Takadagawa stable
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Takadagawa stable (高田川部屋, Takadagawa-beya) is a stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Nishonoseki ichimon or group of stables. It was formed in 1974 by former ōzeki Maenoyama, and was originally in the Takasago group of stables, but was excommunicated from that group in 1998 due to disagreement over group nominations to the Japan Sumo Association's board of directors. The stable does not have any foreigners as of 2012, but a series of wrestlers from Taiwan were recruited in the late 1980s and a Mongolian, Maenoyu, was at the stable from 2004 until 2007. Maenoyama handed over control to former sekiwake Akinoshima in 2009, as he was approaching the mandatory retirement age. As of May 2015 the stable had 23 wrestlers, making it one of the largest in sumo, but it did not have any sekitori between Dairaido′s last appearance in jūryō in July 2006 and the promotion of Ryūden in September 2012, where he lasted for only one tournament. In September 2014 Kagayaki reached jūryō, ending Takadagawa's sekitori drought. Kagayaki went on to reach the top makuuchi division in January 2016, the first Takadagawa wrestler to do so since Kenkō in 1992, and Ryūden returned to jūryō in November 2016.
The new Takadagawa head ended the stable's nearly thirteen years of non-alignment with an ichimon in January 2011 when he was accepted into the Nishonoseki group.
Ring name conventions
Some wrestlers at this stable have taken ring names or shikona that begin with the characters 安芸 (read: aki), in deference their coach and the stable's owner, the former Akinoshima.
Owners
- 2009–present: 9th Takadagawa (iin, former sekiwake Akinoshima)
- 1974-2009: 8th Takadagawa (former ōzeki Maenoyama)
Notable active wrestlers
- Dairaidō (best rank jūryō)
- Kagayaki (best rank maegashira)
- Ryuden (best rank jūryō)
Assistant
- Zenshinyama (wakaimonogashira, former jūryō, real name Ryōta Akimoto)
Notable former members
Referee
- Kimura Kandayū (san'yaku gyōji, real name Hideki Imaoka)
Ushers
Hairdresser
- Tokotetsu (2nd class tokoyama)
Location and access
Tokyo, Kōtō ward, Kiyosumi 2-15-7
2 minute walk from Kiyosumi-shirakawa Station on the Ōedo Line and Hanzōmon Line
See also
- List of sumo stables
- List of active sumo wrestlers
- List of past sumo wrestlers
- Glossary of sumo terms