Veteran Mongolian-born maegashira Kyokutenho, who has wrestled in a record 1,470 bouts in the elite makuuchi division, on Monday announced his retirement as an active sumo wrestler, saying he has reached his physical limit.
"I have run out of strength and don't have the spirit anymore," the 40-year-old Kyokutenho, whose real name is Masaru Ota, told a news conference a day after the conclusion of the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament.
The Japan Sumo Association the same day approved Kyokutenho's inheritance of the sumo elder name Oshima.