(born 14 October 1964 as Kazuyasu Hato) 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 t ...

wrestler and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

from

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

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 n ...

. He began his sumo career in 1980, reaching the top division in 1989. He was one of the lightest men in

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 o ...

. but he nevertheless reached the fourth highest 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 won four special prizes. After retiring in 1996 he was elected to the Japanese

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

, serving until 2000. He is now a businessman.

Sumo career

Kyokudozan was born in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

, but moved to his mother's hometown of

Tokunoshima , also known in English as is an island in the Amami archipelago of the southern Satsunan Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, in area, has a population of approximately 27,000. The island is divided into three administrative ...

in Ōshima District as a child. In high school he was offered a

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

scholarship, but he opted for sumo. He joined the newly formed

Ōshima stable was a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Tatsunami '' ichimon'' or group of stables. It was set up in 1980 by former '' ōzeki'' Asahikuni, who branched off from Tatsunami stable. The head of Tatsunami stable opposed the setting up of the ne ...

, making his professional debut in May 1980. He was one of the lightest sumo wrestlers ever, capable of running the 100 metres in 11 seconds. He did not reach 100 kg in weight until 1989, the year he was promoted to the top ''

'' division. Kyokudozan stayed in the top division for 48 tournaments. Mainoumi was the only ''makuuchi'' wrestler lighter than himself during this period. In May 1992 he defeated '' ōzeki''

Konishiki Saleva'a Fuauli Atisano'e (born December 31, 1963), professionally known as is an American former sumo wrestler.Franz LidzMeat Bomb, 05.18.92 - ''Sports Illustrated'' He was the first non-Japanese-born wrestler to reach '' ōzeki'', the second ...

, winner of the previous tournament and some 150 kg heavier than him, with the rare leg-sweeping technique '' ketaguri.'' In September 1992 he reached his highest rank of ''komusubi.'' Unusually for someone making their ''

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

'' debut he was able to hold his rank. For this he was awarded the '' Kantō-shō'', or Fighting Spirit prize. In March 1993 he defeated the newly crowned ''

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 on ...

'' Akebono to earn his only ''

kinboshi 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 bo ...

.''

Political career

In October 1996 Kyokudozan submitted his retirement papers to the

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'' (activ ...

and announced he would run for election to the

Diet of Japan The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (, '' Sangiin''). Both houses are directly elected under a paral ...

. He stood for the New Frontier Party and was elected to the lower

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, representing the

Kansai region The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropoli ...

. When his party was disbanded he joined the New Peace Party (now

New Komeito , formerly New Komeito and abbreviated NKP, is a conservative political party in Japan founded by lay members of the Buddhist Japanese new religious movement Soka Gakkai in 1964. Since 2012, it has served in government as the junior coalit ...

) before continuing as an independent. In May 2000 he announced he would not stand in the next general election and was retiring from politics.

Later career

Kyokudozan subsequently moved to

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

, where he set up a business, running a health food company. He was also involved in local politics in the area. In 2008 he attended the retirement ceremony of former stablemate Kyokutenzan. He also occasionally commentates on sumo broadcasts. His younger brother remains in sumo, as a ''

gyōji A ''gyōji'' () is a referee in professional sumo wrestling in Japan. ''Gyōji'' usually enter the sumo world as teenagers and remain employees of the Sumo Association until they retire aged 65. There are currently a little over 40 active ''gy� ...

'' or referee, and is known as Kimura Hisanosuke. He is affiliated to Tomozuna stable (where all Ōshima stable personnel moved to upon its closure) and referees at ''makuuchi'' level.

Fighting style

Despite his light weight Kyokudozan preferred ''yotsu-sumo'' techniques, fighting his opponent at close quarters on the ''

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 . For top ranked professional , it is made of silk and comes in a v ...

.'' His favourite grip was ''migi-yotsu'', with his left hand outside and right hand inside his opponent's arms. His most common winning

kimarite ''Kimarite'' ( ja, 決まり手) is the technique used in sumo by a '' rikishi'' (wrestler) to win a match. It is officially decided or announced by the '' gyōji'' (referee) at the end of the match, though judges can modify this decision. The r ...

was ''yorikiri'' (force out), but he also regularly used his left hand grip to win with ''uwatenage'', or outer arm throw.

Career record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kyokudozan Kazuyasu 1964 births Living people Japanese sumo wrestlers Sumo people from Kagoshima Prefecture Komusubi Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) Japanese sportsperson-politicians People from the Amami Islands New Frontier Party (Japan) politicians 20th-century Japanese politicians New Komeito politicians