Yoshinotani Akitoshi (born Sakuri Yoshitani; April 23, 1949 – January 14, 2000) was a
sumo wrestler from
Miiraku,
Nagasaki
is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan.
It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...
,
Japan. He made his professional debut in May 1965 and reached the
top division in January 1974. His ''shikona'' was adapted from own surname of Yoshitani after he had previously used Utonoyama. His highest rank was ''
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 ...
'' 4 and he fought in seven top division tournaments, although he struggled with a persistent elbow injury. He was one of the smallest ''
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 ...
,'' weighing less than 100kg for much of his career. He was a contemporary of
Washuyama, another small wrestler from
Dewanoumi stable
is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi '' ichimon'' or group of stables. It has a long, prestigious history. Its current head coach is former ''maegashira'' Oginohana. As of January 2022 it had 15 wrestlers.
History
The stable's ...
. He won 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. Fo ...
'' division championship in September 1973 with an 11–4 record, despite losing his last three matches. In May 1978 he inflicted the first defeat of future ''ōzeki''
Asashio's career to secure his majority of wins on the final day of the tournament. His final tournament as a ''sekitori'' was in November 1978. He fought in 102 tournaments in total, 27 as a ''sekitori'', with no bouts missed and 930 career matches. Upon retirement from active competition in May 1982 he became an
elder in 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 a series of different names, since he didn't own a ''toshiyori-kabu'' of his own. He died while active as ''Onaruto-oyakata'' of multiple organ failure in January 2000, having been ill for several months.
Career record
See also
*
*
List of past sumo wrestlers
This is a list of prominent past wrestlers (either retired or deceased) in the sport of professional sumo. They are listed in order of the year and tournament month that they made their professional debuts. The information listed below was gleaned ...
*
List of sumo tournament second division champions
This is a list of wrestlers who have won the sumo second division ''jūryō'' championship since 1909, when the current championship system was established. These official tournaments are held exclusively in Japan.
The wrestler who has won the ...
References
1949 births
Japanese sumo wrestlers
Sumo people from Nagasaki Prefecture
2000 deaths
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