Masuiyama Daishirō (born 16 November 1948 as Noboru Sawada) is a former

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 ...

wrestler and coach from Hyōgo,

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 n ...

. In 1980 he became the oldest wrestler to be promoted to the rank of '' ōzeki'' in the modern era (since 1958). After retiring from active competition in 1981 he became a sumo coach and 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 Mihogaseki and produced several top division wrestlers as head of Mihogaseki stable before stepping down upon reaching age 65 in 2013. He is also an

enka is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form, which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than '' ryūkōka'' music, ...

musician.

Career

Born in

Himeji 260px, Himeji City Hall is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 525,682 in 227,099 households and a population density of 980 persons per km². The total area of the city is ...

, he was the son of former ''ōzeki'' Masuiyama Daishirō I,and the grandson of a ''

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 ...

'' in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

sumo, Tamanomori. He was a talented swimmer at school but wanted to follow his father into sumo. Initially turned down because of his size, he eventually persuaded his father to let him join his Mihogaseki stable in January 1967. He began at the same time as

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 ...

, a future ''

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 ...

''. He began fighting under the name Suiryū (his own surname was being used by another wrestler), adopting the Masuiyama ''

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'' ...

'' the following year. He reached ''

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 ...

'' status in July 1969 upon promotion 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. F ...

'' division 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 o ...

'' division for the first time in March 1970. Weighing barely 100 kg, and prone to injury, he was not able to establish himself in the division until 1972, temporarily dropping back to ''jūryō'' where he won his only ''

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 in January of that year. In November 1972 he won the first of his five ''Ginō-shō'' or Technique

prizes A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

and earned promotion to ''komusubi.'' He was demoted after only one tournament and mostly remained 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 o ...

'' ranks for the next few years. In May 1974 he scored 12 wins and was a tournament runner-up behind stablemate Kitanoumi. In July 1978 he finally earned promotion to the third highest ''

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 ...

'' rank, but once again was unable to maintain it, dropping back to ''maegashira'' level. At the end of 1979 he returned to ''sekiwake'' and scored 11 wins. In January 1980 he was again a tournament runner-up, this time to ''yokozuna'' Mienoumi, and after the tournament he was promoted to ''ōzeki''. It had taken him 60 tournaments to get there from his top division debut, a record, and at thirty one years two months he was also the oldest to reach the rank since the introduction of the six tournaments a year system in 1958 (The latter record was broken by Kotomitsuki in July 2007). Masuiyama and Mihogaseki Oyakata became the first father and son ''ōzeki'' in sumo history. His ''ōzeki'' career was brief, and he announced his retirement during the March 1981 tournament.

Retirement from sumo

Masuiyama remained in the sumo world as an

elder An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority. Elder or elders may refer to: Positions Administrative * Elder (administrative title), a position of authority Cultural * North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and ...

initially under the name Onogawa, and in November 1984 he succeeded his father as head coach of Mihogaseki stable, when the latter reached the retirement age of 65. His father died in 1986. He inherited ''ōzeki'' Hokuten'yū, and produced four other top division wrestlers:

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 ...

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. ...

Baruto Kaido Höövelson, (known professionally as Baruto Kaito ; born 5 November 1984) is an Estonian politician and former professional sumo wrestler. Making his debut in May 2004, he reached the top division after just two years in sumo in May 2 ...

and

Aran Aran m Places Azerbaijan Villages and municipalities: * Aran, Aghjabadi * Aran, Lerik * Aran, Shaki * Aran, Tovuz * Aran, Yevlakh Iran * Aran, Alborz, a village in Alborz Province * Aran, Nain, a village in Isfahan Province * Aran, K ...

. Known as Mihogaseki Oyakata, he ran the stable until October 2013, when he dissolved the stable and moved his wrestlers to

Kasugano stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi '' 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 was one of the most successful stables in 2 ...

. He was also formerly on the board of directors of the

. He reached the Sumo Association's mandatory retirement age of 65 in November 2013.

Fighting style

He began as a ''tsuppari'' specialist and would attack his opponents with a series of rapid thrusts to the chest. Following a left wrist injury he changed his style and would use his right hand to grab his opponent's ''

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 ...

'' and draw him in. He would use his great reflexes and flexible lower back to win with techniques such as ''uwatenage'' (overarm throw), ''uchimuso'' (inner thigh twist down), ''katasukashi'' (shoulder swing down) and other leg and ''yotsu-sumo'' moves. However he lacked the power to consistently beat the top ranked wrestlers.

Enka musician

Masuiyama is also an enka musician. His debut release was "Iroha koiuta" (いろは恋唄)in 1974. His musical career was in parallel with sumo wrestling, with his performances in clubs reportedly earning him 1.5 million yen a night, until the Sumo Association banned such extra-curricular activities. His notable songs include "Sonna Yuko ni horemashita" (そんな夕子にほれました)(1974), "Sonna onna no hitorigoto" (そんな女のひとりごと)(1977) which sold 1.3 million copies, "Otoko no Senaka" (男の背中), "Hisoyakani Hanayakani" (秘そやかに華やかに) (a duet with Naomi Matsui)(2012),"Yuko no Omise" (夕子のお店) (2013), "Fuyuko no blues" (冬子のブルース) (2013) and "A man's cup-sake" (男のコップ酒). In 2013, he retired from the Sumo Association and re-started exclusively as an enka musician. In 2015 he opened a chanko restaurant, ''Chanko Masuiyama'', on the premises of the now-closed Mihogaseki stable.

Career record

References