The Japan Sumo Association, officially the Public Interest Incorporated Foundation Japan Sumo Association ; sometimes abbreviated JSA or NSK, and more usually called Sumo Kyōkai, is the governing 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).
Kitanoumi Toshimitsu, born Toshimitsu Obata, was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He was the dominant wrestler in the sport during the 1970s. Kitanoumi was promoted to yokozuna at the age of 21, becoming the youngest ever to achieve sumo's top rank. He won 24 tournament championships during his career and was one of a series of truly great yokozuna who came from Hokkaido, the largest and northernmost prefecture of Japan. At the time of his death he still held the records for most tournaments at yokozuna (63) and most bouts won as a yokozuna (670), but they have since been surpassed. Following his retirement in 1985 he established the Kitanoumi stable. He was chairman of the Japan Sumo Association from 2002 until 2008, and again from 2012 until his death.
A toshiyori (年寄), also known as an oyakata (親方), is a sumo elder exercising both coaching functions with active wrestlers and responsibilities within the Japan Sumo Association (JSA). All toshiyori are former wrestlers who reached a sufficiently high rank to be eligible to this status. The benefits are considerable, as toshiyori are guaranteed employment until the mandatory retirement age of 65 and are allowed to run and coach in heya, with a comfortable yearly salary averaging around ¥15 million.
In professional sumo wrestling, a heya or beya, most commonly and metaphorically translated in English as "stable", but also known as "training quarters", or "fraternity", is an organization of wrestlers where they train and live in a "quasi-monastic and militaristic lifestyle".
Takashi is a masculine Japanese given name.
Tokitsuumi Masahiro is a former professional sumo wrestler from Fukue, Nagasaki, Japan. A former amateur sumo champion, he turned professional in 1996. His highest rank was maegashira 3. He became the head coach of Tokitsukaze stable in 2007 following the dismissal of the previous stablemaster. He was asked to retire by the Japan Sumo Association in February 2021 for violating COVID-19 safety protocols.
Futatsuryū Jun'ichi was a sumo wrestler from Hokkaidō, Japan. After retirement he became the head coach of Tokitsukaze stable. Following his involvement in the hazing and death of trainee Takashi Saito, in October 2007 he became the first serving stablemaster to be dismissed by the Japan Sumo Association. In May 2009 he was sentenced to six years in prison. He died on August 12, 2014, of lung cancer.
The Tokitsukaze stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers in Japan, one of the Tokitsukaze group of stables. It was founded in 1769 and was dominant during the Taishō period.
Minato stable is a stable of sumo wrestlers, formerly part of the Tokitsukaze ichimon or group of stables. It was founded in 1982 by former komusubi Yutakayama, who branched off from Tokitsukaze stable. Minato-oyakata studied at the Tokyo University of Agriculture, and due to his interest in academia his stable was the first to introduce a library on its premises. Until the arrival of Ichinojō, the stable had produced just one makuuchi division wrestler, Minatofuji, who reached a highest rank of maegashira 2 in 1995 and later became a coach at the stable under the name Tatsutagawa. In July 2010 Minato and Tatsutagawa swapped roles. In the same month the Chinese wrestler Nakanokuni earned promotion to the jūryō division. In December 2017 Minato-oyakata left the Tokitsukaze ichimon, leaving the stable unaffiliated to any group. As of January 2023, it had 11 wrestlers. In September 2018 it joined the Nishonoseki ichimon.
The following are the events in professional sumo during the year 2008.
The following are the events in professional sumo during 2009.
The following are the events in professional sumo during 2007.
Tosayutaka Yūya is a former sumo wrestler from Tosa City, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. He made his professional debut in March 2007, reaching the top makuuchi division in July 2009. His highest rank was maegashira 1. After a long hiatus due to injury, he worked his way back up the ranks, logging several lower division championships on the way. In January 2015 he finally reached the top division again after an 18 tournament absence. His comeback from sandanme 84 was the lowest any wrestler since World War II has fallen and still managed to again reach the top division, until surpassed by Terunofuji. After further injury setbacks he announced his retirement in January 2016. He became stablemaster of Tokitsukaze stable in February 2021 after the Japan Sumo Association asked the previous stablemaster to retire.
The following are the events in professional sumo during 2010.
Aogiyama Hideki is a former sumo wrestler from Hikone, Shiga, Japan. He made his professional debut in March 1985, and reached the top division in March 1993. His highest rank was maegashira 1. He retired in November 2003, and he is an elder in the Japan Sumo Association under the name Edagawa.
Zaōnishiki Toshimasa, birth name Toshimasa Adachi, was a sumo wrestler from Yamagata, Japan. He made his professional debut in September 1970, and reached the top division in November 1976. His highest rank was maegashira 1. He retired in January 1983 and served as an elder in the Japan Sumo Association under several successive names. He reached the retirement age for elders of 65 in September 2017, but stayed with the Sumo Association for an additional two years as a consultant.
Professional sumo has had several controversies over its long history. These include proven allegations of match-fixing to hazing.
There was a series of cannabis scandals in professional sumo beginning in August 2008. Four sekitori ranked wrestlers, Wakanohō, Rohō, Hakurozan and Wakakirin, were dismissed from professional sumo, and the chairman of the Japan Sumo Association (JSA), Kitanoumi Toshimitsu, resigned his post to take the blame. It was the first case in which active wrestlers have been dismissed from sumo. After that, the JSA added rules that any retirement package for dismissed members would be reduced or denied, and that those who use illegal drugs would be dismissed without benefits. Many Japanese news and some English news, such as BBC News and The Daily Telegraph, reported on the scandal. According to The Japan Times, it was the largest sports scandal of drugs that Japan had ever seen.
Ishinriki Kōji is a former sumo wrestler from Suginami, Tokyo, Japan. His highest rank was jūryō 1. He was one of the smallest sekitori ever at 175 cm and 85 kg (187 lb). After his retirement in 1990 he became a professional wrestler for a number of organizations including Super World of Sports, WAR, Pro Wrestling Crusaders and IWA Japan.
Takashi Saito is a Japanese baseball player.
