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The following press release was issued:
CALGARY, AB, Oct. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Dr. J. Martha Hart, PhD, released the following statement today in response to Netflix's Mr. McMahon documentary series:
Netflix's Mr. McMahon documentary series portrays the death of my husband, Owen Hart, as a mere accident. It also allows the disgraced former owner and CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), Vince McMahon, to claim that Owen's death "wasn't our fault." Nothing could be further from the truth.
The real truth is that on May 23rd, 1999, out of a desire to cut costs and achieve a 'quick release' effect that a rigging expert specifically warned against, WWE hired unqualified riggers to arrange a stunt in which Owen was to rappel from the rafters during a wrestling event. As a result, the riggers used incorrect equipment that caused Owen to fall to his death. It was pure negligence that killed my husband.
The documentary also allows Vince McMahon to claim that "the apparatus they were using was defective" and notes that WWE settled its lawsuit against the manufacturer of the harness used in the stunt. What the documentary fails to mention is that the equipment used was never meant for a rappelling stunt. Instead, a harness meant for dragging stunt people behind cars on movie shoots was used with a sailboat clip meant to release on load with only six pounds of pressure. Had the WWE hired qualified riggers who followed proper protocol that included redundancy, as is typical practice, and used the correct equipment, Owen would not have died that night.
The documentary underlines the callousness of Vince McMahon's continuing the wrestling show that night after Owen died. What it fails to reveal is the added callousness of WWE's suing me, a young grieving widow with two small children, for breach of contract in retaliation for my wrongful death lawsuit or of its continuing to sell Owen Hart merchandise for many years without paying Owen's estate.
To be clear, no one involved in the making of this documentary attempted to contact me for comment or to obtain an accurate perspective. I continue to hold WWE and its then-management responsible for Owen's death. I refuse to let Vince McMahon or anyone else rewrite that history.
Instead, I remain focused on honouring Owen's legacy through the charitable good work of the Owen Hart Foundation and via the AEW Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.
For more information about The Owen Hart Foundation and its scholarships, home ownership assistance program, and other projects, visit owenhartfoundation.org.
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