Ōnomatsu Midorinosuke
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was a Japanese
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 th ...
wrestler from Noto Province. He was the sport's 6th ''
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 o ...
''. He trained '' ōzeki''
Tsurugizan Taniemon Tsurugizan Taniemon (劔山 谷右衛門, 1803 – October 17, 1854) was a sumo wrestler from Toyama City, Japan. His highest rank was '' ōzeki''. He won six tournament championships on an unofficial basis, before the ''yūshō'' system was estab ...
.


Early career

He was born in Shitsumi, Noto. His birth name remains ambiguous, but was claimed to be . He was born to poor farmers and worked as a stable boy in the countryside. There, he earned a reputation in amateur sumo and decided to move to
Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...
in 1815 and got introduced to . He made his debut under the ''
shikona A is a sumo wrestler's ring name. The tradition of ring names in sumo dates back to the Muromachi period and established itself during the Edo period, where they were used as a means to hide the identities of the . Given by the master to his di ...
'' in March 1815 and won the '' jonokuchi'' tournament.


''Makuuchi'' career

He reached the top ''
makuuchi , or , is the top division of Professional sumo divisions, 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 ...
'' division in October 1822 and transferred to the Shikoroyama stable. He began to wrestle for the
Chōshū Domain The , also known as the , was a domain (''han'') of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871.Deal, William E. (2005) ''Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan,'' p. 81 The Chōshū Domain was based ...
under the ring name . In January 1824, he was defeated by Inazuma, but defeated others at the ''
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 ...
'' #2 rank and was promoted to ''
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 ...
''. In the summer of 1825, he defeated Inazuma at the Hirakawa Tenjin Shrine. He was promoted to ''ōzeki'' in October 1826. In March 1827, he was given his definitive ring name by his lord and was renamed to evoke a famous scenic spot in
Hagi, Yamaguchi file:Hagicity aerialshot.jpg, 270px, Aerial view of central Hagi is a Cities of Japan, city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 43,233 in 22,803 households and a population density of 62 persons per k ...
(once part of the Chōshū domain).


''Yokozuna''

Ōnomatsu was awarded a ''yokozuna'' license by the Yoshida family in February 1828. At the time, he was the first ''yokozuna'' to be promoted in 31 years, since the promotion of
Onogawa Kisaburō was a Japanese sumo wrestler from Ōtsu, Ōmi Province (now Shiga Prefecture). He was the sport's 5th ''yokozuna''. Along with Tanikaze, Onogawa was the first to be given a ''yokozuna'' licence during his lifetime. He is described as a leading ...
. On 25 March 1829, Ienari Tokugawa was present to see Ōnomatsu defeat Inazuma. Ōnomatsu retired in October 1835 after eight years as ''yokozuna''. In the top ''makuuchi division'', he won 142 bouts and lost 31 bouts, recording a winning percentage of 82.1. He was permitted to stay as an elder under his ring name. While still an active wrestler, he recruited and raised '' ōzeki'' Koyanagi, to whom he gave his old ring name. He died in Edo in 1851 and his remains were divided between the Gyokusen-in temple of
Kōtō is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The ward refers to itself as Kōtō City in English. As of May 1, 2025, the ward has an estimated population of 543,730, and a population density of . The total ...
,
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
and the Ritsuzo-ji temple in Teramachi,
Kanazawa is the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Etymology The name "Kanazaw ...
. Since the funeral of Ōnomatsu in the Tokyo temple, it was customary to have the wrestlers using the Ōnomatsu ''
shikona A is a sumo wrestler's ring name. The tradition of ring names in sumo dates back to the Muromachi period and established itself during the Edo period, where they were used as a means to hide the identities of the . Given by the master to his di ...
'' buried in this temple (from the first to the fourth). In 1936, a monument made of natural stone pulled up from the seabed of Ugawa Port was erected the by a resolution of his hometown Ugawa Village.


Fighting style

Ōnomatsu was known for being extremely careful in his moves, often waiting for his opponent to start first. In practice, he would want to shake his competitors' confidence by doing ''matta'', waiting at the initial charge (or ''
tachi-ai The is the initial charge between two sumo wrestlers at the beginning of a bout. It is a combination of two Japanese words that mean “stand” and “meet”. There are several common techniques that wrestlers use at the tachi-ai, with the a ...
'') of his sumo bouts. He would also attempt to win bouts by fair means or foul. He was often criticised for his fighting style but was a mild-mannered, righteous man, and never became egoistic, which made him very popular among
Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...
people. His rivalry with 7th ''yokozuna'' Inazuma boosted the popularity of sumo during the Bunsei era and Tenpō era. His overall career record was quite far behind Inazuma, but his record over Inazuma was five wins (including two other than ''
honbasho A , or Grand Sumo Tournament in English, is an official professional sumo tournament. Only ''honbasho'' results matter in determining promotion and relegation for '' rikishi'' (sumo wrestlers) on the '' banzuke'' ranking. The number of ''honbash ...
''), four losses, five draws and one hold.


Top division record

*''The actual time the tournaments were held during the year in this period often varied.'' ''*Championships for the best record in a tournament were not recognised or awarded before the 1909 summer tournament, and the unofficial championships above are historically conferred. For more information, see
yūshō is the term for a championship in Japanese. This article focuses on championships in the sport of professional sumo. It is awarded in each of the six annual '' honbasho'' or official tournaments, to the wrestler who wins the most bouts. ''Yūs ...
.''


See also

*
Glossary of sumo terms The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
*
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 yokozuna is the highest rank of sumo wrestling. It was not recorded on the until 1890 and was not officially recognised as sumo's highest rank until 1909. Until then, was merely a licence given to certain to perform the ceremony. It was not always the ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Onomatsu, Midorinosuke 1794 births 1852 deaths Date of birth unknown Japanese sumo wrestlers Place of death missing Sumo people from Ishikawa Prefecture Yokozuna 19th-century wrestlers