A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day.
Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup.
“I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going on,” Takerufuji said of his final win in a televised ringside interview.
Photo: AFP
His ascent to glory is the fastest in the traditional sport’s history.
It was only his 10th championship overall and took place just 18 months after he first set foot in sumo’s sacred dohyo ring as a competitor.
It is the first time since 1914 that a wrestler has won their first tournament in makuuchi, the top of sumo’s six divisions.
As is tradition, Takerufuji — whose real name is Mikiya Ishioka — was paraded through the streets of Osaka afterward in the back of a gleaming, open-top car as crowds waved and cheered.
He told reporters that on Saturday he had given up hope, after needing hospital treatment for an ankle-ligament injury that for a short while required the use of a wheelchair.
“At that point I had abandoned hope,” he said yesterday.
Then the highest-ranked wrestler, the yokozuna, “came to see me and he said: ‘You can do it. It’s not the result that counts, but the memory,’” he said.
Winning the tournament had been a “far-fetched dream, so I never thought I would make it this far,” he said.
Most of the top-ranked wrestlers had a tournament to forget after notching up multiple early losses, and the sole “grand champion,” Mongolian grappler Terunofuji, pulled out after the first week with a losing record.
“My stablemaster [manager] told me to pull out [after the injury], but I knew I would regret it for the rest of my life if I did,” Takerufuji said.
The young wrestler from Aomori in northern Japan has been rising fast, having only lost 10 times in 79 fights since his professional debut in September 2022.
He is so new that his hair has not yet grown long enough to be styled in the most elaborate top-knot worn by competitors, Japanese media said.
After winning the prestigious tournament, the 1.84m, 143kg Takerufuji was presented with a huge silver trophy.
His right ankle was bandaged and his thighs streaked with dirt.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS