Kakizoe Tōru
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(born August 12, 1978 in Usa City,
Ōita Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Ōita Prefecture has a population of 1,081,646 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 6,340 km2 (2,448 sq mi). Ōita Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northwest, K ...
,
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
), 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 th ...
wrestler. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 2001 and reached the top division in 2003. 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 o ...
'', which he held for just one tournament. He won one special prize, for Technique. After injury problems he fell to the third ''
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 in 2011 and retired in April 2012, becoming a sumo coach. He was part of ex-''
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 ...
'' Musashimaru's Musashigawa stable from 2013 until 2020, when he moved to Irumagawa stable. He is now a sumo elder, under the name Ikazuchi (雷).


Career

Kakizoe was an amateur sumo champion at
Nippon Sport Science University , abbreviated as , is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo and Aoba-ku, Yokohama. The precursor of the school was founded in 1893, and it was chartered as a university in 1949. The school is known for the many famous athletes among its alumni. ...
, winning the ''
Kokutai is a concept in the Japanese language translatable as "system of government", "sovereignty", "national identity, essence and character", "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitut ...
'' (Japan Games) and the All Japan University Championship in 2000, his final year, which earned him the amateur ''
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 ...
'' title. He joined Musashigawa stable, which, at the time, was one of the strongest in sumo with ''yokozuna'' Musashimaru and other successful former collegiate competitors such as
Dejima or Deshima, in the 17th century also called , was an artificial island off Nagasaki, Japan, that served as a trading post for the Portuguese (1570–1639) and subsequently the Dutch (1641–1858). For 220 years, it was the central con ...
and Miyabiyama amongst its wrestlers. Because of his amateur success, Kakizoe was given ''
makushita tsukedashi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' status, meaning he was able to debut at 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 ...
'' 15 ranking. He was the first ''makushita tsukedashi'' entrant to be put at #15 instead of the bottom of the ''makushita'' division. He had initially hoped to debut in March 2001, but his entry was delayed because of a nagging injury. Although his first appearance on 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 ...
'' was in September 2001, he was still unable to compete and dropped to ''makushita'' #55. He fought his first professional bout in November 2001 instead, fighting under his real name. Unusually, he never adopted a traditional ''
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 ...
''. He rose to 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 in March 2003 and 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 September 2003. Kakizoe's rank peaked at ''komusubi'' after the January 2004 tournament when, ranked ''
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 ...
'' 5, he achieved a result of 11-4 and the technique prize. He failed to retain his ''
san'yaku The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' rank for more than a single tournament, but mostly remained amongst the top half of ''maegashira'' for the next few years. However, he suffered a big setback in May 2007, losing eleven bouts in a row before pulling out of the tournament citing a
fracture Fracture is the appearance of a crack or complete separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress (mechanics), stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacemen ...
to his right knee. He could manage only six wins on his return in July and slid to the lowest rung on the top division ladder for the September tournament. He produced a comfortable 9-6 score there to maintain his top division status, but remained near the bottom of ''makuuchi'' for the next two years. In January 2010, he rose to ''maegashira'' 4 and fought his first bout against a ''yokozuna'' since his injury. Due to the absence of Chiyotaikai and
Kotomitsuki is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Okazaki City. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 1999. He reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in November 2000 and won one ''yūshō'' or tournament championship, in Septemb ...
, on the final day he took part in the '' san'yaku soroibumi'' ceremony. He finished the tournament with a respectable 6-9 record, but was unable to produce a ''
kachi-koshi The following words are terms used in 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 oth ...
'' or winning score in the next four tournaments either. Kakizoe's 3-12 performance in September 2010 saw him demoted to ''jūryō'' for the first time and he lost ''
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 fr ...
'' status after scoring only 4-11 at Juryo 9 in January 2011. Despite only scoring a ''
make-koshi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' 3-4 in the May 2011 "technical examination" tournament, he was nonetheless promoted back to ''jūryō'' because of the large number of slots available after the forced retirements of many wrestlers following a
match-fixing In organized sports, match fixing (also known as game fixing, race fixing, throwing, rigging, hippodroming, or more generally sports fixing) is the act of playing or officiating a contest with the intention of achieving a predetermined result, v ...
scandal. However, his return to ''jūryō'' was short-lived as he turned in a disastrous 1-14 score, his ninth consecutive ''make-koshi''.


Retirement from sumo

Troubled by a foot injury, Kakizoe fell to ''makushita'' 56 for the May 2012 tournament, at the time the sixth lowest rank ever held by a former ''
san'yaku The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' wrestler. He announced his retirement before the tournament began, and stayed in sumo as a coach at his stable (now renamed Fujishima stable) under the elder name Oshiogawa-''oyakata''. In October 2012, he switched to the Ikazuchi name. In August 2013, when his former stablemate Musashimaru established his own Musashigawa stable, Kakizoe moved with him. In October 2020 he moved to Irumagawa stable. It was announced after the January 2023 tournament that on February 1 he would be taking over as head coach of the stable, which would be changing its name to Ikazuchi stable accordingly, due to the imminent retirement of Irumagawa Oyakata (former ''sekiwake'' Tochitsukasa).


Fighting style

Kakizoe was an ''oshi-sumo'' specialist, preferring pushing and thrusting techniques. His most common winning move was ''oshi-dashi'' (push-out), which accounted for around 43 percent of his career victories. He was vulnerable to defeat if his opponents grab hold of his ''
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 . ''Mawashi'' ''Sekitori'' During competition For top ranked profess ...
''.


Family

Kakizoe is married, with two children. His wife, Eimi, is a former amateur sumo wrestler who won the
Sumo World Championships The Sumo World Championships is an amateur sumo competition organized by the International Sumo Federation. The men's competition started in 1992 and the women's competition started in 2001, with both competitions having been held together. The co ...
. His eldest son, Haruku, is a member of the renowned
Saitama Sakae High School Saitama Sakae High School, also commonly known as Sakae High, is a private junior and senior high school located in Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture. The school is known for its sports activities and its wide range of studies. Among the sports ...
sumo club.


Career record


See also

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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 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 mo ...
*
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 elders This is a list of toshiyori, elders of the Japan Sumo Association (JSA). More accurately called "elder stock" or ''toshiyori kabu,'' these names are a finite number of licenses that can be passed on, and are strictly controlled by the JSA. They all ...
*
List of komusubi This is a list of all sumo wrestlers whose pinnacle in the sport has been the fourth highest rank of ''komusubi'' and who held the rank in the modern era of sumo since the 1927 merger of the Tokyo and Osaka organizations. There are usually two ac ...


References


External links

*
Kakizoe's basho results


{{DEFAULTSORT:Kakizoe, Toru 1978 births Living people Japanese sumo wrestlers Komusubi People from Usa, Ōita Sumo people from Ōita Prefecture Nippon Sport Science University alumni Sumo wrestlers who use their birth name