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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'' consists of a surname and a personal, or given name, and the full name is written surname first. However, the personal name is rarely used outside formal or ceremonial occasions. Thus, the former '' yokozuna'' is usually referred to as simply ''Asashōryū''. When addressing a sumo wrestler of the '' makuuchi'' or ''jūryō'' divisions, the suffix is used instead of the usual . The given name is often, but not always, the wrestler's original name, and may be changed at the whim of the individual wrestler. Foreign wrestlers always adopt a new, Japanese given name. Often, on first joining professional sumo, a wrestler's ''shikona'' is the same as his family name. As a wrestler rises through the ranks of sumo, he is expected to change his ' ...
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Japanese Names
in modern times consist of a family name (surname) followed by a given name, in that order. Nevertheless, when a Japanese name is written in the Roman alphabet, ever since the Meiji era, the official policy has been to cater to Western expectations and reverse the order. , the government has stated its intention to change this policy. Japanese names are usually written in kanji, which are characters mostly Chinese in origin but Japanese in pronunciation. The pronunciation of Japanese kanji in names follows a special set of rules, though parents are able to choose pronunciations; many foreigners find it difficult to read kanji names because of parents being able to choose which pronunciations they want for certain kanji, though most pronunciations chosen are common when used in names. Some kanji are banned for use in names, such as the kanji for "weak" and "failure", amongst others. Parents also have the option of using hiragana or katakana when giving a name to their newborn c ...
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Asashōryū Akinori
is a Mongolian former professional sumo wrestler ('' rikishi''). He was the 68th '' yokozuna'' in the history of the sport in Japan, and in January 2003 he became the first Mongolian to reach sumo's highest rank. He was one of the most successful ''yokozuna'' ever. In 2005, he became the first wrestler to win all six official tournaments ('' honbasho'') in a single year. Over his entire career, he won 25 top division tournament championships, placing him fourth on the all-time list. From 2004 until 2007, Asashōryū was sumo's sole ''yokozuna'' between the retirement of Musashimaru and the promotion of fellow Mongolian Hakuhō, and was criticized at times by the media and the Japan Sumo Association for not upholding the standards of behaviour expected of a holder of such a prestigious rank. He became the first ''yokozuna'' in history to be suspended from competition in August 2007 when he participated in a charity football match in his home country despite having withdrawn ...
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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'' stablemates to take part in a play-off for the championship, in 1989. After a number of injury problems he retired in 1992, and is now the head coach of Hakkaku stable. In November 2015 he was appointed chairman of the Japan Sumo Association, following the death of Kitanoumi, initially to serve until the end of March 2016. He was then elected as head for a full term by his fellow board members in a vote held in March 2016, and was re-elected in 2018, 2020 and 2022. Early life Hoshi was born in Hiroo, Hokkaidō. An uncle was an acquaintance of former ''yokozuna'' Kitanofuji, who by then had retired from competition and was running Kokonoe stable, and at his invitation Hoshi moved to Tokyo. Upon leaving school, his first appearance in the ring wa ...
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Takasago 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 established by former ''maegashira'' Takasago Uragorō as in 1873 and joined the Tokyo Sumo Association in 1878. Takasago stable has produced many successful wrestlers, including six '' yokozuna'' and the first non-Japanese '' ōzeki'', American Konishiki, as well as the 33rd Kimura Shōnosuke, the '' tate-gyōji'' or chief referee. In February 2002, the stable merged with Wakamatsu stable, with Wakamatsu's coach, former '' ōzeki'' Asashio, taking over. Future ''yokozuna'' Asashōryū was among the wrestlers transferring over. The demotion of Asasekiryū to the ''makushita'' division for the January 2017 tournament saw the stable without any ''sekitori'' for the first time since 1878. However, at the end of that tournament Asanoyama earned ...
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Tochiazuma Daisuke
Tochiazuma Daisuke (born November 9, 1976 as Daisuke Shiga in Tokyo, Japan) is a retired sumo wrestler. He began his professional career in 1994, reaching the top division just two years later after winning a tournament championship in each of the lower divisions. After winning twelve special prizes and four gold stars, he reached his highest rank of '' ōzeki'' in 2002 and won three top division tournament championships before retiring because of health reasons in 2007 at the age of 30. In 2009 he became the head coach of Tamanoi stable. Early career Born in Adachi, Tochiazuma is the youngest son of former ''sekiwake'' and January 1972 tournament winner Tochiazuma Tomoyori, who was the first bearer of the Tochiazuma '' shikona'' (fighting name). After his career, Daisuke's father became an elder in the Japan Sumo Association with the name Tamanoi Tomoyori and began his own sumo stable, of which his son was a member. The younger Tochiazuma entered professional sumo in Novemb ...
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Kotoōshū Katsunori
Kotoōshū Katsunori ( ja, 琴欧洲 勝紀) (legal name: Karoyan Andō, born February 19, 1983 as Kaloyan Stefanov Mahlyanov, bg, Калоян Стефанов Махлянов) is a former professional sumo wrestler or ''rikishi'' from Bulgaria. He made his debut in 2002, reaching the top division just two years later. In 2005, he reached the rank of '' ōzeki'' or 'champion', the second-highest level in the sumo ranking system behind only '' yokozuna.'' On May 24, 2008, Kotoōshū made history by becoming the first European sumo wrestler to win an Emperor's Cup. He was one of the longest serving ''ōzeki'' in sumo history, holding the rank for 47 consecutive tournaments until November 2013. In January 2014 Kotoōshū obtained Japanese citizenship, a requirement of becoming an elder in the Japan Sumo Association, and he announced his retirement during the following tournament in March. In April 2017 he opened his own training stable, Naruto. Early life and sumo background H ...
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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 successful stable in terms of total '' yūshō'' won by its wrestlers, with 52. History Former '' yokozuna'' Chiyonoyama of Dewanoumi stable had wanted to succeed to the Dewanoumi name, but the then Dewanoumi stablemaster (former wrestler Dewanohana) had already decided to pass the name to former ''yokozuna'' Sadanoyama. Accordingly, in January 1967, he set up his own stable, taking with him, amongst others, then '' ōzeki'' Kitanofuji and attaching the new stable to the Takasago group of stables. After Chiyonoyama died in 1977, Kitanofuji, who had already revived Izutsu stable, became the 11th Kokonoe-''oyakata'', merging his stable with Kokonoe's and giving up the Izutzu elder name. He raised Chiyonofuji, then a '' makuuchi'' wr ...
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Dewanoumi Stable
is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi '' ichimon'' or group of stables. It has a long, prestigious history. Its current head coach is former ''maegashira'' Oginohana. As of January 2022 it had 15 wrestlers. History The stable's rise to prominence was due to the 19th ''yokozuna'' Hitachiyama, who transformed it from a minor stable when he joined sumo into a powerful recruiting house when he retired in 1914 and became its head coach. Under his leadership the stable produced three yokozuna, Ōnishiki, Tochigiyama and Tsunenohana, '' ōzeki'' Kyushuzan, Tsushimanada, Ōnosato, and Hitachiiwa, and 20 other top division wrestlers. At its peak the stable contained over 200 wrestlers, and Hitachiyama's refusal to allow any of his disciples to break away and form new stables when they retired ensured its dominance remained after his death in 1922 at the age of 48. Tsuneohana was the ''rijichō'', or head of the Japan Sumo Association from 1944 to 1957, and every su ...
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Kitanoumi In Sumiyoshi Taisha (1) IMG 1452 20130302
, 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 championships during his career and was one of a series of truly great ''yokozuna'' who came from Hokkaido, the largest and northernmost prefecture of Japan. At the time of his death he still held the records for most tournaments at ''yokozuna'' (63) and most bouts won as a ''yokozuna'' (670), but they have since been surpassed. Following his retirement in 1985 he established the Kitanoumi stable. He was chairman of the Japan Sumo Association from 2002 until 2008, and again from 2012 until his death. Career Born in Sōbetsu, Hokkaido, Kitanoumi began his professional sumo career in January 1967 at the age of 13, whilst still in middle school. He joined Mihogaseki stable, and was promoted to sumo's second highest ''jūryō'' division in Ma ...
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Oguruma Stable
was a Heya (sumo), stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Nishonoseki group of stables. In its modern form it existed from March 1987 when it was founded by Kotokaze, a former Sadogatake stable wrestler., until February 2022. The first wrestler from the stable to achieve ''sekitori'' status was Tomikaze in July 2000. Initially the stable had a policy of not accepting foreign born wrestlers or college recruits, but this was waived when Chuo University graduate Takekaze personally asked to join in 2002. Their first foreigner was the Mongolian Hoshikaze, who joined in the same year and eventually reached ''jūryō'' but was thrown out of sumo after the Match-fixing in professional sumo#2011 investigation, 2011 match-fixing scandal. The stable absorbed Oshiogawa stable in 2005 ahead of the retirement of Daikirin, Oshiogawa-''oyakata'', with Wakakirin and Wakatoba among the wrestlers transferring over. As of January 2022, it has 14 wrestlers. The stable produced seven ''makuuchi'' or top ...
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Sadogatake Stable
is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Nishonoseki group of stables. In its modern form, it dates from September 1955, when it was set up by former '' komusubi'' Kotonishiki Noboru. Former '' yokozuna'' Kotozakura took over the running of the stable in 1974 following Kotonishiki's death. The stable is located in Matsudo, Chiba prefecture. Over the next thirty years the stable produced a string of top division wrestlers. Kotozakura stood down in November 2005, handing the stable over to his son-in-law, former '' sekiwake'' Kotonowaka. Between September 2007 and July 2010, it became the first stable since Musashigawa stable in 2001 to have two wrestlers ranked at '' ōzeki'' simultaneously, with Kotomitsuki and Kotoōshū. It happened again between November 2011 and November 2013 with Kotoōshū and Kotoshōgiku. As of January 2022 the stable has 26 wrestlers, four of them being '' sekitori.'' In March 2020 Sadogatake-''oyakatas son, who also goes by the name of Kotonow ...
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Kaiō Hiroyuki
Kaiō Hiroyuki (born 24 July 1972 as Hiroyuki Koga) is a former professional sumo wrestler from Nōgata, Fukuoka, Japan. He made his debut in 1988, reaching the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1993. He held the second highest rank of '' ōzeki'' or champion for eleven years from 2000 to 2011, and is the longest-serving ''ōzeki'' of all time in terms of number of tournaments fought. In his career, Kaiō won five top division ''yūshō'' or tournament championships, the last coming in 2004. This is the modern record for someone who has not ultimately made the top rank of ''yokozuna.'' He was a runner-up in eleven other tournaments, and also won 15 '' sanshō'' or special prizes, the third highest ever. In November 2009 he broke the record previously held by Takamiyama for the most tournaments ranked in the top division, and in January 2010 he surpassed Chiyonofuji's record of most top division bouts won. In the May 2010 tournament he became the only wrestler besides Chiyonofuji to ...
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