Tochisakae Atsushi (born June 27, 1974 as Atsushi Okamoto) is a former
sumo wrestler
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 ...
from
Saga Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasak ...
,
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 ...
. He made his professional debut in 1993, reaching the top division for the first time in 2000. 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 ...
'' 1. He suffered many illness and injury problems throughout his career. He retired in 2008 and is now an
elder of 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 ...
under the name of Mihogaseki, working as a coach at
Kasugano stable
is a Heya (sumo), stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''Glossary of sumo terms#ichimon, ichimon'' or group of stables. As of January 2022 it had 18 wrestlers. It has been led by former ''sekiwake'' Tochinowaka Kiyotaka since 2003. It w ...
.
Career
Okamoto was born and raised in
Nakano,
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, although both his parents were from
Saga
is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...
and as he was fond of the city as well he chose to list it as his birthplace on the ''
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 ...
'' ranking sheets when he joined professional sumo.
As a child he practised
kendo
is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords (shinai) as well as protective armor (bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spread ...
, but was drawn to sumo after entering a Nakano ward Sumo Tournament in the fourth grade and finishing third.
He trained at several ''
heya
Heya or Hey Ya may refer to:
*Heya (sumo) from the Japanese word for "room" (部屋), also in compounds -beya, or Sumo-beya, an organization of sumo wrestlers (pronounced ''beya'' when in compound form)
* Heya TV, from the Arabic word for "Hers", ...
'', including Fujishima,
Futagoyama and
Dewanoumi, and while at middle school he trained at
Nihon University
, abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice (Japan), Minister of Justice, in 1889. ...
Sumo Club with several future top division wrestlers such as
Kushimaumi
Kushimaumi Keita (久島海 啓太; 6 August 1965 – 13 February 2012), born as Keita Kushima (久嶋 啓太), was a sumo wrestler from Shingū, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. A successful amateur, his highest rank in professional sumo was '' ...
,
Hamanoshima
Hamanoshima Keishi (濱ノ嶋 啓志, born 21 March 1970 as Keishi Hamasu) is a former sumo wrestler from Uto, Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 1992, reaching the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1994. ...
and
Mainoumi. This led him to Saitama Sakae High School, where he became the 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 1992.
Rather than go to university, he instead joined Kasugano stable in January 1993 through a connection of his uncle, after graduating straight from high school - the first High School Yokozuna to enter professional sumo in this way.
He initially wrestled under his own surname of Okamoto and then used the
sumo name of Tochinoiwa, before adopting his familiar name of Tochisakae in January 1999. He progressed through the lower
divisions fairly quickly but shortly after winning the ''
yusho'' in the ''
makushita
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 he had surgery for
empyema
An empyema () is a collection or gathering of pus within a naturally existing anatomical cavity. For example, pleural empyema is empyema of the pleural cavity. It must be differentiated from an abscess, which is a collection of pus in a newly forme ...
and side effects of the anaesthetic saw him lose the use of almost all the muscles in the right side of his body.
He refused to miss tournaments, and after a long period of rehabilitation with
acupuncture
Acupuncture is a form of alternative medicine and a component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in which thin needles are inserted into the body. Acupuncture is a pseudoscience; the theories and practices of TCM are not based on scientifi ...
treatment he eventually made a full recovery.
He first reached a
salaried rank in March 1998 when he was promoted to the ''
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, but after pulling out with an injury towards the end of the tournament he fell back to ''
makushita
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 ...
.'' More misfortune was to follow him when he earned promotion back to jūryō in November 1998, only to miss the entire tournament with another injury. After falling down to the fourth ''
sandanme
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 he fought his way back up the ranks and was promoted to ''jūryō'' for the third time in May 2000. He made his debut in 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 just two tournaments later in September 2000.
He reached his highest rank of ''maegashira'' 1 in January 2001, and fought all the ''yokozuna'' and ''
ozeki Ozeki or Ōzeki may refer to:
* Ōzeki, a rank in ''Makuuchi'', the top division of professional sumo
** List of ōzeki
* Ōzeki station (disambiguation), the name of two railway stations in Japan
* Ōzeki Masutoshi (1849–1905), 16th daimyō o ...
'' for the first time, defeating ''ozeki''
Dejima
, in the 17th century also called Tsukishima ( 築島, "built island"), was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1854). For 220 years, it ...
. However, more injury problems struck him in July 2001 when he had to pull out with broken heel bones, and in 2002 he had to withdraw from three consecutive tournaments due to
phlegmon, resulting in demotion back to ''jūryō''.
He won the ''jūryō'' championship in March 2003 and returned to the top division in July. After missing the whole of the January 2005 tournament he fell to the second division once again. His 26th and last tournament in ''makuuchi'' was in January 2006. In May 2007 at the rank of ''Jūryō 3'' he lost his first ten bouts and pulled out on the 11th day, resulting in a return to ''makushita'' for the first time since 2000.
Retirement from sumo
In January 2008 Tochisakae announced his retirement. He stayed with the
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 Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japanese Ministry of Education, Cultu ...
as an elder under the name Takenawa, the stock borrowed from his still active stablemate
Tochinonada
Tochinonada Taiichi (栃乃洋 泰一 born February 26, 1974 as Taiichi Gotō) is a former sumo wrestler from Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. An amateur sumo champion, he turned professional in 1996 and reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1997. ...
. His ''
danpatsu-shiki
The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan.
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
...
'', or official retirement ceremony, was held jointly with another stablemate,
Tochinohana, at the
Ryōgoku Kokugikan
, also known as Ryōgoku Sumo Hall or Kokugikan Arena, is the name bestowed to two different indoor sporting arenas located in Tokyo. The fist ''Ryōgoku Kokugikan'' opened its doors in 1909 and was located on the lands of the Ekōin temple in Ry ...
in January 2009. In January 2011 he switched to the Kiyomigata elder name, owned by active wrestler
Tochiozan, but in August 2014 he acquired the Mihogaseki stock for himself and is now known as Mihogaseki Oyakata.
Fighting style
Tochisakae was an oshi-sumo specialist, favouring pushing and thrusting techniques. His most common winning ''
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 ''oshi-dashi'' (push out), followed by ''tsuki-otoshi'' (thrust over) and ''hiki-otoshi'' (pull down). By contrast, he won only around four percent of his matches by'' yori-kiri'' (force out), normally the most frequently used technique in sumo.
Career record
See also
*
*
List of sumo tournament second division champions
This is a list of wrestlers who have won the sumo second division ''jūryō'' championship since 1909, when the current championship system was established. These official tournaments are held exclusively in Japan.
The wrestler who has won the mo ...
*
List of past sumo wrestlers
This is a list of prominent past wrestlers (either retired or deceased) in the sport of professional sumo. They are listed in order of the year and tournament month that they made their professional debuts. The information listed below was gleaned ...
*
List of sumo elders
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tochisakae Atsushi
1974 births
Living people
Japanese sumo wrestlers
People from Saga (city)
Sumo people from Tokyo