American wrestler Sentoryu formally stepped down from sumo's raised ring Wednesday in a retirement ceremony at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan.
Sentoryu, whose real name is Henry Armstrong Miller, had his top knot cut off in a traditional ceremony that was attended by family and friends, including former sumo wrestlers Akebono and Konishiki.
The 34-year-old Sentoryu, a native of St. Louis plans to follow in the footsteps of Akebono and take up a career in K-1, a sport that combines elements of kickboxing and karate and is tremendously popular in Japan.