Terunoumi Masato, also known as Daikikō Masato, born Masato Hayashi (September 15, 1967 – June 6, 2009), was a

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

Gobō ''Arctium lappa'', commonly called greater burdock, , edible burdock, lappa, beggar's buttons, thorny burr, or happy major is a Eurasian species of plants in the family Asteraceae, cultivated in gardens for its root used as a vegetable. It has b ...

Wakayama Wakayama may refer to: *Wakayama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan *Wakayama (city) Wakayama City Hall is the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 351,391 in 157066 househol ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. A former amateur champion, he made his professional debut in 1990. His highest rank was ''

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 on ...

'' 15. He was the first wrestler in the six tournaments per year era to reach 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 after spending just one tournament 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. For ...

'' division. After injury problems he retired in 1993, and died at the age of 41 in 2009.

Career

He had played an active role in national sumo competitions since junior high school, and was a junior high school ''

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 ...

'' in the third grade. He was an amateur champion at

Kinki University is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university based in Higashiosaka, Osaka, Japan with campuses in five other locations: Nara, Nara; Ōsakasayama, Osaka; Uchita, Wakayama; Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima; and Iizuka, Fukuoka. The Englis ...

, and won the All Japan Gakusei Championship in his senior year. He made his professional debut in March 1990 as a ''

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

'' entrant. It had been thought that he would join

Wakamatsu stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Takasago group of stables. It is correctly written in Japanese as "髙砂部屋", but the first of these ''kanji'' is rare, and is more commonly written as "高砂部屋". History The stable was establi ...

because of their connections to Kinki University, but instead he chose

Musashigawa stable The is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It is an off-shoot of the better known stable of the same name set up by former ''yokozuna'' Mienoumi in 1981, which is currently known as Fujishima stable ...

, run by ex-''yokozuna''

Mienoumi is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Matsusaka, Mie. He was the 57th ''yokozuna'' of the sport. After retiring he founded the Musashigawa stable and was a chairman of the Japan Sumo Association. He was the first rikishi in histo ...

, apparently because of their excellent weight-training facilities. In September 1990 he won the ''makushita'' division ''

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 ...

'' or championship with a perfect 7–0 record and was promoted to the ''

'' division for the November 1990 tournament, becoming the first ''

sekitori A ''sekitori'' (関取) is a ''rikishi'' (力士, sumo wrestler) who is ranked in one of the top two professional divisions: ''makuuchi'' and ''jūryō''. The name literally translates to having taken the barrier, as only a relatively small fract ...

'' from Musashigawa stable. At this point he changed his ''

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 fighting name from his own surname of Hayashi to Daikikō. He won immediate promotion to the top ''

'' division after his ''jūryō'' debut, the first wrestler to do so since the establishment of the six tournaments a year system in 1958. His 11–4 record also won him the ''jūryō'' championship. His achievement was helped by the fact that the top division was expanded from 38 to 40 wrestlers for the January 1991 tournament. However he was restricted by a neck injury and it was to be his only tournament in the top division. He missed the July and September 1991 tournaments through injury, and was demoted back to the ''makushita'' division. He won promotion back to ''jūryō'' after winning his second ''makushita'' championship, again with a perfect 7–0 record. However, he lasted only one tournament in ''jūryō'' before being demoted again. After the July 1992 tournament he dropped the Daikikō ''shikona'' and reverted to his own surname. After winning promotion to the ''jūryō'' division for the third time in January 1993 he adopted a new ''shikona'' of Terunoumi.

Retirement from sumo

He retired in May 1993 after demotion to the ''makushita'' division once again. He was replaced in the ''jūryō'' division by his stablemate Musōyama. After leaving sumo he worked in an office and later became a car mechanic. He died of a

cerebral haemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

in 2009 at the age of 41.

Fighting style

Terunoumi was a ''yotsu-sumo'' wrestler, preferring grappling techniques. His favoured grip on the 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 var ...

'' or belt was ''migi-yotsu'', a left hand outside, right hand inside position. His favourite ''

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 rec ...

'' was yori kiri.

Career record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Terunoumi, Masato 1967 births 2009 deaths Japanese sumo wrestlers Sumo people from Wakayama Prefecture People from Gobō, Wakayama

Career

Retirement from sumo

Fighting style

Career record

See also

References