Finisher: The Siberian Express ( Russian Leg Sweep) The Revolution (Rock Bottom)

Born in Sevastopol, Russia, on the Crimean Peninsula, under former Soviet Rule, Irena was singled out at the age of six to begin training as a ballet dancer. Her parents, Dimitri, a fisherman, and Olga Malenakov were hard line communist and agreed that Irena’s talents could best serve the government in this manner, and little Irena was taken from their home to Moscow to begin formal dance training. Over the next few years, Dimitri and Olga had little contact with their daughter and Irena slowly developed a deep resentment for the Communist Party. In October 1987, Olga suffered a massive stroke and eventually died. Dimitri grieved himself to death in April 1988. It would not be until 1990 that Irena would find out about her parents deaths.

In 1993, Irena left the Russian Academy of Dance and returned to Sevastopol. She found that during the reign of the Communist Party the Soviet Government seized her family home days after her father died. When the new Democratic Government took over and its capitalistic form of enterprise was in place, developers bought the old Malenakov beach side house, leveled it - - along with many others - - and built high rise condos. With no where else to go and no one else to turn to Irena took what little money she had and immigrated to the United States.

After arriving in New York, Irena began taking any job she could land. She taught dance in two different dance academies, she worked as a bicycle courier, a security guard and as a waitress. She eventually began taking classes at the City College of New York hoping to one day go to law school. Four years after arriving in New York, she was working as a bar tender at a local tavern. One night, while the bouncer was outside trying to secure a lady patron’s telephone number, a fight broke out between two fairly large men. Irena promptly handled the situation and peace was returned to the establishment. A wrestling promoter was in the bar that night and could not believe how easily Irena dispatched the two bruisers. At closing he introduced himself to Irena and recruited her. Irena spent three years training at the Maslow School of Combat Arts and began working under cards in minor leagues. During this time, she eventually graduated from City College of New York with a BA in History. After three years of trying to make a name for herself in the wrestling world and ten years after arriving in the United States, Irena had finally found her niche and now feels she is ready for the big time, and nothing and no one is going to stand in her way.