was a Japanese professional

sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by thr ...

wrestler from Shiroishi,

Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,305,596 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefecture to the nort ...

. He was the sport's 18th ''

yokozuna , or , is the top division of the six divisions of professional sumo. Its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers (''rikishi''), ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments. This is the on ...

''.

Career

His real name was , before changing his given name to . In sumo, he began using the ''

shikona A is a sumo wrestler's ring name. The tradition of ring names in sumo dates back to the Edo period, where they were used as a means to attract customers and hide the identities of the ''rikishi''. Like standard Japanese names, a ''shikona'' co ...

'' name in May 1884 in honour of his hometown. Ōzutsu was tall compared to other wrestlers of his time. Although he was not very strong at first, he was rapidly promoted and reached ''

sekiwake , or , is the top division of the six divisions of professional sumo. Its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers (''rikishi''), ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments. This is the on ...

'' only three tournaments after entering the top ''

makuuchi , or , is the top division of the six divisions of professional sumo. Its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers (''rikishi''), ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments. This is the on ...

'' division. He changed his ring name to Ōzutsu in 1888. His strength increased and he was promoted to '' ōzeki'' in May 1899. He had never lost any bouts as ''ōzeki'' and was awarded a ''yokozuna'' licence by the house of ''Yoshida Tsukasa'' in April 1901. In May 1902, he had the best record in the tournament with no defeats. However, his strength rapidly declined after taking part in the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

. He was absent for three tournaments due to the war. However, former ''yokozuna''

Umegatani Tōtarō I was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Shiwa, Chikuzen Province. He was the sport's 15th ''yokozuna''. He was generally regarded as the strongest wrestler to emerge since the era of Tanikaze and Raiden. Career His real name was . Ume ...

had taught him that ''yokozuna'' must not be defeated, so he recorded many draws late in his career. In the May 1907 tournament, he drew in all of his nine bouts. He retired in the next tournament. In the top makuuchi division, he won 98 bouts and lost 29 bouts, recording a winning percentage of 77.2. He also recorded 51 draws. means "cannon" in Japanese but its reading is usually taihō, and the name of ''yokozuna'' means "big phoenix".

Top division record

''*Championships for the best record in a tournament were not recognized or awarded before the 1909 summer tournament and the above unofficial championships are historically conferred. For more information see

yūshō is the term for a championship in Japanese. This article focuses on championships in the sport of professional sumo. It is awarded in each of the six annual ''honbasho'' or official tournaments, to the wrestler who wins the most bouts. ''Yūs ...

.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ozutsu Manemon 1869 births 1918 deaths Japanese sumo wrestlers Yokozuna Sumo people from Miyagi Prefecture Place of death missing

Career

Top division record

See also

References