Satoyama Kōsaku

Satoyama Kōsaku (born May 31, 1981) is a retired professional sumo wrestler from Ōshima, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. A former amateur sumo champion at Nihon University, he entered professional sumo in 2004 and first reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in 2007. His highest rank was ''maegashira'' 12. He spent much of his career in the ''jūryō'' and ''makushita'' divisions, and won a '' yusho'' or tournament championship in each. He won promotion back to the top division in 2014 after a seven-year and 37-tournament absence, the longest ever. He was a member of Onoe stable. He retired in November 2018 and is an elder of the Japan Sumo Association under the name of Chiganoura.

Career

A former amateur sumo champion at Nihon University, Satoyama made his professional debut in March 2004, joining Mihogaseki stable alongside his team-mate at Nichidai Sumo Club, Shiraishi. He was attracted to the stable because of his admiration for Onoe Oyakata, (ex ''komusubi'' Hamanoshima), himself a former amateur champion. Initially he was somewhat overshadowed by Shiraishi and Baruto, who made their ''jūryō'' division debuts together in September 2005. However, Satoyama was still highly regarded, despite his short height and relatively light weight. He made his way quickly up the ranks, recording only one ''make-koshi'' along the way to ''sekitori'' status, which he achieved in January 2006 upon promotion to the ''jūryō'' division. In September 2006 Satoyama, Shiraishi, Baruto and a number of other wrestlers scouted by Onoe Oyakata joined his newly created Onoe stable.

In March 2007 Satoyama won the ''jūryō'' division championship or ''yūshō'' with a 12–3 record and he entered the top ''makuuchi'' division for the first time in May 2007 at ''maegashira'' 12, where he scored seven wins against eight losses. After a poor 2–13 record in July he was demoted back to ''jūryō''. Restricted by a neck injury, he had two more losing scores in September and November 2007, pushing him towards the bottom of the second division. In January 2008 he won only two bouts in the first 11 days, and although he won his last four matches to finish on a 6–9 score, it was not enough to prevent demotion to the third ''makushita'' division.

Satoyama produced a 2–5 score in March 2008, and 3–4 in May, meaning he had chalked up seven consecutive losing scores. In July 2008 he returned to form and won the ''makushita'' championship with a 6–1 score after an eight-way playoff, defeating his 232 kg stablemate Yamamotoyama Ryūta in the final. It was his first'' kachi-koshi'' or winning score since his ''jūryō'' division championship in March 2007. However he could manage only two wins in each of his next two tournaments. Remaining firmly stuck in the ''makushita'' ranks, he became a ''tsukebito'', or personal attendant, to Baruto. However, in the July 2011 ''basho'' he scored 5–2 at ''makushita'' 6 which returned him to ''jūryō'' for the first time in 21 tournaments. His score of 7–8 in September was enough to keep him in the second division, but not the 6–9 that followed in November. However he achieved his majority of wins against losses in the January 2012 ''basho'', coming from 0–3 down to score 4–3, and this was enough to return him immediately to ''jūryō.''

In the January 2014 tournament Satoyama returned to the top division for the first time since July 2007. The 37 tournament gap between appearances in ''makuuchi'' is the most in sumo history, breaking the record of 28 tournaments held by Wakanoyama. However, he only lasted two tournaments before being demoted. He was promoted to the top division in July 2015 and again in March 2016, but a ''kachi-koshi'' or majority of wins in a ''makuuchi'' tournament continued to elude him. Nevertheless, he maintained his ''sekitori'' status until September 2017, when he was demoted to ''makushita'' for the first time since 2012. For the next year he recorded solid results in the third division but was unable to gain promotion and he announced his retirement after a 4-3 result in November 2018.

Retirement from sumo

Satoyama retired after the November 2018 tournament. He has stayed with the Japan Sumo Association as a coach at his stable initially under the borrowed elder name of Sanoyama Oyakata (owned by Chiyootori). His ''danpatsu-shiki,'' or official retirement ceremony, was held on 29 September 2019 at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan, on the same day as Kisenosato's. In April 2021 he acquired the Chiganoura name.

Fighting style

At and Satoyama was one of the smallest ''sekitori'' and had to rely on technical skill to defeat his heavier opponents. According to his Japan Sumo Association profile Satoyama favoured ''yotsu-sumo'', fighting on the ''mawashi'' or belt. His preferred grip was listed as ''hidari-yotsu'', with his right hand outside and left hand inside his opponent's arms. He is known for his underarm throw, or ''shitatenage''. However, his most common winning ''kimarite'' was actually ''oshi-dashi'', or push out.

Personal life

Satoyama was married in September 2012 and the wedding reception was held the following February, with Kitanoumi and Hakuho among the 500 guests. His wife also has an amateur sumo background, and is a former winner of the Women's Asian Championships.

Career record

See also

*List of sumo tournament second division champions
*Glossary of sumo terms
*List of past sumo wrestlers
*List of sumo elders

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Satoyama Kosaku
1981 births
Living people
Japanese sumo wrestlers
Sumo people from Kagoshima Prefecture
Nihon University alumni
Sumo wrestlers who use their birth name