Chiyonofuji Mitsugu

千代の富士 貢
Chiyonofuji Mitsugu

Personal information
Birth name	Mitsugu Akimoto
Date of birth	June 1 1955 (1955--) (age 52)
Place of birth	Fukushima, Hokkaido
Height	m ()
Weight	127 kg (279 lb)
Career*
Heya	Kokonoe
Record	1045-437-159
Debut	September, 1970
Highest rank	Yokozuna (September, 1981)
Retired	May, 1991
Yusho	31 (Makuuchi) 1 (Makushita)
Special Prizes	Outstanding Performance (1) Fighting Spirit (1) Technique (5)
Gold stars	3 (Mienoumi (2), Wakanohana II)
* Career information is correct as of July 2007.

Chiyonofuji Mitsugu (千代の富士 貢, Chiyonofuji Mitsugu^?), born June 1, 1955, as Mitsugu Akimoto (秋元 貢, Akimoto Mitsugu^?) in Hokkaidō, is a former champion sumo wrestler and the 58th yokozuna of the sport.

Chiyonofuji was one of the greatest yokozuna of recent times, winning 31 tournament championships, second only to Taihō. He was particularly remarkable for his longevity in sumo's top rank. He won more tournaments in his thirties than any other wrestler and retired in his mid-thirties, in contrast to most recent yokozuna who have tended to retire around 30. He is the only professional sumo wrestler to have scored more than 1000 wins over his professional career, with over 800 of them coming in Makuuchi, sumo's top division.

In a sport where weight is often regarded as vital, Chiyonofuji was quite light at around 120 kg. He relied on a superior technique and muscle to defeat opponents. His nickname was "The Wolf" due to the piercing stare he gave his opponents in the pre-bout rituals. This nickname also seems to capture his character in his day-to-day life. Many have spoken of him as a man most comfortable in times of solitude.

Becoming Chiyonofuji

His name (千代の富士貢) was given to him by his stable master and was formed from the shikona of two previous yokozuna from his stable, Chiyonoyama and Kitanofuji. It is also an ode to his determination. As a young wrestler, Chiyonofuji was plagued by shoulder injuries. He was remarkable in his willingness to go the extra mile and train relentlessly beyond the level of his peers. Literally translated, 千代富士 means in English "1,000 generations of Fuji." "1,000 generations" is an idiom for "forever," and Fuji (Mount Fuji) is a national symbol sometimes associated with heroism. Hence, his master asked him to take the moniker as a challenge and a request - Chiyonofuji may be translated as "Please, always be our hero."

Early Career

Chiyonofuji began his career in 1970 at the age of 15. He reached the second highest (Juryo) division in November 1974 and was promoted to Makuuchi in September 1975. However, he lasted only one tournament before being demoted again, and subsequent injuries led to him falling all the way back to the unsalaried ranks. He finally won promotion back to the top division in January 1978. He won the Kantosho, or fighting spirit prize, in the May 1978 tournament and was promoted to sumo's fourth highest rank of Komusubi. Another injury in 1979 led to his briefly falling back to Juryo, but he fully recovered by 1980 and won the prestigious Ginosho, or technique award, in three successive tournaments. In January 1981 he captured his first yusho (tournament championship), defeating Yokozuna Kitanoumi, who had dominated sumo since the mid-1970s, in a playoff. This earned him promotion to sumo's second-highest rank of Ozeki. His second title that July saw him promoted to Yokozuna.

Yokozuna

Chiyonofuji had to pull out of his first tournament as a Yokozuna with an injury, but he returned to win the championship in November, defeating Asashio in a playoff. He was to win the Kyushu tournament eight years in a row from 1981 to 1988, a record dominance of any of the six honbasho. As his rival Kitanoumi went into a long slump, Chiyonofuji dominated sumo in 1982, winning four of the six tournaments. However over the next two years another Yokozuna Takanosato, emerged to challenge him, and he also suffered a number of injury problems. He was restricted to just one championship in the nine tournaments held from May 1983 to September 1984. But Kitanoumi retired in January 1985, with the aging Takanosato following a year later, and Chiyonofuji resumed his dominance. In 1986 he won five out of the six tournaments held, the first time this had been done since Kitanoumi in 1978. Despite being older, and lighter, than nearly all his opponents, his strength, skill, and phenomenal will to win meant he was almost unbeatable. In 1988 he went on a winning streak of 53 bouts, second in sumo history only to Futabayama's 69. The sequence began on the 7th day of the May 1988 tournament and continued through the July and September 1988 tournaments, ending only on the final day of the November 1988 tournament when he was defeated by Onokuni. Had he won that bout, he would have been the first wrestler ever to win three consecutive tournaments with 15-0 records. Nonetheless, his winning run was the best ever in the postwar period, surpassing the 45 bouts won by Taiho in 1968 and 1969. In September 1989 Chiyonofuji surpassed Oshio's record of 964 career wins, and by 1990 he was closing in on Taiho's record of 32 yusho. However, his 31st championship in November of that year proved to be his last. In the opening tournament of 1991, Chiyonofuji surpassed Kitanoumi's record of 804 top division wins but injured himself on the second day and had to withdraw. He returned in May, but after losing to the 18-year-old rising star Takahanada (later Yokozuna Takanohana), it was clear the game was up. He retired two days later, a few weeks short of his 36th birthday.

Retirement from the ring

After his retirement, he assumed the position of head (oyakata) of the Kokonoe-beya, which is a heya ("stable") of wrestlers. His name is now Kokonoe-oyakata. Under his direction, the Kokonoe-beya has produced some fine wrestlers, including Chiyotaikai, who has been ranked as ozeki for more tournaments than any other wrestler, and former komusubi Chiyotenzan.

Top Division Record

References

1. ^ Chiyonofuji Mitsugu Rikishi Information (English). Sumo Reference. Retrieved on 2007-07-31.

Related articles

• Glossary of sumo terms
• List of active sumo wrestlers
• List of yokozuna

External links

• Japan Sumo Association Biography

Donate to Wikimedia