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
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan.
...
,
Miyagi Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...
. He did not miss a single bout in his 22-year professional career, and held the record for the
most consecutive matches fought, at 1,630, until September 10, 2024 when
Tamawashi Ichirō broke the record with 1,631 consecutive bouts.
After his retirement from active competition he was an elder of the
Japan Sumo Association
The , officially the ; sometimes abbreviated JSA or NSK, and more usually called Sumo Kyōkai, is the governing body that operates and controls Professional sports, professional sumo wrestling, called , in Japan under the jurisdiction of the Min ...
and a coach.
Career
He made his debut in March 1964, joining
Nishonoseki stable. He reached 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 for the first time in January 1975. In only his fourth top division tournament he was a tournament runner-up, won a ''
sanshō'' (for Fighting Spirit) and earned a ''
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 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 ...
''. He was never to achieve any of those things again, but he fought in the top division for 62 tournaments in total. 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 in September 1975 at ''
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 in October of that year he followed the former ''
ōzeki''
Daikirin to the newly established
Oshiogawa stable was a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Nishonoseki group of stables. In its modern form it dates from March 1975 when it was founded by Daikirin, a former Nishonoseki stable wrestler. It produced eleven ''sekitori'' in total, such as Masurao ...
.
He dropped into 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 1981, but fought his way back, and an 8-7 score at ''
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 ...
'' 1 in May 1983 took him to his highest rank of ''
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 ...
'', which he held for just one tournament. This was his second and final appearance in the ''san'yaku'' ranks, 47 tournaments after his first - the longest such gap since the six tournaments per year schedule began in 1958. It had also taken him 116 tournaments from his professional debut to reach ''sekiwake'', which is the slowest ever. In 1985 he surpassed
Fujizakura's record of 1,543 consecutive career appearances, and when he retired in July 1986, having not missed any matches since his debut, he had set a new record of 1,630 consecutive bouts. He was nearly 38 years old, having been an active wrestler for over 22 years.
Retirement from sumo
After retirement from active competition he became an
elder in the
Japan Sumo Association
The , officially the ; sometimes abbreviated JSA or NSK, and more usually called Sumo Kyōkai, is the governing body that operates and controls Professional sports, professional sumo wrestling, called , in Japan under the jurisdiction of the Min ...
(at Deputy Director level) under the name Shiranui Oyakata. He coached at the
Oshiogawa and
Oguruma stables and reached the Sumo Association's mandatory retirement age of 65 in November 2013.
Fighting style
Aobajo was a ''yotsu-sumo'' wrestler, preferring a ''hidari-yotsu'', or right hand outside, left 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 .
''Mawashi''
''Sekitori'' During competition
For top ranked profess ...
''. 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 ''yori-kiri'' (force out). He also regularly used ''tsuri-dashi'' (the lift out) and ''sukuinage'' (the scoop throw).
Career record
See also
*
List of sumo record holders
This is a list of records held by wrestlers of professional sumo. Only performances in official tournaments or '' honbasho'' are included here. Since 1958, six ''honbasho'' have been held every year, giving wrestlers from the modern era more oppor ...
*
List of sumo tournament top division runners-up
*
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 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 ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aobajo, Yukio
1948 births
Living people
Japanese sumo wrestlers
Sportspeople from Sendai
Sumo people from Miyagi Prefecture
Sekiwake