Wakanoyama Hiroshi (born May 12, 1972 as Hiroshi Nishizaki) 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 thr ...

wrestler from

Gobo Gobo may refer to: Places * Gobō, Wakayama, a city located in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan ** Gobō Station, a railway station in the city * Gobo, Cameroon, a commune in Cameroon Plants * Gobō (''Arctium lappa''), a biennial plant * Gobo (bur ...

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...

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 north ...

. His highest rank was''

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 on ...

''.

Career

Wakanoyama made his professional debut in March 1988. Joining at the same time as him were 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 ...

'' Akebono, Takanohana and Wakanohana, and '' ōzeki'' Kaiō. He began wrestling under his own surname, Nishizaki, but from November 1989 onwards adopted the ''

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'' co ...

'' of Wakanoyama, the name adapted from his home prefecture. 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 fract ...

'' status in July 1991 upon promotion to the second highest ''

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. For ...

'' division, and made his debut in 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 on ...

'' division in May 1992. However, he lasted only four tournaments there before being demoted back to ''jūryō''. Although he reappeared in ''makuuchi'' once in September 1994, he could not stay there. In July 1996 he fell back to the unsalaried ''

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. For ...

'' division where he languished for thirteen tournaments, before winning promotion back to ''jūryō'' in November 1998 and ''makuuchi'' in July 1999. Wakanoyama had been absent from the top division for 28 tournaments. No other wrestler had ever managed to return to ''makuuchi'' after so long away. His remarkable comeback may have been helped by the fact that during this period his stable, Musashigawa, had become one of the strongest in sumo, with a ''yokozuna'' ( Musashimaru), and three soon to reach ''ōzeki'' ( Musōyama,

Dejima , in the 17th century also called Tsukishima ( 築島, "built island"), was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1854). For 220 years, it ...

and

Miyabiyama Miyabiyama Tetsushi (born July 28, 1977 as Masato Takeuchi) is a former sumo wrestler from Mito, Ibaraki, Japan. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 1998. With the exception of two tournaments, he was ranked in the top division o ...

). Wakanoyama was certainly not short of strong training partners. Wakanoyama was able to hold his own in the top division this time, rising slowly up the rankings. In March 2000, ranked 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 on ...

'' 1, he faced ''yokozuna'' Wakanohana on the opening day. The last time the two had fought was eight years previously in May 1992. This is the longest ever gap between meetings in the top division. Wakanoyama lost the match and fell short with a 6-9 record, but in January 2001 he scored 9-6 at ''maegashira'' 3 and won his first ever special prize. In the following tournament he was promoted to ''

'', the highest rank he was to achieve. He was the first non-foreign and non-college wrestler from his stable to reach a ''

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

'' rank. He fought his last tournament in the top division in March 2004, and retired in September 2005 at the age of thirty three.

Retirement from sumo

Wakanoyama remained in the sumo world as an elder, or ''oyakata'', affiliated to

Musashigawa stable The is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It is an off-shoot of the better known stable of the same name set up by former ''yokozuna'' Mienoumi in 1981, which is currently known as Fujishima stable ...

where he worked as a coach under the name Yamawake-oyataka. However, he left the Sumo Association in September 2010.

Fighting style

Wakanoyama was a pusher-thruster, preferring ''tsuki/oshi'' techniques 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 var ...

''. 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 rec ...

'' was a straightforward ''oshi-dashi'', or push out.

Career record

References

External links