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. He was the sport's 13th ''

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 ...

'' and the first to be promoted during the

Meiji era The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization b ...

Career

Kimenzan was born in Washizu District,

Mino Province was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today southern Gifu Prefecture. Mino was bordered by Ōmi to the west, Echizen and Hida to the north, and Shinano to the east, and Ise, Mikawa, and Owari to the south. Its abbreviat ...

(now

Yōrō was a after ''Reiki'' and before '' Jinki.'' This period spanned the years from November 717 through February 724. The reigning empress was . Change of era * 717 : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previou ...

Gifu Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,991,390 () and has a geographic area of . Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture to the northwest, F ...

). His real name was . He was born to a family that ran a farm. While serving as a stone-carrier, he grew in strength and decided to enter

Takekuma stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Dewanoumi group of stables. It broke off from Sakaigawa stable by its founder, former '' ōzeki'' Gōeidō Gōtarō, and officially opened in February 2022. In May 2022 Nishikawa (now Gōnoyama) became the ...

at age 13.
In the February 1852 tournament, he stepped in the ring for the first time under 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 ...

'', or ring name, before changing it to . At this time, he was known as one of the "Four Heavenly Kings of

Awa Awa (or variants) may refer to: People * Awa (given name), notable people named Awa or Hawa * Awá (Brazil), an indigenous people of Brazil * Awa-Kwaiker, an indigenous people of Colombia and Ecuador Languages * Awa language (China) or Wa (Va) ...

" along with Jinmaku, and , all of whom were ''

rikishi A , or, more colloquially, , is a professional sumo wrestler. follow and live by the centuries-old rules of the sumo profession, with most coming from Japan, the only country where sumo is practiced professionally. Participation in official t ...

'' in the

Tokushima domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan, controlling all of Awa Province and Awaji Province in what is now Tokushima Prefecture and Awaji Island of modern-day Hyōgo Prefecture. It was centered around Tokushima C ...

. A the time, wrestlers were appointed as vassals of feudal lords, having a status similar to that of a

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

as well as being the champions of the feudal domain to which they were linked. However, because Jinmaku later switched to the

Matsue Domain was a Japanese domain of the Edo period. It was associated with Izumo Province in modern-day Shimane Prefecture.

and then

Satsuma Domain The , briefly known as the , was a domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1602 to 1871. The Satsuma Domain was based at Kagoshima Castle in Satsuma Province, the core of the modern city of Kagoshima, ...

, it is said that Kimenzan and Jinmaku developed a strong rivalry which resulted in several "grudge matches".
He was promoted to '' ōzeki'' in November 1865. However, he was unenrolled in the November 1866 ''

banzuke A , officially called is a document listing the rankings of professional sumo wrestlers published before each official tournament (''honbasho''). The term can also refer to the rankings themselves. The document is normally released about two w ...

''. It was reportedly because he had a quarrel with sumo elders. He was promoted to ''ōzeki'' again in June 1868. In the February 1869 tournament, he was the first wrestler of the

to be granted a ''yokozuna'' license by the . He was already 43 years old, making him the oldest ''yokozuna'' to be promoted in the history of sumo. Because of his age, he did not have a long career as a ''yokozuna'', and retired from the ring only in November 1870. He was known for his strong offensive attack from a solid right-hand stance, but even when he established a solid position, his attack itself sometimes seemed forced, and thus he was often left behind. His record since his license was 17 wins, 3 losses, 2 draws, 14 holds. In the top ''makuuchi'' division, he won 143 bouts and lost 24 bouts, recording a winning percentage of 85.6. Because of his rank of ''yokozuna'', he was given the privilege of being an '' ichidai-toshiyori'' under his ''shikona''. He died on September 7, 1871, less than a year after his retirement, at the age of 46. His grave can be found in the in the Tokurin-ji temple, in his hometown of

Yōrō, Gifu is a town located in Yōrō District, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 29,309 in 10,356 households and a population density of 405 persons per km2. The total area of the town was . Geography Yōrō is located i ...

Homage

There is a monument to him in

Top division record

*''The actual time the tournaments were held during the year in this period often varied.'' ''*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

External links

Kimenzan Tanigoro tournament results
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kimenzan, Tanigoro 1826 births 1871 deaths Japanese sumo wrestlers Yokozuna Sumo people from Gifu Prefecture

Career

Homage

Top division record

See also

References

External links