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is a Japanese former professional
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
Takasago, Hyōgo file:Takasago City Office.jpg, 260px, Takasago City Hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 86,888 in 36,828 households and a population density of 2500 persons per km2. The to ...
. Making his debut in May 2009 as a ''
makushita tsukedashi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' out of university, he reached the top division for the first time in November 2011. His highest rank to date has been ''
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 o ...
''. He has earned six special prizes for Technique and six ''
kinboshi is a notation used in professional 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 ...
'' for defeating ''
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 was runner-up in the September 2021 tournament. Myōgiryū is popular with female sumo fans, some of whom call out his nickname "22" at tournaments, apparently a reference to his
body fat percentage The body fat percentage of an organism is the total mass of its fat divided by its total body mass, multiplied by 100; body fat includes essential body fat and storage body fat. Essential body fat is necessary to maintain life and reproductive fu ...
, which is one of the lowest in sumo and has even been mentioned in commercials. Due to his longevity in sumo's top division and popularity with the female audience, Myōgiryū is also nicknamed "" ( , ). Myōgiryū has coached at Sakaigawa stable since his retirement from competition in September 2024. His elder name is Furiwake.


Early life and sumo background

Miyamoto was a member of an area sumo club in elementary school and in junior high school he participated in a national athletic meet as a sumo participant. He transferred to
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 ...
in Saitama prefecture, and in 2004 participated in a sumo event along with his schoolmate, the future Gōeidō, and in group competition came in second place to Gōeidō's first. In 2008, as a fourth year university student 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. ...
, he won a national sumo tournament in Ōita prefecture, and qualified to enter professional sumo as a ''makushita tsukedashi''. He received invitations from several sumo stables, and eventually chose Sakaigawa stable which Gōeidō had previously joined.


Career

His first tournament was in May, 2009. His debut at ''
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 was the highest since Daishoumi in March, 2007. He was reported to have been gunning for equaling Shimoda's ''makushita tsukedashi'' debut 7–0 championship, but soon ran into trouble, losing his very first match. He was apparently taken aback at the size of wrestlers in professional sumo and their tendency to not touch both fists to the ring before the initial charge. He eventually found his bearings and pulled out a 5–2 winning tournament. He would follow this with three more consecutive 5–2 tournaments, which would carry him straight into ''
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 ...
'' for the January 2010 tournament. On promotion to ''jūryō'' he changed his
ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons ...
to Myōgiryū, meaning "dragon of many skills" a name suggested by a former teacher at his university. Myōgiryū convincingly beat Jūmonji in his first ''jūryō'' match but on only the second day, severely injured his left knee in a bout against Gagamaru and dropped out of the tournament. He was forced to sit out the next three tournaments due to his injury and his rank had dropped to bottom ranks of ''
sandanme 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 ...
'', a division he had never fought in before, by the time he returned in the September 2010 tournament. He lost no time though, achieving a perfect 7–0 record in his post injury debut and narrowly losing the ''sandanme'' championship in a playoff loss to his upperclassman from his former university, Chiyozakura. In the following tournament, on his re-promotion to ''makushita'' he would top this feat, posting 6 straight wins after losing his first bout, and going on to take the championship after a 4-man playoff. After two more convincing ''
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 ...
'' tournaments in ''makushita'' he was back in ''jūryō'', the division in which he had only fought two bouts. Undeterred by his first brush with bad luck at this level, he posted an 11–4 record and beat Masunoyama in a playoff for the championship. In his second full tournament at ''jūryō'' Myōgiryū racked up an even more convincing 13–2 record and a consecutive championship. This would secure his entry into the top division in the 2011 November tournament. Coincidentally, he entered in the same tournament as senior wrestler Tsurugidake who 8 years before had entered sumo under the same ring name of Miyamoto, the surname they share. Myōgiryū managed a winning record of 10–5 and advanced in ''
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 ...
'' to ''
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 for the January 2012 tournament. He produced another strong performance there, scoring 9–6 and winning his first '' sanshō'' or special prize, for Technique. He won his second Technique Award in the May tournament. In the following July tournament he made his ''
san'yaku The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' debut 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 o ...
'', and came through with a winning record and his third Technique Award. He was promoted to ''
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 o ...
'' for the September tournament, the second from his stable to reach sumo's third highest rank after Gōeidō. He won ten bouts and his fourth Technique Prize in the last five tournaments. After a losing record in November Myōgiryū was ranked at ''maegashira'' 1 for the January 2013 tournament. He earned his first ''
kinboshi is a notation used in professional 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 ...
'' for a ''
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 ...
'' upset by defeating Hakuhō on Day 3, but missed out on a special prize as he could only finish with a losing record of 7–8. In May he defeated another ''yokozuna'', Harumafuji, and two ''ōzeki'', and was rewarded with his fifth Technique prize for the tournament after a strong 11–4 score. His success continued, with two ''sekiwake'' appearances in the following July and September tournaments. He would fall back to ''maegashira'' 1 in November 2013, but a winning tournament would put him back in ''san'yaku'' at ''komusubi'' for the January 2014 tournament. He lost his first four bouts in this tournament and dropped out due to injury. This would drop him to ''maegashira'' 10 in March, but two consecutive 8–7 winning tournaments would put him back in upper ''makuuchi'' for the July 2014 tournament. He scored 11–4 there, which returned him to ''sekiwake'' for September, but he had to miss the whole of that tournament through injury and dropped back to the ''maegashira'' ranks. Nine wins in November and nine more in January 2015 saw him back at ''komusubi'' for the March tournament where eight wins were sufficient to gain promotion to ''sekiwake'' again. He dropped back to ''komusubi'' for July, but was promoted to ''sekiwake'' for the fourth time for the September tournament. He lost his ''sekiwake'' rank in November 2015 after a poor 2–13 record, and spent 2016 in the ''maegashira'' ranks. His run of 34 consecutive tournaments ranked in the top division ended after the May 2017 tournament when he was demoted to the ''jūryō'' division. After spending two tournaments in ''jūryō'' he returned to ''makuuchi'' after the November 2017 tournament. He stood at 6–3 after nine days but then lost four bouts in a row and withdrew on Day 14 due to a left knee injury, which meant a ''
make-koshi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...
'' score and demotion back to ''jūryō'' for January 2018. He won the ''jūryō'' division championship for the third time in this tournament, defeating Hidenoumi in a playoff and ensuring another return to ''makuuchi''. After three consecutive winning records from May to September 2018, Myōgiryū was promoted to ''maegashira'' 1 for the November tournament. On Day 2 he defeated ''yokozuna''
Kisenosato is a Japanese sumo elder from Ibaraki Prefecture, Ibaraki. As a wrestler, he made his professional debut in 2002 and reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in 2004 at the age of just 18. After many years in the junior ''san'yaku'' ranks, he reac ...
for only the fourth time in 20 meetings to earn his third career ''kinboshi'' and his first since 2013. He was promoted to ''komusubi'' in January 2019, the first time he had been ranked in ''san'yaku'' since November 2015, but fell short with a 5–10 record. In May 2019 he earned his fourth ''kinboshi'' with a defeat of Kakuryū. In January 2020 he defeated Hakuhō and Kakuryū on consecutive days, but finished with a 5–10 record. In September 2021 he was runner-up in a top division tournament for the first time, finishing on 11-4, two wins behind new
Terunofuji ) is a Mongolian-Japanese former professional sumo wrestler. Wrestling for the Isegahama stable (2007), Isegahama stable, he entered professional sumo in January 2011 and took the second division ''jūryō'' championship in his debut as a ''seki ...
. He was still in contention for the championship on the final day but lost his last match to Meisei. During this tournament he also defeated Takakeishō for the first time. He was awarded his sixth Technique prize, his first in eight years. During the 12th day of the July 2023 tournament, Myōgiryū celebrated his 1100th match since his professional debut with a victory over ''maegashira'' Takarafuji. When asked at the end of 2023 about how long his career would last, he confided that he did not think he would continue to fight until he was forty, but that he would fight until he was no longer satisfied with his performances.


Retirement

During the March 2024 tournament, Myōgiryū recorded a poor performance while in a relegation position in the ''jūryō'' division. He lost his ''makuuchi'' status for the following tournament in May, where his performance did not improve, although he did not mention any injuries or a lack of willpower. Myōgiryū completely withdrew from the September 2024 tournament due to left knee pain after which, with demotion out of status appearing certain, he retired from professional competition. At his retirement press conference on 26 September 2024, Myōgiryū said that he was able to compete in sumo to the end so that he would have no regrets. He added that, despite his injuries, he was able to fight energetically and that he never thought he would be able to continue as an active wrestler until the age of 37. When asked about his most memorable bout in sumo, Myōgiryū replied that it was his win over Hakuhō in January 2013, which earned him the first of his six gold stars. He remains as a coach in the Sumo Association under the elder name Furiwake. Myōgiryū's retirement ceremony will be held on 5 October 2025 at the
Ryōgoku Kokugikan , also known as Ryōgoku Sumo Hall or Kokugikan Arena, is the name bestowed to two different indoor sporting arenas located in Tokyo. The first ''Ryōgoku Kokugikan'' opened its doors in 1909 and was located on the premises of the Ekōin temple i ...
.


Fighting style

Myōgiryū is a pusher thruster who preferred ''oshi-sumo'' techniques. His most common winning ''
kimarite is the technique used in sumo by a (wrestler) to win a match. It is officially decided or announced by the (referee) at the end of the match, though judge (sumo), judges can modify this decision. The records of are then kept for statistical ...
'' was , which accounted for 35% of his career victories. In his university days he was known for his ability to drop his hips low and move forward quickly, although his was diminished by the serious knee injury he suffered in his jūryō debut. In his fourteenth professional year, Myōgiryū spoke to ''
Yahoo! Sports Yahoo! Sports is a sports news website launched by Yahoo! on December 8, 1997. It receives a majority of its information from Stats Perform. It employs numerous writers, and has team pages for teams in almost every North American major sport. ...
'' about his longevity, mentioning above all that his key to longevity was his diet and the supplements he takes to build muscle mass.


Personal life

Myōgiryū announced in September 2017 that he registered his marriage to an old classmate from
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 ...
in June. Their first child was born in the same month. The wedding ceremony was held in June 2018.


Career record


See also

*
List of sumo tournament top division runners-up The table below lists the runners up ('' jun-yusho'') in the top ''makuuchi'' division at official sumo tournaments or ''honbasho'' since the six tournaments per year system was instituted in 1958. The runner up is determined by the wrestler(s) w ...
*
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 active gold star earners is a notation used in professional sumo wrestling to record a lower-ranked (''maegashira'') wrestler's victory over a ''yokozuna''. It is believed that the term stems from the usage of the terms ''shiroboshi'' (lit: white star) to designate a b ...
*
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 active sumo wrestlers The following is an alphabetical list of all active professional sumo wrestlers in the top ''makuuchi'' division, and all those currently in lower divisions who have a Wikipedia article. Please refer to professional sumo divisions for more informa ...
*
List of sekiwake This is a list of all sumo wrestlers whose pinnacle in the sport has been the third highest rank of '' sekiwake'' 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 ...
* Active special prize winners


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Myogiryu, Yasunari Living people Japanese sumo wrestlers People from Takasago, Hyōgo Sumo people from Hyōgo Prefecture 1986 births Sekiwake Nippon Sport Science University alumni