Fujinishiki Akira (born Akira Watanabe, also known as Akira Ichimiya, 18 March 1937 – 17 December 2003) was a

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 Kofu, Yamanashi, Japan. His highest rank was ''

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 ...

,'' which he held on ten occasions. He won 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 tournament championship or ''

yūshō is the term for a championship in Japanese. This article focuses on championships in the sport of professional sumo. It is awarded in each of the six annual '' honbasho'' or official tournaments, to the wrestler who wins the most bouts. ''Yūs ...

'' in 1964 and was runner-up in two other tournaments. He won seven special prizes and seven gold stars for defeating ''

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 ...

.'' After his retirement in 1968 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 was the head coach of

Takasago stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Takasago group of stables. It is correctly written in Japanese as "髙砂部屋", but the first of these ''kanji'' is rare, and is more commonly written as "高砂部屋". History The stable was establ ...

from 1988 until shortly before his retirement from the Sumo Association in 2002. He died of

liver disease Liver disease, or hepatic disease, is any of many diseases of the liver. If long-lasting it is termed chronic liver disease. Although the diseases differ in detail, liver diseases often have features in common. Liver diseases File:Ground gla ...

in 2003.

Career

Making his debut in 1953, he wrestled for

, home of then ''yokozuna'' Azumafuji to whom the "Fuji" part of his ''

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 ...

'' referred. He first entered the top ''

'' division in 1959 and was runner-up in two tournaments that year, winning a special prize for Fighting Spirit in each. His highest rank was ''

'', which he first reached in 1960. He spent a total of ten tournaments at that rank, the last coming in 1967, but never managed to earn promotion to ''

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 never managed to win more than eight bouts as a ''komusubi'' but was somewhat unlucky not be promoted after two consecutive 8–7 records at the rank in 1961, and he was regarded as certainly being of ''sekiwake'' level in ability. He holds the modern record for most tournaments at ''komusubi'' without reaching ''sekiwake''. The highlight of his career came in July 1964 when he took the top division championship or ''

'' with a 14–1 record. He was ranked as a ''

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 ...

'' at the time and did not meet any '' ōzeki'' or ''

'' during the tournament. He defeated ''sekiwake''

Kitanofuji was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Asahikawa, Hokkaidō. He made his professional debut in 1957, reaching the top ''makuuchi'' division in 1964. He was the sport's 52nd ''yokozuna'', a rank he attained in 1970. He won ten tournament ...

on the final day, avoiding the need for a playoff with ''ōzeki'' Yutakayama. He was perhaps fortunate that ''yokozuna'' Taihō, who won four championships in that year alone, dropped out after five days. His ''tsukebito'' or personal attendant was

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

an born Takamiyama, later to become the first foreigner to win a championship, and Fujinishiki was one of the wrestlers who helped introduce him to sumo and Japanese culture. His mentorship of Takamiyama continued as a coach after his retirement from the ring.

Retirement from sumo

Following his retirement as an active wrestler in November 1968 he stayed at Takasago stable as a coach under the elder name of Nishiiwa. In 1988, he became head of the stable, following the death of former ''yokozuna'' Asashio Tarō III. He coached

Konishiki Saleva'a Fuauli Atisano'e (born December 31, 1963), better known by his stage name, , is an American-born Japanese former professional sumo wrestler. Franz LidzMeat Bomb, 05.18.92 - ''Sports Illustrated'' He was the first non-Japanese-born wrest ...

Mitoizumi Mitoizumi Masayuki (born 2 September 1962 as Masato Koizumi) is a former sumo wrestler from Mito, Ibaraki, Japan. His professional career spanned 22 years, from 1978 until 2000. The highest rank he reached was ''sekiwake''. He won over 800 caree ...

and amongst others. He also served on the

's board of directors. However, after his wrestler Tōki was involved in a car accident that killed a pedestrian in December 2000, he was punished by a demotion and a reduction in salary. In February 2002, in failing health, he passed on ownership of the stable to former ''ōzeki''

Asashio Tarō IV was a Japanese sumo wrestler from Muroto, Kōchi, Japan. His highest rank was '' ōzeki''. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 1978. He won one top division tournament championship and was a runner-up on four other occasions ...

, who merged his Wakamatsu stable with Takasago's. He let his former wrestler Mitoizumi use the old Takasago premises to launch Nishikido stable. He remained as a coach under the Wakamatsu name until his retirement the following month upon reaching 65, and continued to attend training sessions after that. He died of

in December 2003.

Fighting style

He specialized in pushing and thrusting techniques (''tsuki/oshi'') and was known for his strong ''

tachi-ai The is the initial charge between two sumo wrestlers at the beginning of a bout. It is a combination of two Japanese words that mean “stand” and “meet”. There are several common techniques that wrestlers use at the tachi-ai, with the a ...

'' or initial charge.

Personal life

His eldest son , born in 1969, is a

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

. His second eldest son Akihiro was once the personal manager of ''yokozuna'' Asashoryu (who was criticized for failing to attend Fujinishiki's funeral). It was Akihiro who was initially reported to have been punched by Asashoryu in a drunken brawl at a dance club in January 2010, although it soon emerged it was the manager of the club and this led to the ''yokozunas enforced retirement. He was seen in the 1967

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

film '' You Only Live Twice'', fighting in a bout against Kotozakura.

Career record

*''The Kyushu tournament was first held in 1957, and the Nagoya tournament in 1958.''

References