Takagenji Satoshi
 | This biography of a living person includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (June 2019) |
| Takagenji Satoshi | |
|---|---|
| 貴源治 賢 | |
 Takagenji in 2018 | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | Satoshi Kamiyama May 13, 1997 Sakai, Ibaraki, Japan |
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Weight | 172 kg (379 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Takanohana → Chiganoura |
| Current rank | see below |
| Debut | March, 2013 |
| Highest rank | Maegashira 10 (July, 2019) |
| Championships | 1 (Jūryō) |
| * Up to date as of August 2, 2020. | |
Takagenji Satoshi (Japanese: 貴源治 賢, born May 13, 1997 as Satoshi Kamiyama (上山 賢)) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Ibaraki Prefecture. He made his debut in March 2013 and reached the top makuuchi division in July 2019. He wrestles for Chiganoura stable. His highest rank has been maegashira 10. He has a twin brother Takanofuji Sanzo who also wrestled for Chiganoura stable.
Early life and sumo experience
He was born in Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture, as a younger brother of an identical twin to a Filipino mother and a Japanese father. He would grow up in Sakai, Ibaraki Prefecture. He was in many sports as a youth such as karate and kickboxing but was particular good at basketball. In junior high he was ranked third nationally in basketball and was scouted by many top high school basketball programs. Among his rivals was future NBA player Rui Hachimura.[1] Upon his father's request he took up sumo after being introduced to Yokozuna Takanohana in the third grade. After junior high he chose to join Takanohana stable along with his brother stating, "I won't make any money in basketball and I would like to continue using my body." The stable already had a set of twins (Takageppo and Takatoshi) making Takanohana stable the first in sumo history to have two sets of twins simultaneously. However both of the other twins had retired by the end of 2014.
Early career
Takagenji made his professional debut alongside his brother in March 2013. He steadily rose up the ranks before hitting his first wall upon his promotion to makushita two years later in March 2015. He could manage only three wins at the rank and was immediately demoted back down to sandanme. He proceeded to bounce between the two divisions for a little less than a year before a surprise 6-1 runner-up performance in January 2016 would help to firmly establish him in the makushita division. He fought in this division for a little over a year before on the coattails five kachi-koshi or winning records he achieved 4–3 record at makushita 1 and gained promotion to the jūryō division. His first tournament in jūryō did not pan out as his last year had and he fell flat managing only a 4–11 record and being immediately be demoted back down to the makushita division. This wouldn't last long though as two winning records would send him back up to the sekitori ranks. This time his stay in jūryō was the polar opposite of his first with four straight winning records before getting his first make-koshi or losing record. After the January 2018 tournament his brother (then known as Takayoshitoshi) was promoted to jūryō also, making them the first twins to be ranked in jūryō simultaneously.[2] Shortly after this his stable was dissolved and he moved to Chiganoura stable along with his brother. In May 2019 at the rank of Jūryō 2 he got a 13-2 winning record taking home the yūshō or championship and guaranteeing his promotion to the top division.[3]
Makuuchi career
Takagenji made his makuuchi debut in July 2019 at the rank of maegashira 10.[3] He made a promising start by winning four of his first five matches but then lost ten in a row to finish on 4–11. The same score of 4–11 in the September tournament from the very bottom rank of maegashira 17 saw him demoted to jūryō for November.
In December 2019, the Japan Sumo Association admitted that Takagenji participated in a regional sumo tour in Kyushu while infected with the influenza virus.[4] A spokesperson said that Takagenji reported his health condition to a hospital in Saga on 11 December, but then climbed into the dohyō later in the day. The actions were criticized by the head of the Japan Sports Agency, and the sumo association acknowledged that it failed to handle the matter properly.[5]
Fighting style
Takagenji's performances to date suggest that he is an oshi-sumo specialist who favours pushing techniques to fighting on the mawashi or belt. His most common kimarite is yorikiri followed by oshidashi and tsukidashi. He was initially a yotsu-sumo or grappling specialist, but began to switch to pushing techniques around 2015 to try to improve his performances after finding himself going back and forth between the makushita and sandanme divisions. His consistency improved and he was eventually promoted to sekitori level in 2017.
He is known for being a diligent trainer, so much so that when he dislocated his knee while practicing on tour in Tokushima in October 2016, he re-inserted the dislocated knee joint so he could finish the training session.
Career record
| Year | January Hatsu basho, Tokyo |
March Haru basho, Osaka |
May Natsu basho, Tokyo |
July Nagoya basho, Nagoya |
September Aki basho, Tokyo |
November Kyūshū basho, Fukuoka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | x | (Maezumo) | West Jonokuchi #14 6–1 |
West Jonidan #29 2–5 |
East Jonidan #64 4–3 |
East Jonidan #41 4–3 |
| 2014 | East Jonidan #19 5–2 |
East Sandanme #83 4–3 |
West Sandanme #65 3–4 |
West Sandanme #78 6–1 |
East Sandanme #21 4–3 |
East Sandanme #10 3–4 |
| 2015 | West Sandanme #23 5–2 |
West Makushita #58 3–4 |
West Sandanme #11 6–1 |
East Makushita #35 2–5 |
West Makushita #50 2–5 |
West Sandanme #11 4–3 |
| 2016 | West Makushita #60 6–1–P |
West Makushita #28 3–4 |
West Makushita #36 5–2 |
West Makushita #25 4–3 |
East Makushita #20 6–1 |
East Makushita #7 5–2 |
| 2017 | West Makushita #4 5–2 |
West Makushita #1 4–3 |
West Jūryō #14 4–11 |
West Makushita #5 5–2 |
East Makushita #1 4–3 |
East Jūryō #14 8–7 |
| 2018 | West Jūryō #11 8–7 |
East Jūryō #10 8–7 |
West Jūryō #8 10–5 |
West Jūryō #2 6–9 |
West Jūryō #5 8–7 |
East Jūryō #4 8–7 |
| 2019 | East Jūryō #2 6–9 |
East Jūryō #4 8–7 |
East Jūryō #2 13–2 Champion |
West Maegashira #10 4–11 |
East Maegashira #17 4–11 |
East Jūryō #6 5–10 |
| 2020 | West Jūryō #10 7–8 |
West Jūryō #10 6–9 |
East Jūryō #13 Tournament Cancelled 0–0–0 |
East Jūryō #13 6–9 |
x | x |
| Record given as wins–losses–absences Top division champion Top division runner-up Retired Lower divisions Non-participation Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique Also shown: ★=Kinboshi; P=Playoff(s) |
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See also
- List of active sumo wrestlers
- List of sumo tournament second division champions
- Glossary of sumo terms
References
- ^ Suzuki, Kensuke (20 July 2019). "SUMO/ Former rival of Hachimura on the court now a force in the ring". Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- ^ "Photo Journal: Talented twins". The Mainichi. 31 January 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- ^ a b "Sumo: Kakuryu rules roost, Asanoyama surges in latest rankings". Kyodo News. 24 June 2019. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ^ Gunning, John (25 December 2019). "JSA needs to look outward for good of sumo". Japan Times. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
- ^ "Sumo wrestler climbs into ring after flu diagnosis". NHK World-Japan. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
- ^ "Takagenji Satoshi Rikishi Information". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
External links
- Takagenji Satoshi's official biography (English) at the Grand Sumo Homepage