Konishiki
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小錦八十吉
Konishiki Yasokichi

Konishiki and his entourage, May 1996
Personal information
Birth name	Salevaa Atisanoe
Date of birth	December 31, 1963 (1963-12-31) (age 44)
Place of birth	Oahu, Hawaii
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 1+1⁄2 in)
Weight	264 kg (580 lb/41.6 st)
Career*
Heya	Takasago
Record	733–498–95
Debut	July, 1982
Highest rank	Ozeki (July, 1987)
Retired	November, 1997
Yusho	3 (Makuuchi) 2 (Juryo) 1 (Jonidan) 1 (Jonokuchi)
Special Prizes	Outstanding Performance (4) Fighting Spirit (5) Technique (1)
Gold stars	2 (Chiyonofuji, Takanosato)
* Career information is correct as of August 2007.

Konishiki Yasokichi (小錦八十吉, Konishiki Yasokichi^?, born Saleva'a Fuauli Atisano'e on December 31, 1963), is a Hawaiʻi-born Japanese - Samoan sumo wrestler, nicknamed "The Dump Truck."¹ He was the first foreign born wrestler to reach ozeki, the second highest rank in the sport. During his career he won the top division championship on three occasions and came close to becoming the first foreign born grand champion, or yokozuna, prompting a debate as to whether a foreigner could have the necessary cultural understanding to be acceptable in sumo's ultimate rank. At a typical fighting weight of 264 kg (580 lb) he was also the heaviest rikishi ever in sumo.

Early career

The eighteen year old Atisano'e entered sumo in July 1982, recruited by another Hawaiian born wrestler, Takamiyama of Takasago stable. A promising student at the University High School in Honolulu, he initially wanted to be a lawyer and was also offered a music scholarship to Syracuse University.² His father had regular work with the US Navy but had to support eight children. Atisan'oe also regarded Takamiyama as a local hero and found the opportunity to join sumo too hard to resist.²

Due to his potential he was given the name Konishiki, after the 17th Yokozuna, Konishiki Yasokichi I (see List of Yokozuna) who came from the same training stable at the end of the 19th Century (during the Meiji period in Japan) and Konishiki Yasokichi II (a komusubi in the beginning of the 20th Century). Atisano'e was the sixth "Konishiki" in history, though he was the third to reach the top division. Konishiki rose to the privileged sekitori ranks in just eight tournaments, a remarkably rapid rise. He made his debut in the top makuuchi division in July 1984. In the following tournament in September 1984 Konishiki defeated two yokozuna and was runner up with a 12–3 record. He was promoted to komusubi for the first time in May 1985 and sekiwake in July 1985. However, he suffered an injury to his coccyx (caused by a stool collapsing underneath him)² and had to sit out all the next tournament. In May 1986 he suffered another injury, this time in competition, during a bout with Futahaguro.² Konishiki came back strongly from this setback and three consecutive double figure scores in 1987 earned him promotion to ozeki.

Ozeki

Many people expected Konishiki to quickly make his push for yokozuna promotion. His stablemaster, the 46th Yokozuna Asashio Tarō III had predicted Konishiki would reach the top rank by his 25th birthday.³ However, his weight increased to over 254 kg in 1988, and the subsequent strain on his knees badly affected his performances. After a string of mediocre 8–7 scores he turned in a disastrous 3–12 in September 1988. His problems continued in 1989 and a 5–10 mark in September left him in danger of demotion from ozeki once again. He made a spectacular comeback in November 1989, taking his first tournament championship with a 14–1 record. He was the first foreigner to win a top division title since Takamiyama in 1972. In March 1990 he took part in a three way playoff for the title but he was outshone that year by Asahifuji, who earned promotion to yokozuna in July. In May 1991 Konishiki won 14 consecutive bouts but was beaten in a playoff on the final day by Asahifuji.

Close to yokozuna

By late 1991 Konishiki was a strong yokozuna candidate. He had gotten over his injuries and was showing much more consistency. Yokozuna Chiyonofuji and Onokuni had both recently retired, and Asahifuji and Hokutoumi were struggling with illness and injury. Konishiki took advantage by winning two championships (his 2nd and 3rd overall) in November 1991 and March 1992, with a record in the last three tournaments of 38 wins and 7 losses. He was denied promotion to yokozuna however, with the chairman of the Yokozuna Deliberation Committee, Ueda Hideo, announcing, "We wanted to make doubly sure that Konishiki is worthy to be a grand champion. Therefore, we decided to wait for another tournament."⁴ The New York Times subsequently quoted Konishiki as saying, "If I were Japanese, I would be yokozuna already." The Japan Sumo Association demanded an apology. Konishiki held a press conference in which he tearfully denied making the remarks, but the damage had been done.² The media furore hampered his preparations for the forthcoming tournament and he turned in a mediocre 9–6 score. He never came close to promotion again.

Later career

Konishiki had retained his ozeki rank for 39 tournaments over more than six years, but he eventually lost it in November 1993 after two consecutive losing records. However, due to his love of the sport he carried on fighting in the top division in the maegashira ranks for a further four years. His weight had continued to increase and he was now very susceptible to belt throws and slap downs by lighter and more agile opponents. Ironically, even though he was enjoying less success, he became progressively more popular with many Japanese fans, due to his fighting spirit, distinctive bulk and personality. In November 1997 he faced demotion to the second juryo division and announced his retirement after 15 years in sumo. He had spent 81 consecutive tournaments in the top division and won 649 bouts there.

Life after sumo

Konishiki remained in the Japan Sumo Association as an elder for a short time under the name of Sanoyama, before branching out as a Japanese entertainer under the name "KONISHIKI". (The capitalization is an effort to reflect the association's requiring him to write the name in the Roman alphabet, forbidding its being spelled out in Japanese characters, after he left sumo).

In 2000 Shinichi Watanabe, director of Excel Saga and Puni Puni Poemy, created an anime series called Dotto Koni Chan, in which Koni, the protagonist, is a fat kid who strongly resembles KONISHIKI. The series pays homage to KONISHIKI, who is well-loved by many Japanese people.

In January 2004 he married his girlfriend of two years, former medical worker Chie Iijima.⁵ He had previously married former model Sumika Shioda in 1992, but they divorced amicably in December 2000.⁶

In 2006, he played in the film Chekeraccho!! and also made a short cameo appearance in the movie The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

Until March 2007, he was the host of an NHK children's program called Nihongo de Asobo (にほんごであそぼ) which teaches children traditional and colloquial Japanese. He was replaced by Sanyō Kanda and for the next year had a minor role on the show; mostly clips from older episodes or filmed from Hawaii.

Although he continued to DJ for his FM Yokohama show Kony Island, he took a hiatus from Japanese celebrity life for a year, returning to Hawaii to prepare for gastric bypass surgery. Although he did not have high blood pressure or any heart problems, he had not lost much weight since his retirement, and underwent the operation in February 2008.⁷ He announced on his website that the operation went smoothly and that he has since lost some 70 kg (150 lb). He returned to Japan in May 2008.

Top division record

References

See also

• Glossary of sumo terms
• List of sumo tournament winners
• List of past sumo wrestlers

External links

• KONISHIKI web site
• Japan Sumo Association profile (Japanese)
• Article marking the 15th anniversary of Konishiki’s final yusho triumph