Washūyama Yoshikazu (born 2 April 1949 as Yoshikazu Sukui) 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

Kurashiki is a historic city located in western Okayama Prefecture, Japan, sitting on the Takahashi River, on the coast of the Inland Sea. As of March 31, 2017, the city has an estimated population of 483,576 and a population density of 1,400 persons per ...

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...

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 ...

. He joined sumo in 1967 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 on ...

division in 1973. 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 on ...

''. After his retirement in 1985 he became 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 ...

and was the head coach of

Dewanoumi stable is a heya (sumo), stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''Glossary of sumo terms#ichimon, ichimon'' or group of stables. It has a long, prestigious history. Its current head coach is former ''maegashira'' Oginohana Akikazu, Oginohana. A ...

from 1996 until 2014.

Career

His ''

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 ...

'' or sumo name was derived from the Washuzan mountain in his native Okayama prefecture. (He was to become so popular that people would refer to the mountain as Washūyama.) He made his professional debut in March 1967, reaching 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 in July 1972. He was promoted to the ''

'' division in May 1973 and made an immediate impression, finishing as the tournament runner-up with 11 wins and earning the Fighting Spirit

prize 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.

. However, injury problems over the next couple of years prevented him from progressing much further and he was demoted back to the ''jūryō'' division on two occasions. His fortunes turned around towards the end of 1975 when he won his second Fighting Spirit prize, and in January 1976 he was once again tournament runner-up. This earned him promotion to the titled ''

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

'' ranks for the first time in March 1976 at the rank of ''

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 ...

''. Another strong showing earned him immediate promotion to ''sekiwake'', which was to be his highest rank. In 1982 Washūyama dropped to the ''jūryō'' division once more, although he kept on fighting until November 1985 when he finally announced his retirement at the age of 36.

Fighting style

Washuyama was one of the lightest sumo wrestlers ever seen in the top division, at around 100 kg and rather short at 175 cm. He was very popular with the tournament crowds, earning the nickname of ''chibikko gangu'' or "

midge A midge is any small fly, including species in several families of non-mosquito Nematoceran Diptera. Midges are found (seasonally or otherwise) on practically every land area outside permanently arid deserts and the frigid zones. Some mid ...

t gang" for the way he seemed to swarm around his larger opponents attacking from all sides. He became a real nemesis for the giant

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

an wrestler Takamiyama, who was nearly twice his size. His technical skill is evidenced by the five ''Ginosho'', or Technique Awards he picked up during his career.

Retirement from sumo

Washūyama remained in the sumo world as a coach at his old stable, under the name Sakaigawa. In 1996 he assumed the Dewanoumi name and took charge of the stable while the previous head,

Sadanoyama was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Nagasaki Prefecture. He was the sport's 50th ''yokozuna''. After his retirement he was the head coach of Dewanoumi stable and served as head of the Japan Sumo Association. Career Born in Arikawa, ...

, became Sakaigawa and concentrated on his role as the

chairman. Washūyama was also on the Sumo Association's board as a director. He reached the mandatory retirement age for an ''oyakata'' of 65 in April 2014 and handed over control of the stable to former ''maegashira'' Oginohana. In March 2018 he was appointed as a ''hyōgiin'' or outside voter in the Sumo Association, although he has no ''oyakata'' status.

Top division record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Washuyama, Yoshikazu 1949 births Living people Japanese sumo wrestlers People from Kurashiki Sekiwake

Career

Fighting style

Retirement from sumo

Top division record

See also

References