kanji are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...

for

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...

: 留美奈) is a Japanese retired

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

, famous for his career in the

Shooto Shooto is a combat sport and mixed martial arts organization that is governed by the ''Shooto Association'' and the ''International Shooto Commission''. Shooto was originally formed in 1985, first as a particular fighting system and then in 198 ...

organization. In the past he fought mostly in the 155 lb division, but he moved down to the 145 lb division.

Mixed martial arts career

After graduating from high school, Sato had to spend a year as a ronin and started to train in

shoot wrestling Shoot wrestling is a combat sport that originated in Japan's professional wrestling circuit of the 1970s. Professional wrestlers of that era attempted to use more realistic or even "full contact" moves in their matches to increase their exciteme ...

under

Noboru Asahi is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist, a designer, and an owner of MMA gym. He was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan on January 5, 1968, as . Mixed martial arts career A former amateur wrestler, Asahi was trained in Satoru Sayama's Supe ...

and Noriaki Kiguchi in the Kiguchi Dojo, partnered with the

promotion. He later moved to

amateur wrestling Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced in collegiate, school, or other amateur level competitions. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games: freestyle and Greco-Roman. Both styles are under the ...

after being admitted in the

Nippon Sport Science University , abbreviated as , is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo and Aoba-ku, Yokohama. The precursor of the school was founded in 1893, and it was chartered as a university in 1949. The school is known for the many famous athletes among its alumni. ...

, and after graduating in 1994 and competing in the All Japan Amateur Shoot Championships, he joined professionally the company.

Shooto

After honing his submission skills under

Satoru Sayama (born November 27, 1957) is a Japanese professional wrestling, Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, MMA and wrestling promoter and writer, best known as the original Tiger Mask (professional wrestling), Tige ...

, Sato made his professional debut in MMA on December 7, 1994, winning over Michael McAuliffe with a

calf slicer A compression lock, muscle lock, muscle slicer or muscle crusher, is a grappling hold that causes severe pain by pressing a muscle into a bone. A compression lock can cause a joint lock in a nearby joint when it is applied by squeezing a limb ove ...

, the first time the move had been used in mixed martial arts. He ascended fastly in the roster by winning 10 straight matches, becoming a fan favourite for his aggressive and spectacular style of grappling.Snowden, Jonathan. ''MMA Encyclopedia'', ECW Press, 2010 As soon as his fourth match, he submitted his opponent with a flying inverted triangle choke, and at his seventh, he gained worldwide fame by submitting the

Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

black belt

Ricardo Botelho Ricardo Botelho is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. He competed in the Lightweight division. Mixed martial arts record , - , Loss , align=center, 3-2 , Caol Uno , TKO (submission to punches) , VTJ 1998: Vale Tudo Japan 1998 , , ...

, taking advantage of his

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

usage to attack him with

leglock A leglock is a joint lock that is directed at joints of the leg such as the ankle, knee or hip joint. A leglock which is directed at joints in the foot, is sometimes referred to as a foot lock and a lock at the hip as a hip lock. Leglocks are featu ...

s and submit him with a

heel hook Heel hook may refer to: * Heel hook, in grappling * A climbing technique {{disambig