is a former 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

Asahikawa is a city in Kamikawa Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the capital of the subprefecture, and the second-largest city in Hokkaido, after Sapporo. It has been a core city since April 1, 2000. The city is currently well known for the Asahiy ...

Hokkaidō is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...

. He made his professional debut in 1957, reaching 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 o ...

'' division in 1964. He was the sport's 52nd ''

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 ...

'', a rank he attained in 1970. He won ten tournament championships and was known for his rivalry with Tamanoumi. He retired in 1974 and was the head coach of

Kokonoe stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Takasago group of stables. It was formed in 1967 and until 2021 was located in Ishiwara, Sumida, Tokyo. As of November 2022 it had 27 sumo wrestlers, four of whom are of '' sekitori'' rank. It is the most ...

from 1977 to 1992. He left the

Japan Sumo Association The is the body that operates and controls professional sumo wrestling (called ''Ōzumō'', 大相撲) in Japan under the jurisdiction of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). ''Rikishi'' (active ...

in 1998 but is still prominent in the sumo world as a commentator as of 2021.

Career

Kitanofuji began his professional career in January 1957 at the age of just 14, joining

Dewanoumi stable is a heya (sumo), stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''Glossary of sumo terms#ichimon, ichimon'' or group of stables. It has a long, prestigious history. Its current head coach is former ''maegashira'' Oginohana Akikazu, Oginohana. A ...

. In November 1963 he achieved a perfect 15–0 score in the second highest ''

jūryō Professional sumo as administered by the Japan Sumo Association is divided into six ranked divisions. Wrestlers are promoted and demoted within and between these divisions based on the merit of their win–loss records in official tournaments. Fo ...

'' division (a feat not equalled until 43 years later by

Baruto Kaido Höövelson, (known professionally as Baruto Kaito ; born 5 November 1984) is an Estonian politician and former professional sumo wrestler. Making his debut in May 2004, he reached the top division after just two years in sumo in May 2 ...

) and was promoted to the top ''

'' division. In his debut top division tournament in January 1964 he scored 13 wins, although he faced only his fellow ''

maegashira , 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 o ...

.'' He won the Fighting Spirit

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

and was promoted straight to ''

komusubi , 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 o ...

.'' By 1966 he was firmly established in the ''

san'yaku The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...

'' ranks at ''

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 o ...

.'' He reached '' ōzeki'' rank in July 1966. Although he had won only 28 bouts in the previous three tournaments (at least 33 are normally needed), Yutakayama was the only ''ōzeki'' at the time, and he was promoted largely because of his potential. In January 1967 he followed the coach who had scouted him, former ''yokozuna''

Chiyonoyama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima, Hokkaidō. He was the sport's 41st '' yokozuna'' from 1951 until 1959. He is regarded as the first "modern" ''yokozuna'' in that he was promoted by the Japan Sumo Association itself an ...

, to a new stable, Kokonoe. His first tournament championship came in March of that year. Kitanofuji was competing in an era dominated by Taihō, but he emerged from the great ''yokozuna's'' shadow by winning consecutive championships in November 1969 and January 1970 to secure his own promotion to ''yokozuna''. Promoted alongside him was his friend and rival Tamanoumi. His first title as a ''yokozuna'' came in May 1970. After a run of relatively mediocre 11–4 marks he won in May 1971 with a perfect record and he took two other championships that year. However, Tamanoumi's sudden death in October 1971 shook Kitanofuji badly and affected his performance in the ring. Now the sole ''yokozuna'' in sumo, he went into a slump. After poor performances in the first two tournaments of 1972, he pulled out of the May 1972 tourney because of

insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...

. He took a leave of absence from the next tournament in July, but went on a trip to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

and was caught surfboarding. He was cautioned by the

and immediately apologised. He returned to win the next championship with a perfect record in September 1972. His final title came in March 1973, and his last challenge for a championship was in July of that year when he lost a playoff to veteran

Kotozakura was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Kurayoshi, Tottori. He was the sport's 53rd ''yokozuna''. He made his professional debut in 1959, reaching the top division in 1963. After several years at the second highest rank of '' ōzeki'', ...

. After several more absences Kitanofuji announced his retirement at the age of 32 three days into the July 1974 tournament, acknowledging that there was now a new era being led by Wajima and

Kitanoumi , born , was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He was the dominant wrestler in the sport during the 1970s. Kitanoumi was promoted to '' yokozuna'' at the age of 21, becoming the youngest ever to achieve sumo's top rank. He won 24 tournament ...

, both several years younger than himself. Kotozakura retired in the same week, and Kitanoumi was promoted to ''yokozuna'' after the tournament ended. Kitanofuji's total of ten tournament championships was, at the time, behind only

Futabayama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Oita Prefecture. Entering sumo in 1927, he was the sport's 35th ''yokozuna'' from 1937 until his retirement in 1945. He won twelve ''yūshō'' or top division championships and had a winning streak ...

's 12 and Taiho's 32.

Retirement from sumo

Kitanofuji remained in the Japan Sumo Association after his retirement, initially under the name of Izutsu. Shortly after retiring he branched out and set up his own Izutsu stable. In 1977, however, he became head of the

of wrestlers following Chiyonoyama's death, and merged his stable back into Kokonoe. He gave the Izutsu name to former ''sekiwake''

Tsurugamine Tsurugamine Akio (26 April 1929 – 29 May 2006), real name Akio Fukuzono, was a sumo wrestler from Aira, Kagoshima, Japan. His highest rank was ''sekiwake.'' He was twice runner-up in a tournament and won 14 special prizes, including a record ...

and adopted the Kokonoe name. During his tenure as head of Kokonoe stable both Chiyonofuji and

Hokutoumi is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Hokkaidō. He was the sport's 61st ''yokozuna'' and won eight top division championships. He wrestled for Kokonoe stable, as did Chiyonofuji, and the two were the first ''yokozuna'' stablemat ...

reached the rank of ''yokozuna'', and he produced a number of other top division wrestlers such as Takanofuji and Tomoefuji. He handed over control of the stable to Chiyonofuji in April 1992, but he remained an ''oyakata'' under the name Jinmaku. In September 1993 he left Kokonoe stable and joined his former wrestler Hokutoumi's newly established

Hakkaku stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Takasago ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It was established in September 1993 by former ''yokozuna'' Hokutoumi, who took with him four wrestlers from Kokonoe stable. The stable has so far produced nin ...

. In February 1998 he failed to be re-elected to the Sumo Association's Board of Directors, and citing the lack of support from his fellow ''oyakata'' in the Takasago ''

ichimon The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...

'' or group of stables, he decided to leave the organisation several years before the mandatory retirement age. However, he still often appears on television as a sumo analyst for

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestr ...

. In 2002, he performed his ''

kanreki dohyō-iri In sumo wrestling, a ''kanreki dohyō-iri'' (Japanese: 還暦土俵入り) is a ring-entering ceremony ('' dohyō-iri'') performed by a former ''yokozuna'' in celebration of his 60th birthday (called ''kanreki'' in Japanese). If he is a ''toshiyor ...

'' or '60th year ring entrance ceremony' to commemorate his years as ''yokozuna''. In January 2017 he took a break from sumo commentary in order to recuperate from heart surgery.

Fighting style

Kitanofuji's favoured grip were ''hidari-yotsu'' (a right hand outside, left hand inside grip on his opponent's ''

mawashi In sumo, a is the loincloth that (sumo wrestlers) wear during training or in competition. Upper ranked professional wrestlers wear a as part of the ring entry ceremony or . For top ranked professional , it is made of silk and comes in a v ...

''), and his favoured techniques were ''yori''. His most common ''

kimarite ''Kimarite'' ( ja, 決まり手) is the technique used in sumo by a '' rikishi'' (wrestler) to win a match. It is officially decided or announced by the '' gyōji'' (referee) at the end of the match, though judges can modify this decision. The r ...

'' (winning techniques) were ''yorikiri'' (force out), ''sotogake'' (outer leg trip), ''uwatenage'' (overarm throw), and ''hatakikomi'' (slap down).

Career record

*''The Nagoya tournament was first held in 1958.''

References

External links