Ōuchiyama Heikichi
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Ōuchiyama Heikichi (born Heikichi Ōuchi, 19 June 1926 – 1 November 1985) 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
Hitachinaka file:Hitachinaka Town Hall2.JPG, 250px, Hitachinaka city hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 154,663 in 64,900 households and a population density of 1547 persons per km2 ...
, Ibaraki,
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 1944, and reached 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 in 1949. He reached the second highest rank of '' ōzeki'' in 1955, and was a runner-up in two tournaments. He was well known for his extraordinary size – at tall he was the tallest modern era ''ōzeki'' until Akebono in 1992. After his retirement in 1959 he worked as a coach at
Tokitsukaze stable The is a stable of sumo wrestlers in Japan, one of the Tokitsukaze group of stables. It was founded in 1769 and was dominant during the Taishō period. In its modern form it dates from 1941 when it was established by Futabayama, who was still an ...
and
Tatsutagawa stable Tatsutagawa stable (立田川部屋, ''Tatsutagawa beya'') was a ''heya'' (stable) of sumo wrestlers, part of the Tokitsukaze ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It was active from 1971 until 2000. History The stable was founded in 1971 by the former ...
until his death in 1985.


Career

Ōuchiyama came from a fishing family, and helped out on the fishing boats by diving into the water to catch fish. He was not particularly large in elementary school, but increased rapidly in height after that. During the war he was recruited by the
Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
, assigned to the anti-submarine patrol unit with his father. He joined
Futabayama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Oita Prefecture. Entering sumo in 1927, he was the sport's 35th ''yokozuna'' from 1937 until his retirement in 1945. He won twelve ''yūshō'' or top division championships and had a winning streak ...
stable (later
Tokitsukaze stable The is a stable of sumo wrestlers in Japan, one of the Tokitsukaze group of stables. It was founded in 1769 and was dominant during the Taishō period. In its modern form it dates from 1941 when it was established by Futabayama, who was still an ...
) in 1944 and reached 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 in 1947. He was promoted to 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 in 1949. In his debut tournament at ''
komusubi , 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 May 1951 he was the only man to defeat tournament winner
Chiyonoyama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima, Hokkaidō. He was the sport's 41st ''yokozuna'' from 1951 until 1959. He is regarded as the first "modern" ''yokozuna'' in that he was promoted by the Japan Sumo Association itself and n ...
, who was promoted to ''yokozuna'' after the tournament. Ōuchiyama defeated him again in May 1952, this time ranked as a ''
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 ...
,'' and earned his first ''
kinboshi is a notation used in professional sumo wrestling to record a lower-ranked (''maegashira'') wrestler's victory over a ''yokozuna''. It is believed that the term stems from the usage of the terms ''shiroboshi'' (lit: white star) to designate a b ...
'' or gold star. After finishing as runner-up to Chiyonoyama with a 13–2 record in March 1955 (Chiyonoyama defeated him in a playoff for the
championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...
) he was promoted to sumo's second highest rank of '' ōzeki''. His promotion was helped by the fact that the only ''ōzeki'' at the time,
Mitsuneyama Mitsuneyama Keiji, real name Tōichi Shimamura (7 February 1922 – 15 August 1989) was a sumo wrestler from Arakawa, Tokyo, Japan who won the top division ''yūshō'' or tournament championship in 1954. His highest rank was '' ōzeki'' and he e ...
, was struggling with injury and was demoted shortly afterwards. He was chosen ahead of his ''sekiwake'' rival Matsunobori, who was also challenging for promotion. He was the first ''ōzeki'' over 2 metres tall since the so-called ''kanban'' or "guest ''ōzeki''" of the
Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
who were only listed 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 ...
'' to draw crowds to tournaments. He was said to have broken the jinx that wrestlers who are too big do not win promotion. Ōuchiyama's ''ōzeki'' career began well, with a memorable bout on the final day of the May 1955 tournament against
Tochinishiki was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Tokyo. He was the sport's 44th ''yokozuna''. He won ten top division ''yūshō'' or tournament championships and was a rival of fellow ''yokozuna'' Wakanohana I. He became the head coach of Kasug ...
which went to a re-match, and an 11–4 record in the September 1955 tournament won by his stablemate
Kagamisato was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Aomori Prefecture. He was the sport's 42nd ''yokozuna''. Career He was born in a small fishing village in Sannohe District. He came from a poor family as his father had died when he was very you ...
. However he injured his foot in January 1956 and was also hampered by
acromegaly Acromegaly is a disorder that results from excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There may also be an enlargement of the forehead, jaw, and nose. Other ...
and
diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
. He managed to stay at ''ōzeki'' for only eight tournaments in total, as two consecutive ''
make-koshi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' or losing scores saw him demoted from the rank after the January 1957 tournament. He was unfortunate in that the tournament in which he was '' kadoban'' he had to withdraw shortly before his match on Day 5 due to injuring his knee doing '' shiko'' stamps in the training area. He was the only ''yokozuna'' or ''ōzeki'' since 1950 to have won only one '' sanshō'' in his career – the Outstanding Performance prize in the tournament that led to his promotion. He did not get a Fighting Spirit Prize in March 1953 despite a 12–3 record as a ''maegashira''. This was because the ''makuuchi'' division was a great deal larger in his time and ''maegashira'' wrestlers fought largely amongst themselves and did not face ''yokozuna'' or ''ōzeki''. There was also no sharing of prizes amongst more than one wrestler in those days. Ōuchiyama fought in the ''
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 ...
'' ranks until his retirement in 1959, getting another ''kinboshi'' for defeating Tochinishiki in May 1957 (a rare example of a former ''ozeki'' winning a ''kinboshi''). He came back from a knee injury to produce another runner-up performance in the January 1958 tournament.


Retirement from sumo

He became 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 ...
, working as a coach at his old stable. He was initially known as Shikoroyama Oyakata, and then Tatsutayama Oyakata from 1961. He accompanied his old stablemate Kagamisato when he left Tokitsukaze stable in 1971 to found
Tatsutagawa stable Tatsutagawa stable (立田川部屋, ''Tatsutagawa beya'') was a ''heya'' (stable) of sumo wrestlers, part of the Tokitsukaze ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It was active from 1971 until 2000. History The stable was founded in 1971 by the former ...
. He also worked as a
judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...
of tournament bouts, and it was remarked upon that audience members seated directly behind him would miss most of the action. In his later years he also operated a
chankonabe is a Japanese stew (a type of nabemono or one-pot dish) commonly eaten in vast quantity by sumo wrestlers as part of a weight-gain diet. Ingredients and consumption The dish contains a ''dashi'' or chicken broth soup base with sake or ''m ...
restaurant named "Ōuchi". It was later taken over by his son and has been featured in the TV series ''
Kodoku no Gourmet is a Japanese cuisine ''seinen'' manga series written by Masayuki Qusumi and illustrated by Jiro Taniguchi. It has been adapted into a Japanese television drama series and a Chinese web series (). A 10-episode original net animation adaptatio ...
.'' He continued to work at Tatsutagawa stable until his death from a brain tumour at the age of 59 in November 1985. The stable was small, and had been unable to produce a ''
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 ...
'' since its founding, but Takamichi eventually did reach ''juryo'' in March 1987, 14 months after Ōuchiyama's death.


Fighting style

As well as his great height Ōuchiyama was known for his strong and flexible legs, and his speed. 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 ...
'' were ''yori kiri'' (force out), ''yori taoshi'' (force out and down), ''kotenage'' (armlock throw) and ''uwatenage'' (overarm throw).


Pre-modern career record

*''Through most of the 1940s only two tournaments were held a year, and in 1946 only one was held. The New year tournament began and the Spring tournament returned to Osaka in 1953.''


Modern career record

*''Since the addition of the Kyushu tournament in 1957 and the Nagoya tournament in 1958, the yearly schedule has remained unchanged.''


See also

*
Glossary of sumo terms The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
*
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 ōzeki More than 50 sumo wrestlers have reached the second highest in the sport, the rank of '' ōzeki'', but have failed to rise to the top rank since the modern era of sumo began in 1927 with the merger of the Tokyo and Osaka organizations. By 2020, ov ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ouchiyama Heikichi 1926 births Japanese sumo wrestlers Sumo people from Ibaraki Prefecture Ōzeki 1985 deaths People from Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Imperial Japanese Navy personnel of World War II