is a

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

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 ...

wrestlers, one of the Takasago group of stables. It was formed in 1967 and until 2021 was located in Ishiwara, Sumida, Tokyo. As of November 2022 it had 27 sumo wrestlers, four of whom are of '' sekitori'' rank. It is the most successful stable in terms of total '' yūshō'' won by its wrestlers, with 52.

History

Former '' yokozuna'' Chiyonoyama of Dewanoumi stable had wanted to succeed to the Dewanoumi name, but the then Dewanoumi stablemaster (former wrestler Dewanohana) had already decided to pass the name to former ''yokozuna'' Sadanoyama. Accordingly, in January 1967, he set up his own stable, taking with him, amongst others, then '' ōzeki'' Kitanofuji and attaching the new stable to the Takasago group of stables. After Chiyonoyama died in 1977, Kitanofuji, who had already revived Izutsu stable, became the 11th Kokonoe-''oyakata'', merging his stable with Kokonoe's and giving up the Izutzu elder name. He raised

Chiyonofuji , born , was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler and the 58th ''yokozuna'' of the sport. Following his retirement as a wrestler, he was the stable master of Kokonoe stable until the time of his death. Chiyonofuji was considered one of the gre ...

, then a '' makuuchi'' wrestler, to the great ''yokozuna'' he became. Later he also saw Hokutoumi become a ''yokozuna''.

Takanofuji is a Japanese retired sumo wrestler (''rikishi''), professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. He competed in sumo from 1979 to 1992 under the '' shikona'' of Takanofuji Tadao, achieving the rank of ''komusubi'', and afterwards turned to pro ...

and Fujinoshin also reached the top division. In 1992, the year after Chiyonofuji retired from the ring, Kitanofuji handed over the stable to him. Chiyonofuji and Kitanofuji swapped names, Chiyonofuji becoming Kokonoe-''oyakata'' and gaining control of the stable, whilst Kitanofuji became Jinmaku-''oyakata'', attached to Hakkaku stable, set up by the former Hokutoumi in 1993. In the early 1990s Kokonoe stable was one of the largest in sumo but had only one '' sekitori'',

Tomoefuji Tomoefuji Toshihide (born 27 January 1971 as Toshihide Kurosawa) is a former sumo wrestler from Akita Prefecture, Japan. His highest rank was ''komusubi''. Career Born in Kazuno, he was scouted by ''yokozuna'' Chiyonofuji after winning several ...

. Kokonoe eventually produced Chiyotenzan, briefly a '' komusubi'' in 1999, and long serving '' ōzeki'' Chiyotaikai (1999–2009), his most successful wrestler. Following the retirements of Chiyotaikai in January 2010 and Chiyohakuhō in April 2011, the stable had no ''sekitori'' for a short time, but Chiyonokuni reached ''

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. F ...

'' in July 2011 and the top division in January 2012. Chiyotairyū followed afterwards and reached ''makuuchi'' in May 2012. By March 2014, Kokonoe stable was one of the most successful stables in sumo, with three men (Chiyotairyū, Chiyoōtori and Chiyomaru) in the top division and two (Chiyonokuni and Chiyono-ō) in ''jūryō''. In January 2016 the stable moved up to six ''sekitori'' with the promotion of Chiyoshōma, the most of any stable. As of September 2020 it remains at six, now level with Kise and one behind new leader Oitekaze. Chiyonofuji died in July 2016. Sanoyama-''oyakata'' (the former Chiyotaikai) succeeded him as the Kokonoe stablemaster. In February 2021 the stable moved to new premises in Okudo, Katsushika ward.

Ring name conventions

Traditionally many wrestlers at this stable, often on reaching the '' sandanme'' division, take ring names or '' shikona'' that begin with the characters 千代 (read: chiyo), meaning "a thousand generations", in deference to the founder, Chiyonoyama and also his later successor Chiyonofuji. As of March 2018, all wrestlers at the stable, including those in the bottom two divisions, have this prefix.

Owners

*2016–present: 14th Kokonoe ('' iin'', former '' ōzeki''

Chiyotaikai Ryūji Chiyotaikai Ryūji (born April 29, 1976 as Ryūji Hiroshima in Chitose, Hokkaidō), is a Japanese former sumo wrestler. He made his professional debut in 1992 and reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1997. He held the second highest rank of ' ...

) *1992-2016: 13th Kokonoe (former Chiyonofuji Mitsugu, the 58th ''yokozuna'') *1977-1992: 12th Kokonoe (former Kitanofuji Katsuaki, the 52nd ''yokozuna'') *1967-1977: 11th Kokonoe (former

Chiyonoyama Masanobu was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Fukushima, Hokkaidō. He was the sport's 41st '' yokozuna'' from 1951 until 1959. He is regarded as the first "modern" ''yokozuna'' in that he was promoted by the Japan Sumo Association itself an ...

, the 41st ''yokozuna'')

Notable active wrestlers

* Chiyoshōma (best rank ''maegashira'') * Chiyomaru (best rank '' maegashira'') * Chiyonokuni (best rank ''maegashira'') * (best rank ''maegashira'') * (best rank ''jūryō'') *

Chiyoarashi Chiyoarashi Yoshinobu ( ja, 千代嵐慶喜, chiyoarashi yoshinobu; born July 12, 1991, as Watanabe Yoshinobu) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Chiba Prefecture who wrestles for Kokonoe stable. He debuted in March 2007, and reached ...

(best rank ''jūryō'') * (best rank ''jūryō'')

Coach

*Tanigawa Hideki ('' shunin'', former ''sekiwake'' Hokutōriki) *Ōyama Yūki ('' toshiyori'', former ''komusubi'' Chiyoōtori)

Notable former members

* Kitanofuji ( the 52nd ''yokozuna'') *

( the 58th ''yokozuna'') * Hokutoumi ( the 61st ''yokozuna'') * Chiyotaikai (former '' ōzeki'') *

Kitaseumi is a former sumo wrestler from Kitahiyama, Hokkaidō, Japan. He made his professional debut in July 1964, and reached the top division in March 1972. His highest rank was ''sekiwake''. He retired in May 1979 and was active elder in the Japan S ...

(former '' sekiwake'') * Chiyotairyū (former '' komusubi'') * Chiyotenzan (former ''komusubi'') *

(former ''komusubi'') *

(former ''komusubi'')

Referees

*3rd Kimura Yōdō ('' san'yaku'' '' gyōji'', real name Yūji Horasawa) *Kimura Kōnosuke (''san'yaku'' ''gyōji'', real name Toshiaki Kojima)

Ushers

*Shigeo ('' san'yaku'' '' yobidashi'', real name Takumi Taniguchi) *Shigetarō (''

'' ''yobidashi'', real name Katsunori Hattori) *Kaito ('' jonidan'' ''yobidashi'', real name Keisuke Miyagi)

Hairdressers

*Tokotake (1st class '' tokoyama'') *Tokokyū (2nd class ''tokoyama'')

Location and access

Tokyo, Katsushika ward, Okudo

References

External links

Official site

Japan Sumo Association profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kokonoe Stable Active sumo stables