Bouncing back from a first-ever defeat in professional sumo last March, 20-year-old Danylo Yavhusishin rattled off five straight wins to start the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament and ensure his charge up the rankings continues apace.
Though his latest streak came to an end on Wednesday at the hands of former collegiate standout Kusano, the Ukrainian youngster is 28-2 since making his debut last September, and remains on track to reach the sport’s salaried divisions by the end of the year.
It has been a whirlwind 12 months for the former evacuee, whose entry into Japan and ōzumō was facilitated by Arata Yamanaka — captain of Kansai University’s sumo club — whom he met at the 2019 Sumo World Championships in Osaka.