(July 9, 1942 – April 14, 1996), born , was a sumo wrestler from

Otaru is a city and port in Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan, northwest of Sapporo. The city faces Ishikari Bay and the Sea of Japan, and has long served as the main port of the bay. With its many historical buildings, Otaru is a popular to ...

, Hokkaidō, Japan. His highest rank was ''

sekiwake , 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 o ...

''. After his retirement 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 ...

and the head coach of Onaruto stable.

Career

He made his professional debut in March 1957, joining

Asahiyama stable was a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Isegahama '' ichimon'' or group of stables. It had a long history. It closed its doors in January 2015, and its staff and wrestlers transferred to other stables. History In its active period, Asahiya ...

. He won the ''

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. ''Y� ...

'' or tournament championship with a 13-2 record in 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. Fo ...

'' division in July 1963 and was promoted to 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 o ...

'' division in the following tournament in September 1963. He was demoted back to ''jūryō'' after only two tournaments and 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'' ...

'' to Futasegawa, which had been the fighting name of his stablemaster. He won promotion back to ''makuuchi'' in July 1964 but was demoted again, this time after three tournaments. After switching back to the Kotetsuyama name he won promotion to ''makuuchi'' for the third time in May 1965 after a 12-3 ''jūryō'' runner-up performance, and this time stayed in the top division. He was runner-up to Taihō in March 1966, and won his first '' sanshō'', for Fighting Spirit. In November 1966 he was runner-up for the second time, defeated ''

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 ...

Sadanoyama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Nagasaki Prefecture. He was the sport's 50th ''yokozuna''. After his retirement he was the head coach of Dewanoumi stable and served as head of the Japan Sumo Association. Career Born in Arikawa, ...

to earn 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 bo ...

'', and received the Technique Prize. In the following tournament in January 1967 he was ranked at ''

'', but scored only 3–12 and never reached the rank again. He is one of the rare examples of a wrestler whose only tournament in the ''

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

'' ranks was at ''sekiwake'', rather than ''

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 o ...

'' (along with

Hayateumi Hayateumi Hidehito (born July 5, 1975 as Naohito Saitō) is a former sumo wrestler from Aomori, Japan. His highest rank was ''sekiwake.'' He is now a Liberal Democratic Party politician. Career Born in Itayanagi, Kitatsugaru District, Hayate ...

and Hokutoriki). He earned a second ''kinboshi'' in July 1969 for beating Taihō, and remained a rank-and-file ''

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 o ...

'' until March 1971, when a poor 1–14 record saw him demoted back to ''jūryō.'' He managed to return to ''makuuchi'' in November 1971 but was demoted to ''jūryō'' a number of times after that, his last ''makuuchi'' appearance coming in January 1974.

Retirement from sumo

He retired in January 1975. He branched out from Asahiyama stable and established the Onaruto stable in October 1975. He produced the top division wrestler

Itai Itai (''ee-tai'') is a Hebrew biblical name, and also a Shona name. The name can also be written: Itai, Itahy, Ittai, Ittay, Etay, Eitay, Itay, Ytai, Etai, Itaj, Ithai, or Eatai. Hebrew name Itai ( he, איתי) is a Biblical name that appears ...

, a pusher-thruster like himself who also briefly used the Kōtetsuyama ''shikona'', and the lightweight ''

'' wrestler Ishinriki. He was married to a ballet instructor. Onaruto stable closed in December 1994 and he left the

Death

He died in somewhat mysterious circumstances in 1996, a month before claims he made about match-fixing in sumo were published in a book called ''Yaocho.'' The co-writer of the book died within hours of Onaruto, in the same hospital. Police found no evidence of foul play, but Onaruto's wrestler Itai later said his boss had links to a major

yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

crime syndicate.

Fighting style

Kotetsuyama was short for a sumo wrestler at 175cm, but was known for the power of his pushing attack. He was very much an ''oshi-sumo'' specialist, who preferred pushing and thrusting at his opponents to fighting on the ''

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 v ...

'' or belt. 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 r ...

'' or techniques at ''

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 fra ...

'' level were ''oshi-dashi'' (push out), ''tsuki-otoshi'' (thrust over) and ''hataki-komi'' (slap down).

Career record

*''The Nagoya tournament was first held in 1958.''

References