In the words of WWE fan Mike Ashkewe, "the American Nightmare made a Canadian dream" come true this week.
Ashkewe, who lives in Guelph, Ont., won tickets to the WWE premium live event Money in the Bank (MITB) after entering an Instagram contest run by Toys "R" Us Canada.
Ashkewe, who uses a wheelchair, was initially told he couldn't be accommodated at the event Saturday at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena. But things took an unexpected and happy turn that included being contacted by the WWE and a call from wrestling superstar Cody Rhodes, nicknamed the American NIghtmare.
Now, the 42-year-old will be watching top WWE superstars live in action this weekend.
"I figured, all right, I'm going to be stuck in Guelph for the next however long, until the next surgery, the doctor's appointments," he said. "So getting to go to Toronto to a WWE [event] that's one of the biggest pay-per-views in their calendar, that was about the most unexpected thing. That's like winning the lottery.
"That's where they decide what's going to happen at WrestleMania and all that, so it was huge. Getting this type of news was literally dream come true."
When he was first notified about the contest win, Ashkewe said, he told Toys "R" Us of his need for accessible seating.
"I figured if something's going to happen, this is going to be the one thing that prevents me from going," Ashkewe said. "They then replied like, 'Hey, sorry it took us a little while to get back to you. Don't worry, the venue is going to look after you. We're going to make sure you have what you need. We're looking really forward seeing you.'"
Ashkewe arranged for transportation to Toronto, but then got some bad news: an email from the Toys "R" Us digital marketing team saying "we can't
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