was a

stable A stable is a building in which working animals are kept, especially horses or oxen. The building is usually divided into stalls, and may include storage for equipment and feed. Styles There are many different types of stables in use tod ...

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 ...

wrestlers, part of the Isegahama ''

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

'' or group of stables. It had a long history. It closed its doors in January 2015, and its staff and wrestlers transferred to other stables.

History

In its active period, Asahiyama stable was one of the oldest continually-running stables in sumo, dating back to 1896. At the time of its closing it was the only stable still in existence that could trace its lineage back directly to the days of the once-rival

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

sumo organization where it had a strong base, producing the 28th ''

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 ...

Ōnishiki Daigorō was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He was the sport's 28th ''Yokozuna (sumo), yokozuna''. Career He was born in Ama District, Aichi, Ama District, Aichi Prefecture, in what is now Yatomi, Aichi, Yatomi City. There are several conflict ...

in 1918. During the 1970s the stable was home to six

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

n wrestlers (including

Sione Vailahi Sione Havea Vailahi (born 6 September 1958) is a Tongan professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, The Barbarian. He is best known for his various stints with Jim Crockett Promotions, World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and WWE, World ...

and

Tonga Fifita Tonga Uliuli Fifita (born February 10, 1959) is a Tongan professional wrestler best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) under the ring name Haku and his appearances with ...

) recruited by former ''

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 ...

'' , but when he died in 1975 they were caught up in a succession dispute between former ''maegashira'' and the man who eventually became the new head, former ''

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 ...

'' Wakafutase. They sided with Futaseyama's widow, who preferred Ryūō to take over, and were ultimately dismissed by 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 ...

. As a result of the controversy sumo officials had to fly to Tonga to explain themselves to the country's king,

Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV (Siaosi Tāufaʻāhau Tupoulahi; 4 July 1918 – 10 September 2006) was List of monarchs of Tonga, King of Tonga from 1965 until his death in 2006. He was the tallest and heaviest Tongan monarch, weighing and measuring . ...

. Wakafutase led the stable until his death in 1997. He was succeeded by former '' ōzeki'' Daiju. When Daiju reached retirement age in 2015 with no clear successor, the stable was closed. A number of staff and coaches and all of the active wrestlers (all being in the unsalaried divisions) transferred to

Isegahama stable Isegahama stable was a heya (sumo), heya or stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Tatsunami-Isegahama ''ichimon,'' or group of stables. It was founded in 1859 by former ''komusubi'' Arakuma. It was led from 1929 by former ''sekiwake'' Kiyosegawa ...

(the head stable of the same ''

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

''), while all other remaining staff transferred to

Asakayama stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers. Previous incarnations with this stable name have existed, with the last being headed by former ''yokozuna'' Nishinoumi, and which folded in 1933. The current incarnation is part of the Isegahama ''ichimon'' or group ...

Ring name conventions

Many wrestlers in the later years at this stable took ring names or ''

shikona A is a sumo wrestler's ring name. The tradition of ring names in sumo dates back to the Muromachi period and established itself during the Edo period, where they were used as a means to hide the identities of the . Given by the master to his di ...

'' that began with the character 大 (read: dai), meaning large, in deference to their coach and the stable's owner, the former Daiju.

Owner

*1896-1916: 11th Asahiyama Shirōemon (former ''

'' Iwagatani) *1916-1918: 12th Asahiyama Daigorō ( the 28th ''yokozuna'' Ōnishiki) *1918-1943: 13th Asahiyama Shirōemon (former '' ōzeki'' Futasegawa) *1943-1959: 14th Asahiyama Shirōemon (former ''

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 ...

'' Futasegawa) *1959-1963: 15th Asahiyama Shirōemon (former ''sekiwake'' ) *1963-1975: 16th Asahiyama Shōgo (former ''maegashira'' ) *1975-1997: 17th Asahiyama Tadayuki (former ''

'' Wakafutase) *1997-2015: 18th Asahiyama Toshiaki ('' yakuin taigu iin'', former ''ōzeki'' Daiju)

Notable members

* Kōtetsuyama (former ''

'') * Daihishō (former ''

'') * Daimanazuru (former ''maegashira'') * (former ''maegashira'') * Tokusegawa (former ''maegashira'') * Oniarashi (best rank ''

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 ...

'') *

Yujiro Shirakawa is a Japanese actor and singer who is represented by the talent agency, G.P.R. Biography Shirakawa began his public career as a professional sumo wrestler ('' rikishi''). He decided to become a wrestler because he regularly watched sumo on TV ...

(best rank ''

jonidan 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 ...

'', later actor and singer)

Coach

*Kiriyama Kuniyuki ('' iin'', former ''komusubi'' Kurosegawa)

Assistants

* Shiraiwa Masatoshi (''wakaimonogashira'', former ''jūryō'', real name Masatoshi Satō) * Saisu Minoru (''sewanin'', former ''maegashira'', real name Minoru Saisu)

Ushers

*Hideo (''tate'' ''

yobidashi A , often translated in English as "usher", "ring attendant", or "ring announcer", is an employee of the Japan Sumo Association, responsible for various tasks essential to the traditional running of Sumo#Professional sumo, professional sumo tour ...

'', real name Hidehito Yamaki) *Kōji (''jūryō'' ''yobidashi'', real name Takuma Hatano)

Former hairdressers

*Tokoyodo (first class ''

tokoyama A is a traditional Japanese hairdresser specializing in the theatrical arts (kabuki and ) and Sumo#Professional sumo, professional sumo. The trade is the result of a slow evolution from the traditional Japanese barbers of the Edo period, some ...

'') *Tokosei (second class ''tokoyama'')

References

External links

Japan Sumo Association profile
{{coord, 35.6908, N, 139.8226, E, source:wikidata, display=title Defunct sumo stables Sports clubs and teams established in 1896 1896 establishments in Japan Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 2015 2015 disestablishments in Japan