Tochinowaka Kiyotaka (born 22 May 1962 as Kiyotaka Kaseda) is a former sumo wrestler from

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...

, Japan. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 1985, reaching the top ''

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 ...

'' division in 1987. His highest rank was ''

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 was a runner-up in one tournament and earned six special prizes and four ''

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 ...

''. After 76 tournaments and 1114 bouts in the top division he retired in 1999. He is now an elder of the

Japan 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'' (active ...

and the head coach of

Kasugano stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi '' ichimon'' or group of stables. As of January 2022 it had 18 wrestlers. It has been led by former '' sekiwake'' Tochinowaka Kiyotaka since 2003. It was one of the most successful stables in 2 ...

Career

He was born in Shimotsu, Kaisō District. He was named Kiyotaka after the great ''

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 ...

'' of the 1950s,

Tochinishiki Kiyotaka was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Tokyo. He was the sport's 44th ''yokozuna''. He won ten top division ''yūshō'' or tournament championships and was a rival of fellow ''yokozuna'' Wakanohana I. He became the head coach of Kasuga ...

. He played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

in junior high school and ambitions to be a professional, but switched to sumo in high school due to his size. He was an amateur champion at Meiji University, and finished runner-up in the national collegiate ''yokozuna'' competition. He made his professional debut in March 1985 in 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 ...

'' division, having been given ''

makushita tsukedashi The following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. A B C D E F G H ...

'' status because of his amateur achievements. The first graduate of Meiji University to have a major impact in professional sumo, he quickly moved up the ranks, progressing through ''

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 ...

'' in just two tournaments and reaching the top ''

'' division in January 1987. He was also the first top division wrestler from Wakayama Prefecture for nearly 40 years. He reached his highest rank of ''sekiwake'' in September 1987, and defeated a ''yokozuna'' and two ''ozeki'' in his first three bouts at the rank. Tochinowaka remained in the top division for 76 tournaments, winning six special prizes and earning four gold stars for defeating ''yokozuna''. He was runner-up to

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 secon ...

in the tournament of March 1992 and looked set to launch a drive for ''

ozeki Ozeki or Ōzeki may refer to: * Ōzeki, a rank in ''Makuuchi'', the top division of professional sumo ** List of ōzeki * Ōzeki station (disambiguation), the name of two railway stations in Japan * Ōzeki Masutoshi (1849–1905), 16th daimyō o ...

'' promotion, but he was injured in the next tournament and had to withdraw. He made his last appearance in the ''

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

'' ranks in March 1994. He carried on fighting until the age of 37, retiring in July 1999 when he was the oldest man in the top division. He was utterly unable to defeat Musashimaru, losing to him 23 times in 23 meetings, and he also lost all 14 bouts he contested with Chiyonofuji. His wins over ''yokozuna'' were against Futahaguro in September 1987, Onokuni in January 1988, September 1988 and September 1989,

Hokutoumi is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Hokkaidō. He was the sport's 61st ''yokozuna'' and won eight top division championships. He wrestled for Kokonoe stable, as did Chiyonofuji, and the two were the first ''yokozuna'' stablemat ...

in January 1990, July 1991 and November 1991, and finally Takanohana in January 1997. He was a heavy smoker during his active days.

Fighting style

Tochinowaka was at his strongest when he could get a left hand outside, right hand inside grip on his opponent's ''

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 ...

'', or ''migi-yotsu''. His most commonly used techniques were '' yorikiri'','' oshi dashi'' and ''

uwatenage ''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 ...

.''

Retirement from sumo

Tochinowaka remained in the sumo world as a ''

toshiyori A is a sumo elder of the Japan Sumo Association (JSA). Also known as , former wrestlers who reached a sufficiently high rank are the only people eligible. The benefits are considerable, as only ''toshiyori'' are allowed to run and coach in su ...

'' or elder, initially under the name of Takenawa. In February 2003 his former stablemaster, ex ''yokozuna''

Tochinoumi was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Aomori. He was the sport's 49th '' yokozuna'', earning promotion in 1964. He was somewhat overshadowed by his ''yokozuna'' contemporaries Taihō and Kashiwado, but he was a noted technician and ear ...

, retired and passed on ownership of the Kasugano name and stable to him. Tochinowaka produced his first top division wrestler, Tochiozan, in May 2007, and

Tochinoshin ; ) is a Georgian professional sumo wrestler from Mtskheta. He is a member of the Kasugano stable and made his professional debut in March 2006. He reached the top ''makuuchi'' division just two years later in May 2008. After a long hiatus due t ...

and Kimurayama followed in May and July 2008. In 2009 Kasugano passed on his Tochinowaka ''

shikona A is a sumo wrestler's ring name. The tradition of ring names in sumo dates back to the Edo period, where they were used as a means to attract customers and hide the identities of the '' rikishi''. Like standard Japanese names, a ''shikona'' ...

'' to Lee Dae Won, a Korean born wrestler with Japanese citizenship, who reached ''juryo'' in September 2010 and ''makuuchi'' in May 2011. Kasugano also works as a judge of tournament bouts. He is on the board of directors of the

, and has been the head of the public relations department. and the regional tour department. In October 2011 he was severely reprimanded by the Sumo Association for beating Tochinoshin and two other wrestlers with a golf club after they repeatedly broke stable rules on curfews and wearing Western style clothes instead of ''

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

'' in public. Kasugano admitted responsibility and said, "I honestly think I went too far and I regret it." He took over the responsibility for running the regional tour department after Takanohana was removed from the position because of the assault by Harumafuji on

Takanoiwa Takanoiwa Yoshimori (born 26 February 1990 as Adiyagiin Baasandorj) is a retired sumo wrestler from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. He made his professional debut in January 2009. He has both a ''sandanme'' and a ''jūryō'' division championship. He reac ...

which occurred on a tour in October 2017. However Kasugano was himself severely warned after a top ''

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� ...

'' resigned over a sexual assault which happened on another tour in December 2017. In December 2019 his department ordered

Takagenji is a Japanese mixed martial artist and former professional sumo wrestler from Ibaraki Prefecture. He made his debut in March 2013 and reached the top ''makuuchi'' division in July 2019. He wrestled for the Takanohana and Tokiwayama stables. Hi ...

to take part in an exhibition while suffering from influenza, which prompted the Sumo Association's board to announce that in future affected wrestlers would be kept in isolation instead.

Career record

References

External links