is a

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

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 t ...

wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi '' ichimon'' or group of stables. It was set up in 1985 as Kitanoumi stable by former '' yokozuna''

Kitanoumi , 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 ...

, who branched off from Mihogaseki stable. It absorbed Hatachiyama stable in 2006, following the death of its head coach, former '' ōzeki'' Hokuten'yū. In May 2010 it also absorbed Kise stable, which was forced to close after its stablemaster, former ''

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 ...

Higonoumi Higonoumi Naoya (born 23 September 1969 as Naoto Sakamoto) is a former sumo wrestler from Kumamoto, Japan. After his retirement he opened up Kise stable. Career A former amateur champion at Nihon University, he turned professional in 1992, joi ...

, was implicated in the selling of tournament tickets to

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 ...

members. As a result of this move the stable had 46 wrestlers, making it by some margin the largest stable in sumo at this time. It was the first stable to have over 40 wrestlers since

Futagoyama stable was a stable of sumo wrestlers, created in 2004 when Takanohana Kōji took over the running of Futagoyama stable from his father Takanohana Kenshi. Formerly of the Nishonoseki '' ichimon'' or group of stables, it became the leader of a breaka ...

in 1998, and had difficulty in finding room for so many. As a result, Kise was allowed to reestablish the stable in April 2012, and all former members of Kise stable, as well as newcomers Jōkōryū and Sasanoyama who had been recruited by Kise-''oyakata'', joined the reconstituted stable again. Stablemaster Kitanoumi died of

colorectal cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...

and multiple organ failure on the evening of November 20, 2015. Former ''maegashira'' Ganyū, who had been serving as a coach at the stable, inherited it. The stable was renamed Yamahibiki, the elder name used by Ganyū, since the Kitanoumi name could not be inherited, due to it being a one-generation elder stock or '' ichidai-toshiyori''. As of January 2022, Yamahibiki stable had 15 wrestlers. Following the demotion of Kitataiki after July 2017 tournament and Kitaharima after September 2017 tournament, it had no ''

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 ...

'' for the first time since May 2003.

Ring name conventions

A few wrestlers at this stable take ring names or ''

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'' ...

'' that begin with the character 北 (read: kita or hoku), meaning north, in deference to the stable's former owner, Kitanoumi. Some examples are Kitaharima, Kitataiki and Hokuseikai.

Owner

*2015–present: Yamahibiki Kenji ('' riji'', former ''maegashira'' Ganyū) *1985-2015:

('' rijichō'', the 55th ''yokozuna'')

Coaches

*Onogawa Akeyoshi (''toshiyori'', former ''maegashira'' Kitataiki)

Notable active wrestlers

* Kitaharima (best rank ''

'') * (best rank ''maegashira'')

Notable former members

* Hakurozan (former ''

'') * Kitazakura (former ''maegashira'') * Kiyoseumi (former ''maegashira'') * Kitataiki (former ''maegashira'') * Ōrora (former '' makushita'')

Referees

*Kimura Kankurō (''

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. F ...

'' '' gyōji'', real name Yoshimi Nakamura)

Ushers

*Tasuke (''

'' '' yobidashi'', real name Taisuke Kominami) *Sōichi ('' makushita'' ''yobidashi'', real name Sōichi Takahashi) *Hiromasa ('' jonokuchi'' ''yobidashi'', real name Hiromasa Nakamura)

Hairdresser

*Tokoasa (1st class '' tokoyama'')

Location and access

Tokyo, Kōtō ward, Kiyosumi 2-10-11
3 minute walk from Kiyosumi-shirakawa Station on the Hanzōmon Line and Ōedo Line

References

External links

Japan Sumo Association profile of Yamahibiki beyaHome Page
{{coord, 35.6825, N, 139.7951, E, source:wikidata, display=title Active sumo stables