopping me.
07:31But there was one thing stopping me,
07:32which was my professors going on strike.
07:34And I was like, oh my God, no, this can't happen.
07:36I have like, this is the plan.
07:37This year I'll be doing this.
07:38I should be practicing by this.
07:40And all I could do was wait.
07:41I just had to wait and see what was going to happen with that.
07:44I think when the strike initially happened,
07:45I think the immediate reaction is now I need a job.
07:49So she was doing bartending at the time.
07:52And then as I started working there,
07:54they asked me to shoot their campaign.
07:56So here I am, I get this new gig,
07:58first time ever bartending,
07:59and I'm on the main bar,
08:01and I'm also on all the posters and billboards
08:03throughout Toronto.
08:04She was coming home from the bar,
08:06probably around two, three in the morning,
08:08and then going straight to the gym.
08:10We had 24-hour gyms.
08:12Trish got a job working at a gym.
08:15I started working at this gym,
08:17and I get approached, you know, sounds creepy,
08:19but there was like, I know a guy who takes photos,
08:21where I'm like, mm-hmm, sure.
08:22But it turns out I looked up this guy, Robert Kennedy,
08:24legit one of the industry's leading publishers,
08:27publisher of Muscle Mag.
08:28And I thought, I saw a sparkle about this girl.
08:30I thought, she looks pretty good.
08:32And he said, let's do a test shoot.
08:33And he says, and you have it.
08:34And you have this it.
08:35And he said, I have this it thing.
08:37Luckily, again, school's out of session,
08:39so I'm like, mm, I can do this thing.
08:40And I trained for my first photo shoot,
08:43ate something, trained for three months straight,
08:44transformed my body.
08:45She studied it.
08:47I mean, that's really what she did.
08:49We would go to the store, she'd buy magazines,
08:51study the poses, I mean, just learn.
08:55So I actually took these pictures as like my goal.
08:58You know, I cut them out as my inspo and said,
09:00okay, this is the body.
09:02And it's just part of the prep, right?
09:03It was like, you know, preparedness meets opportunity
09:05is like my big motto.
09:06And it was like part of the prepping.
09:07I was like, okay, how do I maximize this opportunity?
09:10I would like go through the magazines
09:12and cut out like all the arms article,
09:14all the legs articles.
09:15And then I would make my own binder of like sections
09:17with like those school tabs, you know,
09:19of like this is all the leg workouts.
09:20And I choose one and I had my own little training approach,
09:23you know, and learning about protein and just like all this,
09:25this new world, I just dove into it.
09:27And just within three months completely,
09:29it transformed my body.
09:30And she turned up and she looked absolutely amazing.
09:33She just shocked everybody.
09:35In fact, all the other professional fitness models
09:37were asking her about her diet,
09:40how she trained and everything else.
09:42It was amazing.
09:44I was excited.
09:45I was proud of the work that I'd done.
09:47You know, it's like showing off your hard work, right?
09:48So it was cool to me to see the difference.
09:50And yeah, I was proud to show it off.
09:51And I liked when people noticed because I was like,
09:53oh, no, yeah, I did that.
09:56My first shoot ended up being my first cover
09:59and he contracted me after that and he offered me,
10:02I was an official muscle, my girl at that point
10:04and then suddenly I had a career.
10:06So I decided to step away from school and focus on fitness.
10:10And then that year alone, I was on the cover 10 magazines
10:13and was as busy as I am now as far as store signings
10:16and autograph signings and cover shoots
10:17and traveling the world and suddenly I was a fitness model.
10:19Boom, just like that.
10:21She was the Arnold Schwarzenegger of women's fitness immediately.
10:27Suddenly seeing that I had a following,
10:29I had a fan base.
10:31I just started to think like,
10:32what can this transition into that is more long-term?
10:37We were down at show at the Sky Dome.
10:40I remember Trish saying,
10:41I'd love to do this.
10:43And I said to her, why can't you?
10:45I was like, yeah, maybe we can do this.
10:47Maybe we can spin this like fitness buzz thing
10:50that we got going into wrestling.
10:55Tonight on The Gallagher Show,
10:57we're going to welcome one of the world's top fitness models.
10:59You've seen her, you love her.
11:00Trish Stratus is with us.
11:04A lot of like right place, the right time stories
11:06where like I was on the cover of Fitness Magazine in a studio
11:10and I was just on this talk show about the cover,
11:12doing publicity for the cover.
11:14And in the next studio,
11:15I remember Michael Hayes was doing slam jams
11:17and everybody knew I was a wrestling fan.
11:19I met Michael Hayes and he's like,
11:20oh, he's like, I've seen you on the Fitness Magazine.
11:22So I was like, oh my gosh.
11:23Yes, I am on the Fitness Magazine.
11:25He goes, you have a great look.
11:26You should send your stuff to us.
11:27And I was like, really?
11:29So I went home, nerd glasses on
11:31and I started to put my little kit together
11:33and sent that off to WWE.
11:35I kind of think this is a neat opportunity.
11:36Who knows?
11:37Maybe I can do this.
11:38But if they call,
11:39let me prepare the best possible package to present to them.
11:43So I looked up the gym
11:44that Edge of Christian trained out of.
11:45These young men are the future
11:47of the World Wrestling Federation.
11:48I found Sully's Gym downtown
11:50and I sat with my sights on that
11:51and I was like, all right, I'm going to go train.
11:53I'm going to start training.
11:53And I met Ron Hutchinson for the first time.
11:56Trish was the only female at first.
11:58No special privileges at all.
11:59She was expected to do exactly what the guys did.
12:03I went in and I was training with the guys
12:05and I had to like literally take them aside.
12:06Like, oh, and I'm like, no, no, don't treat me like a girl.
12:08I know it is.
12:09I know I'm a girl, but don't treat me like a girl.
12:11Like just, I'm one of the boys.
12:12Just, just do what you do.
12:13I need to, I want to learn.
12:14I want to do this full-on.
12:15I don't want to do it.
12:16I don't want tippy-toe around this.
12:18I had the calluses and the bruises to prove
12:20that no one took it light on me.
12:22But it was great.
12:22To me, that was the best way to learn.
12:25Right then and there,
12:26she's proved to me that, okay, she can do this.
12:28She'll be able to do it.
12:31And then one day, I finally got the call.
12:35I was flown to Connecticut
12:37and then going to WB headquarters.
12:39I mean, surreal.
12:41She was so talented, verbally articulate, intelligent.
12:46I thought she reminded me of a Pam Anderson from that era.
12:49And she was a hot thing at that time.
12:51So Trish looked a little bit like her.
12:53But the fact that she could be athletic,
12:57she's can't miss.
12:59Not that long after,
13:00I got a contract offer sent to the house.
13:03So I guess the meeting went well.
13:04That's Trish Stratis.
13:07She's a fitness expert.
13:09It was just so much fun to get her spirit
13:11and her energy in that locker room.
13:13And, you know, she wasn't received very well
13:16by the other girls.
13:17Well, we didn't have very many girls at that time.
13:20They were pretty sneery, pretty sneery.
13:23It's really funny.
13:24It's such a personal space
13:26that when newcomers come in,
13:29there's still this like catty thing.
13:32We had a couple people who wrestled,
13:34but not very many.
13:36So we kind of had to rotate each other in.
13:38Women didn't often have the chance to have storylines
13:41and character development.
13:48There's a period of time where we had an edict
13:51that was this is how the women are going to be presented
13:53on the show.
13:55So initially Trish Stratis was the newly hired
13:58fitness model who was going to manage Test and Albert.
14:03I was driving with Andrew Test Martin and Val Venus
14:05and Test knew Trish.
14:07I met Trish and we were just talking one day
14:09and I thought T and A, Test and Albert
14:12and we have Trish Stratis as our manager.
14:15I was excited about that.
14:15I was like, oh my gosh.
14:16And Test was a fellow Canadian.
14:19Before I started on the road,
14:21we had met and we had done a couple autograph signings
14:23as Canadian superstars.
14:24And then when we got paired together
14:26and it was a nice partnership.
14:27She was so gung-ho to do it.
14:29She, you know, coming in, getting her foot in the door
14:32and it had its growing pains.
14:34She had no idea about the business that we were in.
14:37So many people kind of gave it to her,
14:40you know, in terms of the business,
14:42you know, you're a fitness model.
14:43What are you doing here?
14:45They never thought she would last.
14:46Teasing her, saying things that were inappropriate
14:49at the time.
14:51Because back in the day we like to judge
14:53and we like to do a little hazing.
14:56It was kind of hard.
14:57I remember, you know, I'd get to the locker room
15:00and my stuff wouldn't be in the spot,
15:02the prime spot by the mirror.
15:04It would be over there by the toilet
15:06and that's where apparently I was supposed to go.
15:09I think the first couple of months was really difficult.
15:13She wasn't accepted.
15:16We had a come to grips moment probably about three
15:18or four weeks in,
15:19where she was on the road and called me
15:21and said she's coming home.
15:24Aran was just like, I remember him saying,
15:27kill him with kindness.
15:28That was the number within, kill him with kindness
15:30and never let them see you sweat.
15:32And I guess at that point I decided,
15:34I just, I have to prove myself.
15:36I have to prove myself to everyone around me
15:37that I deserve to be here.
15:40She was brand new but had this,
15:42even from the very beginning,
15:43this innate desire to be more than just a valet
15:48or, you know, or someone put it eye candy.
15:51I'm just thrilled to put in my two cents
15:52into the whole business.
15:53I want to make sure that every time I go out there,
15:55I make an impact.
15:56And if I'm only given two minutes,
15:57it's going to be the best damn two minutes I can give.
16:00I was a valet, but, you know,
16:01I contribute in certain ways
16:02because I could take bumps
16:03and I could do things like that.
16:10I think Trish is very smart.
16:12I think she knew this is a way to get her foot in the door.
16:16I think it all was building to one day
16:18her having her own opportunity to stand on her own.
16:21I started to wrestle,
16:22but in the beginning it was hard
16:23because we were wrestling,
16:24but it was like a bra and panties match.
16:26And then at one point Chyna was champion
16:28and she left the company
16:29and she took the title with her.
16:31And there was no division.
16:33There was nothing for us to compete for.
16:35We were having wrestling matches for nothing.
16:38I felt hopeless at times.
16:40Then the tides changed suddenly.
16:42Fit Billing was like the savior of the women's division.
16:45I was brought in as an agent producer
16:48and then given the task of working with women.
16:52I'm training these girls every single day to wrestle,
16:56not hopefully to be doing bra and panties matches.
17:00I think having Stephanie there helped our cause.
17:04It certainly boosted it.
17:06You know, I always wanted our women
17:08to have more of a forefront.
17:09All the women knew that Steph was behind them
17:12and if Stephanie McMahon is in this, we're good.
17:16Let her hit you as you go through.
17:18Go through like that.
17:20So with Trish, it was mind-blowing
17:23how quickly she picked it up.
17:25She was tough.
17:27I've seen her split her eye open,
17:29got stitched up, and then worked the next day.
17:34I always say he saw the tiger in my eye.
17:35Like, he just knew that, like, I'm like,
17:37I know I can do more.
17:38Like, why can't we do more?
17:38Why can't we fight like the guys?
17:40I don't want to fight like a girl.
17:41Skim slam.
17:42Oh, Trish, turn it around here.
17:45You could never knock Trish because she always hustled.
17:48If she sees something and she wants to get it, attain it,
17:51she's going to.
17:53Trish had put in so much work
17:55and so much dedication
17:57and just absolutely refused to be some sort of, like, prop
18:00to just come out with wrestlers and stand there
18:02and look pretty and everything
18:04that she basically made it happen.
18:06Sort of led up to this moment where we knew
18:08that we can make a difference.
18:09I think the females can contribute more than they already are.
18:12They decided to bring back the women's title.
18:15They put together a match called Six-Pack Challenge.
18:17And knowing that I was, you know, the underdog coming in,
18:19I wasn't the most experienced.
18:21Trish.
18:22Oh, with a stratusfaction.
18:25Oh, don't tell me.
18:27And Trish has done it.
18:29And Trish Stratus is the new women's champion.
18:33Certainly not a favorite going into this matchup.
18:37And I believe
18:39it got behind me being the champion for the first time
18:42and really leading this new charge to build this women's division.
18:45She was determined
18:47to get to the top and she accomplished it.
18:50I became champion.
18:51It was like, at this present time,
18:53we will build the division around you.
18:54And that was a lot of pressure.
19:01Trish's first title run,
19:02she did feel the pressure.
19:04She knew she was one of the least experienced women in the locker room.
19:07She knew she was being pushed and she felt the obligation
19:11to deliver and get better and better each match.
19:14So the pressure was on.
19:16Most of the time,
19:17she was going to be in there with somebody who was more experienced
19:20and could help kind of camouflage any of her weaknesses.
19:25Well, she is set to be in the ring with Jackie Gaeta,
19:29who had just won Tough Enough.
19:31She had literally competed on a television show
19:34and was now in a ring with her first match.
19:37So now Trish is, for the first time, the veteran in the ring
19:41while still trying to prove herself.
19:43Uh-oh, look out!
19:44Trish kind of taking Jackie's eye off the ball,
19:47that little pop up on the ropes.
19:50It was the first time that Trish was exposed as being green
19:54because Jackie Gaeta knew nothing.
19:56And it just put Trish in a really tough spot.
19:59And then for that to be gone down in history
20:02is probably the worst match of all time.
20:04Mercifully, it's over.
20:07It had to have been such a blow to her confidence.
20:14The pressure of just having to perform every single time
20:16and prove yourself every time, it got a lot.
20:19And I remember just like driving alone and just being in tears
20:22after matches, just being like, this is too hard.
20:24Like, it's so hard to just keep it going.
20:26Your body's in pain.
20:27You're doing everything you can.
20:28You're contributing the way you can.
20:29And it was never enough, it felt like sometimes.
20:30Like, you know, you missed the spot
20:32or you didn't look the right way
20:33or you weren't there on time.
20:34It made me look bad when you did this.
20:35And it was a lot of that in the beginning.
20:38And I just was like, okay, yeah, it's cool.
20:40And I had to take ownership of this responsibility
20:42of being the champion
20:43and taking charge of the women's division
20:46and knowing what I could deliver would impact all of us.
20:50Trish is a perfectionist.
20:51She is driven by work.
20:54My number one person in the entire wrestling business
20:58with the work ethic of wanting to get better
21:01every single night was Trish Stratus.
21:04End of story.
21:05Seems like we say it every week,
21:07but every week she just gets better and better.
21:09So as time went on,
21:11what I really saw in the locker room
21:13was the women started getting a lot of respect for her.
21:16She came in head to the grindstone.
21:19Oh, look at this!
21:20Wanted to learn and wanted to do
21:22and did such an amazing job.
21:24I'm impressed.
21:25I think you got a future in this business, kid.
21:26As the years go on,
21:28you see the improvement.
21:30Bulldog headlock.
21:31Nicely done.
21:32To her becoming a real formidable talent in the ring.
21:37What a success!
21:38And then you fast forward.
21:40She's having marquee matches.
21:42She's innovating moves.
21:44The Matrix move was so hot at the time.
21:47Oh, I love it!
21:49Oh, Matrix!
21:50It was like,
21:51Oh!
21:51It's one of those things that immediately
21:53garners a reaction from the crowd.
21:56That's where it began.
21:57We started playing video games and looking for moves.
22:00And I can tell you that the Stratosphere
22:01came from Mortal Kombat.
22:03She was the first one that I watched
22:05that made me think
22:07that girl is just as good as any of the guys.
22:09Oh, look out!
22:10Great athletic move there.
22:11Knocked down by Trish Stratus.
22:13It's hard work and desire.
22:15That's what you get when you put it all together.
22:17Trish Stratus.
22:18The Women's Champion.
22:20Nobody worked harder than Trish.
22:22I used to joke behind the scenes that she was,
22:26instead of Trish Stratus, Trish Strategizer.
22:29Because she knew how to work hard,
22:32not just in the ring,
22:34but she was always in the production truck
22:37finding out what she can do
22:39to come across better on television.
22:41At the non-televised events,
22:43she would ask for the microphone
22:44so that she could get practice.
22:45She was just working so hard all the time
22:47thinking about how she can improve,
22:49how she can be better.
22:51Molly and Jackie start tagging Jazz and Trish.
22:53Trish does a drop toehold to Jazz,
22:54fire up in the corner, shoot.
22:56So, I'd have a notebook beside me at all times.
22:59It was always handy.
23:00But this brain never turns off.
23:02See, there was always promos.
23:03I'd be writing promos.
23:04So The Rock was like really instrumental.
23:06I remember him.
23:07He would help me with my promos
23:08and here's something that he would say to me.
23:09Be strong, pause and be concise.
23:12He was a big, big help.
23:14I would have the show sent to me
23:16every Raw, every SmackDown.
23:18Sent to me so I could study
23:19everything I did on the show
23:21so that next time I could do better,
23:22I could improve on that or that worked well
23:24or the crowd reacted to that
23:25and it's something I would take and
23:27just learning.
23:27But yeah, wow, obsessed much.
23:31Most of us women were actually
23:33kind of afraid to
23:35make our voice known.
23:37Afraid to question some of the storylines
23:39and Trish was never afraid of that.
23:41One thing that Trish said to me
23:43when I first started in WWE,
23:45she goes,
23:45Natty, the one thing that helped me succeed
23:47so much in WWE is that every single week
23:51I knew that if I had to fight,
23:52I had to fight,
23:53fight for more,
23:54fight for better verbiage,
23:55fight for longer matches,
23:56just fight for more.
23:57She goes,
23:58it's going to be hard
23:59and it's going to feel daunting,
24:00but don't ever be afraid to fight for more.
24:02And I always remember that.
24:06I mean, the division got so much better,
24:07not only with Trish pushing,
24:10not only to make the segments better,
24:12but with Fit was very instrumental
24:14in that as well because he cared.
24:16But I did not think
24:19we were going to walk into the building
24:20the day we did and be told
24:21that we were going to close the show.
24:27Two of the most popular divas in the WWE.
24:30This rivalry with Trish and Lita
24:32took the women's division
24:33in an entirely different level.
24:34Trish Stratus puts the women title on the line
24:37against Lita.
24:38What a match that's going to be, JR.
24:40The championship decided
24:41later tonight here on Raw.
24:43We were being given this opportunity
24:45to be the main event of Monday Night Raw,
24:47which is a coveted spot for any superstar,
24:49especially a woman.
24:50We have been waiting a long time
24:51for this opportunity.
24:53We were told we were main eventing that night.
24:55We both knew that we could deliver.
24:59Stakes are high here
25:01for the women's title here live
25:03on Monday Night Raw.
25:06Trish walks out with the face mask that night
25:09and takes it off,
25:11hits me with it,
25:12and then shows that her nose is absolutely fine,
25:15that she was just wearing it
25:17to have a secret weapon.
25:19I think she was calm jobbing us all along.
25:21It's like those type of things
25:22that really set it apart
25:24from just being two people doing moves.
25:26I have always loved the storytelling
25:29and they did an incredible job.
25:31They had such a compelling match.
25:34For them to compete in the main event
25:36of Monday Night Raw
25:38was a statement to the world
25:41that they had arrived.
25:43Because they were so good,
25:45I really think they changed the course
25:47of women's wrestling forever.
25:50It was really powerful.
25:51I was an aspiring wrestler
25:52because I felt like,
25:53oh man, the winds of change are coming
25:55and like there's new opportunities for women.
25:58We just knew we had this opportunity to deliver
25:59and we had to shine.
26:02That's definitely one of the peak moments of my career.
26:05I can't believe the effort,
26:07the heart both women displayed.
26:10I was not victorious that night,
26:11but I was.
26:14It was a win for both of us
26:15to be in that position and to deliver.
26:19I remember thinking like,
26:20okay, we have this opportunity
26:22to spread the message
26:23and to show people our world a little bit
26:25and show people what a strong,
26:26powerful female looks like
26:28or what they were capable of doing.
26:30It just opened the doors for so many things.
26:33And confidence, okay?
26:35This is all about you.
26:36It's a lot of pressure.
26:37It's non-stop.
26:39Action.
26:40I'm an international fitness model,
26:42a world-class athlete,
26:43a WWE diva.
26:48Good.
26:49Got that first part.
26:50Trish Runner!
26:53Welcome to the family.
26:55Cut. Beautiful.
26:56Trish Runner!
26:58Trish's popularity definitely grew over the years
27:01and she became like a rock star.
27:04Hi, how are you?
27:04I'm Ike.
27:05Hi, I'm Trish.
27:05Nice to meet you.
27:06Thanks for joining the show.
27:07No, thanks for having me.
27:07Very excited.
27:09That's a good one.
27:10Yeah.
27:11You're doing well.
27:11I'm feeling good.
27:13And you're funny, too.
27:13You have a capacity for humor.
27:15You're a white cast and you're so good.
27:20At her peak, Trish was the number one woman in pro wrestling.
27:24Please welcome Trish Stratton.
27:25And so now I have this responsibility of like,
27:27you know, if she can see it, she can be it.
27:29So I needed to go out there and be that representation.
27:32We've become part of the Boys Club.
27:33You know, we used to be sort of the eye candy of the show
27:36and now we've gone and we've
27:37become these accomplished athletes in the ring and we've
27:40seen an increase in demographic from the women, you know,
27:42we've seen more younger girls watching and kind of aspiring
27:45not necessarily to be wrestlers, but to make it like we're
27:48women making it in a male-dominated world.
27:50So I remember I put a tremendous amount of pressure on myself.
27:54I felt like my role then was to help gain visibility for
27:57women to be a voice.
27:58Typically as a woman, I was happy to hear about the building
28:01of the women's schools and the progress in that area.
28:04She was always out doing stuff.
28:06She was a workhorse in that regard.
28:09You're running at this frenetic pace of 300 days a year
28:11schedule. It was one thing after the other.
28:13It was every commercial.
28:14It was every appearance.
28:15It was every press conference.
28:17It was everything.
28:18It was it was a lot.
28:20I got a flare-up with the colitis and I took myself out of
28:24remission at that time and just suffering but almost like
28:27this thing I do with pushing through.
28:29I just like I couldn't I'm not going to take off time.
28:31So I found a way to make it work.
28:35And so she's trying to be Trish Stratus and trying to be
28:38this optimal machine and yet she's dealing with these health
28:42issues at the same time.
28:44I've seen Trisha's mind go more than her body can a few
28:49different times like carrying her suitcases will make her
28:52feel like she's going to pass out like I have to literally
28:55stop and take breaths.
28:57But the craziest thing is she's still doesn't want anyone
29:01to see that.
29:02She'll like stop and pull over and smile and she's like
29:05she has to take a breath because I feel like I'm going to
29:08pass out but it's okay though.
29:11So if you could just act like you're talking to me so that
29:13I could take a few seconds.
29:14So yeah, and you know, I'm like dude, uh-uh like tell him
29:19you can't work tomorrow.
29:20She's like, no, no, no, I can't it's fine.
29:22Just just give me a couple more seconds.
29:25That was difficult to be on the road and be secretly dealing
29:28with this stuff because you know, you just you cannot look
29:32vulnerable.
29:32You cannot look weak.
29:34That was just the thing back there.
29:35You just can't I mean you work so hard to be like one of
29:38the boys and just as I can do schedule to and we I'm doing
29:41it to see the bags are starting to add up.
29:44It's um, we got three more days to go and I'm sure every
29:50day they're saying that every day we look about five years
29:52old or it's really flattering.
29:53Really?
29:54That's how TV rolls around it.
29:55We look fun fun fun.
29:58There's no chance of slowing me down.
29:59I wasn't going to let this illness stop me.
30:03It was weak to be sick.
30:04I think and I didn't I didn't want to be interpreted as a
30:08weak as weak.
30:09I guess.
30:13I really feel like, you know, having Ron in my life was
30:15what grounded me what allowed me to come home take off the
30:17Trish Stratus hat and just be she come home from a tour a
30:22couple days on the road and she'd be completely wiped out
30:26to the point where I'd have to throw her on my shoulder
30:28and carry up the stairs and she couldn't even walk.
30:32It was bad.
30:35The one thing I do not like about Trish is that she will
30:38not give herself a rest and I don't like it for selfish
30:41reasons because I want my best friend around and I feel
30:45like she will if given the opportunity she'll run herself
30:48ragged.
30:55I remember just like I felt like I need to stop.
30:59I got a yoga DVD and I put a yoga DVD and just so that I
31:01could be in my hotel room and just be guided through this
31:04moment of stillness.
31:08Literally on the first day of yoga, my body just felt
31:11different.
31:12I had more mobility.
31:14I could breathe and that was so important.
31:18It made that last leg of my career would end up being the
31:21last leg of my career.
31:22Just really a pleasure and really smooth and good and not
31:27painful.
31:28My contract was coming up and they wanted to renew me for
31:31another five years and I was like, I don't know what to do.
31:36I felt really fulfilled with the career I had at that point.
31:41I wanted to be a mom and that was something I've always
31:43wanted.
31:45And it was like I almost needed a sign and unfortunately the
31:48sign came at a not desirable form.
31:51My mom was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma and I just
31:55the decision was clear to me to just it was time to walk away
31:58and it was like it was almost like the signal like it's time
32:00to go home to family.
32:03And I made the decision at 30 to retire and I would take my
32:07final bow in my hometown of Toronto.
32:10A standing ovation for Trish Stratus' last match.
32:14I was so sad.
32:16I remember I was crying.
32:17I couldn't believe that Trish Stratus was retiring.
32:20WWE is such a full-time job that there's no family planning
32:25or caring for your family while living the life of a full-time
32:29WWE superstar.
32:31It's one or the other if you're a female.
32:33Trish was just very definitive in how she wanted to do this
32:36and whether she felt sad or emotional about it.
32:40She did not feel conflicted.
32:51I ended up winning the title that night and as seven-time
32:55champion, I retired in front of my hometown crowd of Toronto
32:58in front of my friends and family and colleagues and took
33:01my final bow and walked away from the business.
33:12When we left the building that night, I think she was just
33:15genuinely excited more than anything for the next stage of
33:18her life.
33:19I mean, we were getting married three weeks later.
33:23I now pronounce you husband and wife and you may now kiss
33:28the bride.
33:40We didn't go on a honeymoon after the wedding.
33:41She went straight into the show Armed and Famous.
33:45Go down to Muncie, Indiana as a celebrity and fight crime.
33:49I thought it would be so cool to do this.
33:52I'm in perpetual motion and it's because I like it.
33:56I like to explore new things.
33:58I like to conquer things.
33:59I like to tackle new challenges and be like did that check
34:02what's next?
34:04I think I just thrive on challenge.
34:06What did a travel show that was a passion of mine?
34:08Enter the stratosphere in Bali, Indonesia, in Vietnam, in
34:12Fiji.
34:16I got a movie gig.
34:19I was still super busy.
34:24I was doing appearances.
34:29The world works in funny ways.
34:30There was a point where like I was literally able to just be
34:33by my mom's side during her treatments.
34:37Well, she was my support bucket.
34:39Like she helped me through my treatments and just being there.
34:44She made me stronger.
34:46It was like we leaned on each other.
34:49So it's good.
34:51And you know happy to say she's in full remission and is
34:54cancer-free and has been since then.
34:58During that time it happened to be a phase that slowed down
35:01a minute so that I was able to be with mom and then we're
35:03like we're good.
35:04We're good.
35:04Okay, I'm gonna go do this thing, you know, and then picked
35:07up where I left off and off I went again.
35:11In 2008, we decided to open up a yoga studio.
35:14So I open up stratosphere which at the time was Canada's
35:17largest yoga studio.
35:19However, being the workaholic that I am bend at the waist
35:23bring your elbows to your shin.
35:25I was running ragged.
35:26I didn't know I was running ragged because I was doing my
35:28things.
35:28I was showing up for work.
35:29I was still doing Trish Strata stuff.
35:30I had filmed tough enough at one point out in LA.
35:33So I still doing stuff with WWE and then I remember I was
35:36like, you know time to have a baby wait this I was approaching
35:3940 now at this point and then I found out that the schedule
35:42that I was keeping and when I think I was managing it well
35:45and it was okay.
35:46I wasn't getting a flare-up and colitis.
35:47So that means I was okay.
35:48I was managing it but then my body threw a red flag up again
35:52and told me actually know that whatever schedule you're doing
35:54now. Yeah, I can't produce another human being and it's
35:58really tough for us.
35:59You know, I we had infertility issues.
36:04That was probably the hardest thing in her life that she had
36:08to deal with from a mental standpoint.
36:10I mean, it's discouraging.
36:13And it was really tough because I thought I just screwed
36:17myself by being this driven or whatever the stupid word was
36:21that I've just ruined my chance now to become a mom.
36:26The guilt I felt knowing that like I might have just like
36:29missed this chance was really bad really overbearing.
36:37When things get too overwhelming and I know my body's throwing
36:40up the red flags.
36:40I just do a full stop down.
36:43This schedule that I'm keeping is not conducive with producing
36:46a baby.
36:49So I had to like slow everything down.
36:53I had to take those moments and focus on that.
36:55That was my new focus like of this laser focus that I always
36:58have on whatever project.
36:59I guess it was my new project was to become pregnant and I
37:02focused on that and whatever I needed to do to slow down.
37:07Finally, luckily we conceived naturally.
37:10Nothing that compares to the feeling of becoming a mother for
37:14the first time and the second time, but you know holding my
37:17baby, especially after the struggles that we had for us.
37:21It was I mean, that's the greatest moment of your life.
37:25I think as a parent now, I realized how important it is for
37:29a parent to be present.
37:31It's a team effort and the kids definitely notice it.
37:35Eventually, like my dad came back around and was back in, you
37:37know, he'd pop in for Christmas and we'd see him at the holidays
37:40and things like that.
37:41So he was present for in a lot of ways.
37:44How's the studio going at?
37:45Well, you know, how's how's this?
37:46How's that?
37:47He was not present for a lot of my wrestling things like didn't
37:50come to any events.
37:52And a lot of the times I thought he just was sort of not even
37:56paying attention to this career and when he passed away, I
37:59remember going back to his apartment and opening up this,
38:04you know, like one of his cupboards and he had literally
38:06like every magazine.
38:07It was so funny.
38:08So I get these fitness magazines, all these all the covers
38:11clippings from newspapers and it's like it turns out that he
38:14was getting an emotional now.
38:23So turns out he was there along the way in his own way and he
38:29showed up in the way that he could show up.
38:32So that's good.
38:36Sorry.
38:39I make a point of being a present parent.
38:42It's been the best journey has been the best gig.
38:44I've had.
38:44Would you like a cup of tea?
38:46Madam?
38:46Yes took a long time to get over, you know, accepting gigs
38:49but then having that mom guilt.
38:51I finally got over that a little bit more.
38:53Yes, please.
38:54I realize the importance of my kids seeing me going out and
38:57being a go-getter.
38:59It's important for them to see that and seeing me being
39:01dedicated and passionate about something but I never thought
39:05I would get back in the ring looking at like what the women
39:08were doing to is pretty awesome to see.
39:15I remember Ron and I were watching TV and there was an
39:18advertisement for SummerSlam coming up in Toronto.
39:21So I remember calling Vince and be like, is there maybe a
39:23moment here where I could do a little comeback and face
39:27Charlotte in Toronto at SummerSlam and he just loved the
39:29idea.
39:30I just love to keep going.
39:32I just love new challenges.
39:36She's not been a regular competitor at WWE in 13 years.
39:40It was pretty amazing after all those years to see Trish
39:43Stratus come back period but to see her in the ring with
39:48Charlotte Flair who may go on to be the greatest of all time
39:53was sort of mind-blowing.
39:55It is a meeting of two eras Trish Stratus may have blazed
39:59the trail.
40:00But since then Charlotte Flair has scorched the earth.
40:03You won't ever get to see Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson,
40:06but we got to see Charlotte Flair and Trish Stratus.
40:10I knew that Trish was going to deliver because I know what
40:13she demands out of herself.
40:14Trish put it up and training every night in between my
40:17mommy duties and it's paying off.
40:20I echo the sentiments of the Scotiabank Arena.
40:22This is awesome.
40:27It showed that Trish is still badass and she can hang just
40:30as good today as she ever did.
40:34She taught me so much in the process of getting to work
40:37with her and one of the greats in the entire company male
40:41or female.
40:44Anytime I think Trish might be done, Trish is not done.
40:50That's the thing is Trish loves experiences and loves to
40:54see what else can she tackle and what else can she hurdle
40:57even if it scares her.
40:59Find the balance between motherhood and then also being
41:02a professional has been hard, but I think I finally find
41:04it and it's a good place to be.
41:14Trish is leaving such a huge legacy behind for women in
41:18wrestling to inspire little girls all over the world to
41:21dream big.
41:23She's just accomplished so much and she did it with style
41:26and she did it with kindness.
41:29Trish put a smile on people's faces whether it was in the
41:32audience or in the production truck.
41:34She was kind to everyone and that's the kind of legacy
41:37that really matters.
41:39One of my hands-down absolute favorite human beings on
41:43the planet.
41:43I'll do my best.
41:44She's who you want by your side.
41:46She'll brighten your day and she'll pick up your slack
41:50and she'll inspire you.
41:53She's my everything.
41:54Congratulations Trish.
41:56There was never anyone any better.