Whether it's in the ring or in politics, former pro wrestler Raymond Rougeau says you always have to be "up for the match."
"There are always unexpected things that happen, you're going to face adversities, things don't always go as planned, and in politics it's the same thing," Rougeau, the recently elected mayor of Rawdon, Que., a municipality of nearly 12,000 people located north of Montreal, told CTV's Your Morning on Friday.
"You have to learn to deal with adversities."
The former half of the pro wrestling duo The Fabulous Rougeaus, alongside his brother Jacques, Raymond was elected mayor of Rawdon on Nov. 7 after earning almost 61 per cent of the vote. Rougeau, 66, has served on council since 2002, first as a councillor.
But long before he entered politics, Rougeau battled it out in the ring, following a line of pro wrestlers in his family including his father, an uncle and great-uncle.
"Since I was a kid, I was following my dad around different cities when he was wrestling and I grew up in the business," Rougeau said.
He says his father asked him at 13 years old whether he would be interested in taking up wrestling one day.
"I never thought it would happen, but I started training," he said.
A few months after his 16th birthday, Rougeau would get his first professional match.
"From there, my career just skyrocketed," he said.
With matches in Quebec, the northeastern U.S. and Canada, as well as stints in Japan and Germany, Rougeau would eventually join the World Wrestling Federation, the predecessor to World Wrestling Entertainment, in 1986.
His foray into the big leagues took him around the world and to 48 of 50 U.S. states, he says. Rougeau also has worked as a wrestling commentator.
He sees other similarities between wrestling and politics, such as dealing with media, crowds and people.
The major difference, though, is while wrestling takes a toll on the body, politics requires a certain mental strength, he says.
Now, as the highest elected official in his municipality, Rougeau says the citizens of Rawdon expect him to be "under control."
"Well, in wrestling it's the same thing," Rougeau said. "When we're in the ring, you're having a match, something happens, a rope breaks during the match, you get knocked out all of a sudden, you come back, you have to continue going. So you have to deal with adversity."
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