Kagamisato Kiyoji
Encyclopedia
Kagamisato Kiyoji was a sumo
wrestler from Aomori Prefecture
, Japan
. He was the sport's 42nd Yokozuna.
. He came from a poor family as his father had died when he was very young, and he had to support his mother when his older siblings left the house. He was already large as a teenager and soon spotted by a wrestler named Kagamiiwa and invited to join sumo. More interested in basketball
, and with his mother also reluctant, the young Okuyama initially refused, but after his family was provided with financial assistance he eventually travelled to Tokyo
to repay Kagamiiwa's kindness. In the summer of 1940, he joined the now retired Kagamiiwa's Kumegawa stable. He made his professional debut in January 1941 and was given the shikona
or sumo name of Kagamisato. When the great yokozuna Futabayama Sadaji
established his own stable, Kagamisato followed his stablemaster there, and it was later renamed Tokitsukaze stable
).
He was promoted to the top makuuchi
division in June 1947. In October 1949 he defeated two yokozuna and produced a fine 12-3 score, also becoming the first wrestler to win two special prizes
in the same tournament. He was promoted from the maegashira ranks to sekiwake, third from the top. He reached the second highest ozeki rank just four tournaments after that. Having been a runner-up on four previous occasions, he reached the top yokozuna rank after finally winning his first top division championship in January 1953. There had been four yokozuna competing in that tournament, but all had performed badly, with Terukuni announcing his retirement. Keen to have a strong yokozuna, the Japan Sumo Association
overrode the initial objections of the Yokozuna Deliberation Committee and promoted him.
During his yokozuna career he won three more tournament titles, all with 14-1 scores, but also had some less impressive results. A somewhat reserved figure, he was perhaps less popular with the public than some of his higher profile yokozuna rivals such as Tochinishiki and Wakanohana I
. He also had a difficult relationship with the press.
In the January 1958 tournament, his rival Yoshibayama Junnosuke
retired from being an active sumo wrestler. Kagamisato announced that if he failed to win at least ten bouts, he too would retire. He finished 9-6 and kept his word by announcing his retirement on the final day. He had had a chronic knee problem for many years and felt he had reached his physical limit.
to take over. As a result he switched to the Tatsutagawa elder name and opened up his own Tatsutagawa stable in 1971. He reached the mandatory retirement age in April 1988 and stood down, passing the stable over to former sekiwake Aonosato. He had not managed to produce any top division wrestlers in that time. He remained a heavy man, weighing around 110 kg in his later years, but he still lived until the age of 80, making him one of the longest lived yokozuna of all time.
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!Summer
!Autumn
|-
|1947
| no tournament held
| East Maegashira #14 (7-3)
| East Maegashira #8 (5-6)
|-
|1948
| no tournament held
| East Maegashira #10 (6-5)
| East Maegashira #9 (6-5)
|-
|1949
| West Maegashira #7 (8-5)
|East Maegashira #4 (8-7)
|East Maegashira #1 (12-3)OF☆☆
|-
|1950
| East Sekiwake (11-4)
|East Sekiwake (9-6)
|East Sekiwake (8-7)
|-
|1951
|West Sekiwake (11-4)
|West Ōzeki (10-5)
|West Ōzeki (12-3)
|-
|1952
|East Ōzeki (11-4)
|West Ōzeki (11-4)
|East Ōzeki (12-3)
|-
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!March
!May
!September
|-
|1953
|bgcolor=#66FF00|East Ōzeki (14-1)
|West Yokozuna (10-5)
|West Yokozuna (12-3)
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|-
|1954
|East Yokozuna (13-2)
|East Yokozuna (10-5)
|East Yokozuna (11-4)
|West Yokozuna (9-6)
|-
|1955
|East Yokozuna (10-5)
|West Yokozuna (4-5-6)
|East Yokozuna (11-4)
|bgcolor=#66FF00|West Yokozuna (14-1)
|-
|1956
|bgcolor=#66FF00|East Yokozuna (14-1-P)
|East Yokozuna (8-7)
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|bgcolor=#66FF00|West Yokozuna (14-1)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!March
!May
!July
!September
!November
|-
|1957
|East Yokozuna (3-5-7)
|West Yokozuna (11-4)
|West Yokozuna (10-5)
| no tournament held
|West Yokozuna (8-7)
|bgcolor=gray|Sat out due to injury
|-
|1958
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|x
|x
|x
|x
|x
|-
{|
| Green Box=Tournament Championship
| F= Fighting Spirit Prize
| O= Outstanding Performance Prize
| T= Technique Prize
| ☆= Number of Kinboshi
.
|}
Sumo
is a competitive full-contact sport where a wrestler attempts to force another wrestler out of a circular ring or to touch the ground with anything other than the soles of the feet. The sport originated in Japan, the only country where it is practiced professionally...
wrestler from Aomori Prefecture
Aomori Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku Region. The capital is the city of Aomori.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Aomori prefecture was known as Mutsu Province....
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He was the sport's 42nd Yokozuna.
Career
He was born Kiyoji Okuyama in a small fishing village in Sannohe DistrictSannohe District, Aomori
is a district located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It occupies the southeast corner of the prefecture, bordering Iwate Prefecture.As of 2010, the district has an estimated population of 73,955 and a density of 76.3 persons per km². The total area was 969.38 km².- Towns and villages :The...
. He came from a poor family as his father had died when he was very young, and he had to support his mother when his older siblings left the house. He was already large as a teenager and soon spotted by a wrestler named Kagamiiwa and invited to join sumo. More interested in basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and with his mother also reluctant, the young Okuyama initially refused, but after his family was provided with financial assistance he eventually travelled to Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
to repay Kagamiiwa's kindness. In the summer of 1940, he joined the now retired Kagamiiwa's Kumegawa stable. He made his professional debut in January 1941 and was given the shikona
Shikona
A shikona is a sumo wrestler's ring name.As with standard Japanese names, a shikona consists of a 'surname' and a 'given' name, and the full name is written surname first. However, the given name is rarely used outside formal or ceremonial occasions. Thus, the former yokozuna Asashōryū Akinori is...
or sumo name of Kagamisato. When the great yokozuna Futabayama Sadaji
Futabayama Sadaji
Futabayama Sadaji , born as Akiyoshi Sadaji in Oita Prefecture, Japan, was the 35th Yokozuna in sumo wrestling, from 1937 until 1945. He won twelve top division championships and had a winning streak of 69 consecutive bouts, an all-time record. Despite his dominance he was extremely popular with...
established his own stable, Kagamisato followed his stablemaster there, and it was later renamed Tokitsukaze stable
Tokitsukaze stable
The is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Tokitsukaze group of stables. It was originally founded in 1769 and was dominant during the Taishō period. In its modern form it dates from 1941 when it was established by Futabayama, who was still an active wrestler at the time. Initially known as...
).
He was promoted to the top makuuchi
Makuuchi
or is the top division of professional sumo. Its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers , ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments....
division in June 1947. In October 1949 he defeated two yokozuna and produced a fine 12-3 score, also becoming the first wrestler to win two special prizes
Sansho (Sumo)
Sanshō are the three special prizes awarded to top division sumo wrestlers for exceptional performance during a sumo honbasho or tournament. The prizes were first awarded in November 1947.-Criteria:...
in the same tournament. He was promoted from the maegashira ranks to sekiwake, third from the top. He reached the second highest ozeki rank just four tournaments after that. Having been a runner-up on four previous occasions, he reached the top yokozuna rank after finally winning his first top division championship in January 1953. There had been four yokozuna competing in that tournament, but all had performed badly, with Terukuni announcing his retirement. Keen to have a strong yokozuna, the Japan Sumo Association
Japan Sumo Association
The is the body that operates and controls professional sumo wrestling in Japan under the jurisdiction of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Rikishi , gyōji , tokoyama , and yobidashi , are all on the Association's payroll, but the organisation is run...
overrode the initial objections of the Yokozuna Deliberation Committee and promoted him.
During his yokozuna career he won three more tournament titles, all with 14-1 scores, but also had some less impressive results. A somewhat reserved figure, he was perhaps less popular with the public than some of his higher profile yokozuna rivals such as Tochinishiki and Wakanohana I
Wakanohana Kanji I
was a sumo wrestler, the sport's 45th Yokozuna .Wakanohana's younger brother was the late former ozeki Takanohana Kenshi and he was the uncle of Takanohana Koji and Wakanohana Masaru...
. He also had a difficult relationship with the press.
In the January 1958 tournament, his rival Yoshibayama Junnosuke
Yoshibayama Junnosuke
Yoshibayama Junnosuke , real name Junnosuke Ikeda, was a sumo wrestler from Atsuta, Hokkaidō, Japan. He was the sport's 43rd Yokozuna. He suffered a number of injuries and only one won tournament championship, but he was a popular wrestler...
retired from being an active sumo wrestler. Kagamisato announced that if he failed to win at least ten bouts, he too would retire. He finished 9-6 and kept his word by announcing his retirement on the final day. He had had a chronic knee problem for many years and felt he had reached his physical limit.
Retirement from sumo
After his retirement he remained with the Sumo Association as an elder. He briefly became head of Tokitsukaze stable after the death of Futabayama but was forced out as Futabayama's widow wanted YutakayamaYutakayama Katsuo
Yutakayama Katsuo is a former sumo wrestler from Niigata, Japan. His highest rank was ozeki. Although he never managed to win a top division tournament championship he was a runner-up on eight occasions...
to take over. As a result he switched to the Tatsutagawa elder name and opened up his own Tatsutagawa stable in 1971. He reached the mandatory retirement age in April 1988 and stood down, passing the stable over to former sekiwake Aonosato. He had not managed to produce any top division wrestlers in that time. He remained a heavy man, weighing around 110 kg in his later years, but he still lived until the age of 80, making him one of the longest lived yokozuna of all time.
Top division record
*The different tables represent a change in the tournament system over the years{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!Summer
!Autumn
|-
|1947
| no tournament held
| East Maegashira #14 (7-3)
| East Maegashira #8 (5-6)
|-
|1948
| no tournament held
| East Maegashira #10 (6-5)
| East Maegashira #9 (6-5)
|-
|1949
| West Maegashira #7 (8-5)
|East Maegashira #4 (8-7)
|East Maegashira #1 (12-3)OF☆☆
|-
|1950
| East Sekiwake (11-4)
|East Sekiwake (9-6)
|East Sekiwake (8-7)
|-
|1951
|West Sekiwake (11-4)
|West Ōzeki (10-5)
|West Ōzeki (12-3)
|-
|1952
|East Ōzeki (11-4)
|West Ōzeki (11-4)
|East Ōzeki (12-3)
|-
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!March
!May
!September
|-
|1953
|bgcolor=#66FF00|East Ōzeki (14-1)
|West Yokozuna (10-5)
|West Yokozuna (12-3)
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|-
|1954
|East Yokozuna (13-2)
|East Yokozuna (10-5)
|East Yokozuna (11-4)
|West Yokozuna (9-6)
|-
|1955
|East Yokozuna (10-5)
|West Yokozuna (4-5-6)
|East Yokozuna (11-4)
|bgcolor=#66FF00|West Yokozuna (14-1)
|-
|1956
|bgcolor=#66FF00|East Yokozuna (14-1-P)
|East Yokozuna (8-7)
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|bgcolor=#66FF00|West Yokozuna (14-1)
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 120%"
|-
!
!New Year
!March
!May
!July
!September
!November
|-
|1957
|East Yokozuna (3-5-7)
|West Yokozuna (11-4)
|West Yokozuna (10-5)
| no tournament held
|West Yokozuna (8-7)
|bgcolor=gray|Sat out due to injury
|-
|1958
|East Yokozuna (9-6)
|x
|x
|x
|x
|x
|-
- The wrestler's East/West designation, rank, and win/loss record are listed for each tournament.
- A third figure in win-loss records represents matches sat-out during the tournament (usually due to injury)
- an X signifies the wrestler had yet to reach the top division at that point in his career
- "P" designates a win or loss of additional playoff bout(s) for the championship because two or more wrestlers finished with identical records
{|
| Green Box=Tournament Championship
| F= Fighting Spirit Prize
Sansho (Sumo)
Sanshō are the three special prizes awarded to top division sumo wrestlers for exceptional performance during a sumo honbasho or tournament. The prizes were first awarded in November 1947.-Criteria:...
| O= Outstanding Performance Prize
Sansho (Sumo)
Sanshō are the three special prizes awarded to top division sumo wrestlers for exceptional performance during a sumo honbasho or tournament. The prizes were first awarded in November 1947.-Criteria:...
| T= Technique Prize
Sansho (Sumo)
Sanshō are the three special prizes awarded to top division sumo wrestlers for exceptional performance during a sumo honbasho or tournament. The prizes were first awarded in November 1947.-Criteria:...
| ☆= Number of Kinboshi
Kinboshi
Kinboshi is a notation used in professional sumo wrestling to record a lower-ranked wrestler's victory over a yokozuna....
.
|}
See also
- Glossary of sumo termsGlossary of sumo termsThe following words are terms used in sumo wrestling in Japan. azukari : Hold. A kind of draw. After a mono-ii, the gyōji or the shimpan "holds" the result if it was too close to call...
- List of past sumo wrestlers
- List of sumo tournament winners
- List of yokozuna