Tokitsuyama Jin'ichi (March 10, 1925 – November 21, 1968) was a professional sumo wrestler from

Iwaki, Fukushima is a city located in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. , Iwaki had a population of 337,765 in 143,500 households, and population density of 270 persons per km2. The total area of the city is , making it the largest city in the prefecture and the 10th ...

, Japan who wrestled for

Tatsunami stable Asahiyutaka Katsuteru (born 10 September 1968) is a former sumo wrestler from Kasugai, Aichi, Japan. His highest rank was ''komusubi''. He is now the head coach of Tatsunami stable. Career He joined Ōshima stable and made his professional debu ...

. He won the top division sumo championship in the summer tournament of 1953 and was runner-up in five other tournaments. 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 in 1961 he worked as a coach at Tatsunami stable until his death in 1968.

Life and career

At a young age his parents divorced and he was raised by his grandparents. His first professional tournament was in May 1940 as a wrestler for the former incarnation of Tokitsukaze stable, which was a leftover from the days of Osaka sumo. The stable soon closed however, and he transferred to

. He tried out a number of

ring names Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

before settling on Tokitsuyama to honor the defunct stable he originally debuted for. Tokitsuyama Scan10064

He was a weak wrestler at first, and he was not able to actually be listed on the sumo ranking sheet known as 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 ...

'' until the January tournament of 1943. He did not really bloom as a strong competitor until after returning as a soldier from World War II. In the 1946 tournament (the only one held that year) he achieved a 7–0 perfect record and also took the championship in the ''

makushita 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. Expectations surrounding him began to rise after this. He was promoted to the salaried ranks of ''

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 ...

'' in the following summer tournament of 1947. He was promoted to the top division ''

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 ...

'' in May 1949, but received a losing record and fell back to ''jūryō''. He was soon back in ''makuuchi'' though, and in September 1950 at ''

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 ...

'' 21 he achieved a 12–3 record and the Fighting Spirit Prize. He was a top division regular from then on. Almost three years later, in May 1953 he achieved his one and only top division championship with a perfect 15–0 record. However, as he was only ranked at ''maegashira'' 6, the highest ranked opponent he faced that tournament was 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 ...

'' and the two '' ōzeki'' at the time

Yoshibayama , real name , was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Atsuta District, Hokkaido. He was the sport's 43rd ''yokozuna''. He suffered a number of injuries and only won one tournament championship, but was a popular wrestler. He was a runner ...

and

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 ...

, who also had winning streaks in that tournament, never had a chance to face him to even the odds. In the January 1955 tournament he was in a similar situation at ''maegashira'' 9. He was in position to win the championship on the final day of the tournament, but this time had to face ''

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 ...

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 an ...

in a playoff, which he lost. He was a consistent ''makuuchi'' wrestler for many years after this, but began to decline after 1960.

Retirement from sumo

Tokisuyama retired before the 1961 March tournament rather than face demotion to ''jūryō''. He remained in the sumo world after his retirement as 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 of Oshiogawa, but died of liver cancer at age 43 in November 1968.

Fighting style

During his career, Tokitsuyama was known for using a variety of techniques such as lifting and inner-thigh throws, and would often twist and turn even the strongest opponents all over the ''

dohyō A ''dohyō'' (, ) is the space in which a sumo wrestling bout occurs. A typical ''dohyō'' is a circle made of partially buried rice-straw bales 4.55 meters in diameter. In official professional tournaments (''honbasho''), it is mounted on a squa ...

''. This reliance on such techniques also led to inconsistency, and though he was a formidable opponent, he never had more than 12 wins in any tournament besides his championship tournament and was never promoted above ''

''. Regardless, he was part of a group of well-known top division wrestlers from his same Tatsunami stable at this time, namely Wakahaguro, Annenyama and Kitanonada who were popularly known then as the

Four Heavenly Kings The Four Heavenly Kings are four Buddhist gods, each of whom is believed to watch over one cardinal direction of the world. In Chinese mythology, they are known collectively as the "Fēng Tiáo Yǔ Shùn" () or "Sìdà Tiānwáng" (). In the ...

, a Buddhist reference.

Pre-modern sumo record

*''In 1953 the New Year tournament was begun and the Spring tournament began to be held in Osaka.''

Modern sumo record

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

References