Tōhakuryū Masahito (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

東白龍雅士, born April 17, 1996, as Masahito Shiraishi) is a professional Japanese sumo wrestler from

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

. Debuting in May 2019 as a ''

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

'', his highest rank is ''

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 ...

'' 2 and he currently wrestles for

Tamanoi stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Dewanoumi ''ichimon'' or group of stables. It was set up in 1990 by former ''sekiwake'' Tochiazuma Tomoyori, who branched off from Kasugano stable. He coached his son, who also wrestled under the name ...

Early life and sumo experience

Born in Tokyo, Shiraishi began sumo wrestling in the 4th grade of elementary school, going on to attend sumo classes at a dojo in Tokyo's

Katsushika is a special ward located in Tokyo, Japan. The ward calls itself Katsushika City in English. As of May 1, 2015, the ward has an estimated population of 444,356, and a population density of 12,770 people per km². The total area is 34.80 ...

Ward. He attended

Toyo University is a university with several branches in Japan, including Hakusan, Asaka, Kawagoe, Itakura, and Akabane. Overview The predecessor to Toyo University was , which was founded at Rinsho-in Temple by Enryo Inoue in 1887. Inoue felt that the ...

and in 2018 during his 4th year at the school, he won the individual division of the 97th All Japan Student Sumo Championship. Even though he was a skilled wrestler, he did not initially indicate interest in pursuing professional sumo, but he said that seeing the success of Takakeishō, whom he had wrestled with in elementary school, and

Mitakeumi is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Agematsu, Nagano. He is in the Dewanoumi stable. He is a pusher thruster-type wrestler. A former amateur champion at Toyo University, he made his professional debut in March 2015, reaching the top ' ...

who had been his senior at Toyo University, encouraged him to join professional sumo. While still in school, he had been invited to a party at

and as such, when he graduated from Toyo University in May 2019, he chose to join Tamanoi as a wrestler. He made his debut as a ''

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

'' entrant, beginning his career in the fourth highest ''

sandanme 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. For ...

'' division. A perfect 7–0 record saw him win the ''sandanme'' 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 his first tournament. Recording only one ''

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

'' or losing record on his way up the ranks, he had to sit out the September 2020 tournament after a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...

outbreak at his stable, but he returned in November to earn promotion to the ''

'' division after a 4–3 record at ''

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. For ...

'' 2. Up until this point he had been fighting under his family name of Shiraishi, but to mark the occasion he was given a new ''

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'' ...

'' of Tōhakuryū. He recorded a solid 8–7 record in his debut at ''

sekitori A ''sekitori'' (関取) is a '' rikishi'' (力士, sumo wrestler) who is ranked in one of the top two professional divisions: '' makuuchi'' and '' jūryō''. The name literally translates to having taken the barrier, as only a relatively small fr ...

'' level in January 2021, and has remained in the division since then, reaching a highest rank of ''jūryō'' 2 in July 2022. He had to withdraw from Day 11 of that tournament after a

outbreak at Tamanoi stable.

Fighting style

According to his

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'' (activ ...

profile, Tōhakuryū favours thrusting and pushing (''tsuki/oshi'') techniques. His most common winning ''

kimarite ''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 ...

'' are ''hatakikomi'' (slap down) and ''oshidashi'' (push out).

Career record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tohakuryu, Masahito Japanese sumo wrestlers 1996 births Living people Sumo people from Tokyo

Early life and sumo experience

Fighting style

Career record

See also

References

External links