Popular rikishi Kotoshogiku and Gagamaru retire from sumo
Veteran ozeki Kotoshogiku hanging up his mawashi means there are now only four men in makuuchi still active who reached the sport’s top division before the start of 2010.
Former ozeki and 15-year makuuchi stalwart Kotoshogiku retires
Former ozeki Kotoshogiku, the oldest wrestler in sumo's top two divisions, has officially retired from competition and will take on the role of a toshiyori elder under the name Hidenoyama at the Sadogatake stable, the Japan Sumo Association said Sunday. The 36-year-old makuuchi-division stalwart had ...
The oldest active sekitori, or a member of the two upper divisions in sumo, Kotoshogiku made his debut in January 2002 and earned promotion to ozeki in 2011.
Kotoshogiku experienced brief but memorable time in spotlight
There are eight active wrestlers who have spent time at sumo's second-highest rank. Two of them, Hakuho and Kakuryu, went on to greater things, getting promoted to yokozuna in 2007 and 2014 respectively. Another pair, Takakeisho and Goeido, are still ensconced in the ozeki ranks, while ...
Hometown favorite Kotoshogiku picked up his first win of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament on Thursday, defeating previously unbeaten overnight leader Shodai and pulling him back to the pack. The No. 9 maegashira briefly turned back the clock to his ozeki days as he quickly ...
Yokozuna Kakuryu reclaimed the sole lead at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament on Saturday as yokozuna rival Hakuho suffered a shock loss to former ozeki Kotoshogiku with one day remaining at the 15-day tournament. Kakuryu will go into the final day with a one-win lead ...
Title appears up for grabs at upcoming Nagoya Basho
Commentators often divide sumo into eras, each defined by its outstanding rivalry. Whether it's Akebono vs. Takanohana, Taiho against Kashiwado or Tochinoshiki taking on Wakanohana, great yokozuna pairings have traditionally been the standard way to separate one generation of rikishi from the next. So dominant has ...
Yokozuna Kakuryu earned his third straight win on Tuesday and gained some breathing room as all three ozeki were defeated on Day 3 of the 15-day Summer Grand Sumo Tournament. The yokozuna survived a scare against top-ranked maegashira Kotoshogiku (1-2), when the former ozeki's elbow ...
Sekiwake Mitakeumi stayed unbeaten Saturday to hold onto the sole lead at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament. Fighting in his ninth-straight tournament among the three sanyaku rankings beneath yokozuna, Mitakeumi kept a breakthrough top-level title in his sights by beating veteran Kotoshogiku on Day 7 ...
Kakuryu whips former ozeki to stay tied for top spot with Kaisei
Yokozuna Kakuryu remained on top of the heap on Friday, the sixth day of the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament, with a solid win over former ozeki Kotoshogiku. The win left the Mongolian in a share of the lead with Brazilian No. 6 maegashira Kaisei at ...
Yokozuna Kakuryu picked up another victory on Tuesday to remain undefeated on the third day of the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament. Kakuryu (3-0) got the better of the initial charge against top-ranked maegashira Tamawashi (2-1), shoving his fellow Mongolian into a backwards slide and ...
Yokozuna Kakuryu survived a tough battle to retain his share of the lead on Friday, the sixth day of the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament. On a day when the back story threatened to overshadow the action, Kakuryu (6-0) and former ozeki Kotoshogiku provided the ...
