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

Ichinoseki is a city located in Iwate Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan. , the city had a population of 114,476 and a population density of 91 persons per km² in 46,375 households. It is currently the second largest city by population in ...

Iwate Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. It is the second-largest Japanese prefecture at , with a population of 1,210,534 (as of October 1, 2020). Iwate Prefecture borders Aomori Prefecture to the north, Akita Prefectur ...

. He was the sport's 29th ''

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 last ''yokozuna'' in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

sumo.

Career

He was born . In the fall of 1909, he joined

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 ...

. He made his professional debut in June 1910 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 . However, he was punched by Kyushuzan Juro and escaped from Tokyo sumo in May 1912. He did not abandon the idea of becoming a wrestler and moved to Osaka sumo. In January 1913 he began using the ring name , before changing it to Miyagiyama Fukumatsu in May 1914. Miyagiyama reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1916 and he was promoted to '' ōzeki'' after only 2 tournaments. In January 1920, he won his first championship with an 8-1-1draw record. In March 1921, he fought against wrestlers in Tokyo sumo and defeated ''

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 ...

'' Genjiyama, ''ōzeki''

Tsunenohana was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Okayama. He was the sport's 31st ''yokozuna''. Career He was born . He made his professional debut in January 1910 and reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in May 1917. He won his first top divis ...

, ''yokozuna'' Ōnishiki and Kyushuzan. Around this time he reconciled with Kyushuzan. In June 1921, he won the championship with an 8–2 record. In January 1922, he won the championship with a perfect 10–0 record. After winning two consecutive championships, he was awarded a ''yokozuna'' licence. He was absent from two tournaments in 1923 due to a

phlegmon A phlegmon is a localized area of acute inflammation of the soft tissues. It is a descriptive term which may be used for inflammation related to a bacterial infection or non-infectious causes (e.g. pancreatitis). Most commonly, it is used in con ...

on the middle finger of his right hand. In January 1926, he won the championship with a 9–1 record. In 1927, Osaka Sumo Association disbanded and its wrestlers merged with Tokyo sumo. At that time, Osaka sumo's level was very low and he was not considered to be strong enough. However, he felt he had to save the honor of Osaka sumo as ''yokozuna''. Although his strength had already declined, he fought tooth and nail and won 2 championships in Tokyo sumo as part of the Osaka contingent of wrestlers. The first of these, in January 1927, was the first tournament to be held under the auspices of the Dai Nihon Ozumo Kyokai (now 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 ...

). Considering that he had been retained as a ''yokozuna'' simply because there was no precedent for demoting one and to allow Osaka sumo to save face, it was regarded as a sensational result. After his retirement, he became the 6th head coach of Shibatayama stable. The stable was closed after his death. Afterward, the 62nd ''yokozuna'' Ōnokuni became the 12th holder of the Shibatayama name and he opened the modern

Shibatayama stable Shibatayama Stable (Japanese: 芝田山部屋, ''Shibatayama-beya'') is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Nishonoseki group of stables. It was founded in 1999 by former ''yokozuna'' Ōnokuni. Located in Suginami, it is the only stable to ...

Osaka sumo top division record

*''Osaka sumo existed independently for many years before merging with Tokyo sumo in 1926. 1–2 tournaments were held yearly, though the actual time they were held was often erratic.'' ''*Championships for the best record in a tournament were not recognized or awarded in Osaka sumo before its merger with Tokyo sumo, and the unofficial championships above 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 ...

.''

Merged sumo top division record

*''In 1927 Tokyo and Osaka sumo merged and four tournaments a year in Tokyo and other locations began to be held.''

References in popular culture

Miyagiyama is briefly mentioned in Chapter 17 of ''

Memoirs of a Geisha ''Memoirs of a Geisha'' is a historical fiction novel by American author Arthur Golden, published in 1997. The novel, told in first person perspective, tells the story of Nitta Sayuri and the many trials she faces on the path to becoming and wo ...

'', when many of the novel's main characters attend a sumo exhibition in Kyoto. He competes in his role as yokozuna, winning his bout by ''hataki komi'' (slap down).

References

External links