明瀬山 光彦
Akiseyama Mitsuhiko
Akiseyama in 2014
Personal information
BornMitsuhiko Fukao
(1985-07-18) July 18, 1985
Kasugai, Aichi, Japan
Height1.82 m (5 ft 11+12 in)
Weight181 kg (399 lb)
Career
StableKise
UniversityNihon University
Record472-473-29
DebutJanuary, 2008
Highest rankMaegashira 12 (March, 2021)
RetiredAugust, 2023
Elder nameIzutsu
Championships1 (Makushita)
1 (Jonokuchi)
* Up to date as of 10 August 2023.

Akiseyama Mitsuhiko (Japanese: 明瀬山 光彦, born July 18, 1985 as Mitsuhiko Fukao (深尾 光彦, Fukao Mitsuhiko)) is a former Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Kasugai, Aichi. An amateur sumo competitor while studying at Nihon University, he made his professional debut in January 2008. He has two lower-division championships in jonokuchi and makushita, and reached the top makuuchi division in March 2016. His highest rank was maegashira 12. He wrestled for Kise stable, where he now coaches under the name of Izutsu.

Early life and sumo background

Fukao started sumo at the Chukyo Sumo Club in elementary school, this is where he meet the future Kiyoseumi who was one year his senior. He had a deep respect and friendship with his senior. They trained and practiced together throughout their school years and both attended Nihon University. Eventually after university Akiseyama would choose to enter the same Kise stable.

Career

Akiseyama (left) in an exhibition bout in 2018

He made his debut exactly one year after Kiyoseumi in January, 2008, debuting with the likes of Kyokutaisei and Homarefuji. He quickly rose up to the makushita division after spending just one tournament at each of the lower divisions. He finally broke through to the sekitori ranks after nearly three years in November 2010. To mark the occasion he changed his shikona from his family name of Fukao to Akiseyama, with the "se" kanji taken from his stable. He was to last only four tournaments in before being demoted back down. During this period he was restricted by a hernia.[1]

He returned to jūryō at the end of 2012 and after over eight years after his debut he broke through to the top makuuchi division in March 2016. The 48 tournaments it took him to reach the top division from his professional debut was the fourth slowest by a former collegiate wrestler.[1] He lasted just one tournament, scoring only four wins against eleven losses, and returned to jūryō. After only managing one win against fourteen losses in the next tournament in May 2016 he was demoted straight to makushita, where he remained for the next two years.

He was promoted back to jūryō in March 2018 and produced a strong 11–4 record, taking part in a playoff for the championship. He reached jūryō 1 in July 2018, his highest rank since his single makuuchi appearance. However, seven consecutive losing scores saw him fall to the bottom of jūryō and then be relegated to the makushita division after the July 2019 tournament. He returned to jūryō after just one tournament away by recording a 4–3 score in September. He was demoted to makushita again in January 2020 but returned to the jūryō division in March and remained in jūryō for the rest of 2020.

Akiseyama returned to the makuuchi division in January 2021 for the first time in 28 tournaments, the fourth slowest return in sumo history.[2] In his makuuchi return Akiseyama began the tournament with six straight wins,[3] before suffering five straight losses. Another run of three wins saw him enter Day 15 with a 9–5 record, and the knowledge that he would be awarded the Fighting Spirit prize if he won.[4] Matched against Kagayaki, he was called the winner by the gyōji after pulling off an amiuchi or fisherman's throw, but the judges called for a re-match, which he lost. He narrowly missed a winning record in the following March tournament, but remained in the top division. In May he withdrew from a tournament for the first time in his career, after suffering a jaw fracture in a bout against Chiyotairyū.[5] He missed the next two tournaments causing him to fall to the makushita division.

Retirement from sumo

After Akiseyama spent two years in the makushita division, his retirement was announced by the Japan Sumo Association on 10 August 2023. Akiseyama became an elder of the Japan Sumo Association, acquiring the vacant Izutsu elder stock upon retirement.[6]

Fighting style

Akiseyama lists his preferred techniques on his Japan Sumo Association profile as tsuki/oshi, pushing and thrusting his opponents rather fighting on the mawashi or belt. However his most common winning kimarite in his career to date is yori-kiri, or force out, which usually involves a mawashi grip. This is because he made a deliberate decision to change his style of wrestling after his hernia problem, working with his stablemaster Kise to grab the mawashi with his right hand to speed up the attack and use his weight to his advantage. Former yokozuna Kitanoumi also encouraged him to go for a right hand grip when Akiseyama was temporarily a member of Kitanoumi stable from 2010 until 2012.[1]

Career record

                                                                                                  

Akiseyama Mitsuhiko[7]
Year in sumo January
Hatsu basho, Tokyo
March
Haru basho, Osaka
May
Natsu basho, Tokyo
July
Nagoya basho, Nagoya
September
Aki basho, Tokyo
November
Kyūshū basho, Fukuoka
2008(Maezumo)East Jonokuchi #26
70
Champion

 
East Jonidan #24
70P
 
East Sandanme #30
61
 
West Makushita #48
43
 
East Makushita #36
43
 
2009East Makushita #29
52
 
East Makushita #15
52
 
East Makushita #7
25
 
West Makushita #16
61
Champion

 
East Makushita #5
25
 
West Makushita #13
16
 
2010West Makushita #35
61
 
West Makushita #16
43
 
West Makushita #11
43
 
East Makushita #7
43
 
East Makushita #2
43
 
East Jūryō #13
87
 
2011West Jūryō #10
87
 

Tournament Cancelled
000
West Jūryō #7
411
 
East Jūryō #8
213
 
West Makushita #4
25
 
East Makushita #11
52
 
2012West Makushita #5
25
 
East Makushita #13
43
 
West Makushita #8
34
 
East Makushita #13
61
 
West Makushita #5
61
 
East Jūryō #13
87
 
2013 West Jūryō #10
78
 
East Jūryō #12
78
 
East Jūryō #13
78
 
West Makushita #2
43
 
West Jūryō #13
87
 
East Jūryō #8
69
 
2014 West Jūryō #9
510
 
West Jūryō #13
96
 
West Jūryō #7
69
 
East Jūryō #11
69
 
East Jūryō #13
69
 
West Makushita #1
52
 
2015 West Jūryō #10
69
 
West Jūryō #13
87
 
West Jūryō #11
69
 
East Jūryō #14
87
 
West Jūryō #10
96
 
East Jūryō #7
87
 
2016 West Jūryō #5
87
 
East Maegashira #16
411
 
West Jūryō #5
114
 
West Makushita #2
34
 
West Makushita #6
16
 
West Makushita #21
52
 
2017 West Makushita #9
52
 
East Makushita #4
25
 
West Makushita #13
52
 
East Makushita #9
52
 
West Makushita #4
34
 
East Makushita #9
43
 
2018 West Makushita #4
43
 
West Jūryō #13
114P
 
West Jūryō #5
105
 
West Jūryō #1
69
 
West Jūryō #3
69
 
East Jūryō #6
78
 
2019 West Jūryō #7
69
 
West Jūryō #9
510
 
West Jūryō #13
78
 
East Jūryō #14
411
 
West Makushita #5
43
 
East Jūryō #14
510
 
2020 East Makushita #4
43
 
West Jūryō #14
96
 
East Jūryō #9
Tournament Cancelled
000
East Jūryō #9
78
 
East Jūryō #10
114
 
East Jūryō #1
96
 
2021 West Maegashira #16
96
 
East Maegashira #12
78
 
East Maegashira #13
177
 
East Jūryō #7
Sat out due to injury
0015
West Makushita #5
Sat out due to injury
007
West Makushita #45
52
 
2022 West Makushita #30
61
 
East Makushita #11
43
 
West Makushita #8
43
 
East Makushita #6
35
 
West Makushita #11
34
 
West Makushita #18
43
 
2023 East Makushita #13
43
 
East Makushita #10
43
 
West Makushita #7
25
 
East Makushita #12
52
 
West Makushita #6
Retired
Record given as win-loss-absent    Top Division Champion Top Division Runner-up Retired Lower Divisions

Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique     Also shown: =Kinboshi; P=Playoff(s)
Divisions: Makuuchi Jūryō Makushita Sandanme Jonidan Jonokuchi

Makuuchi ranks: Yokozuna Ōzeki Sekiwake Komusubi Maegashira

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "新入幕明瀬山「相撲で恩返ししたい」". daily.co.jp (in Japanese). 29 February 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  2. "2021 January Grand Sumo Tournament Banzuke Topics". Japan Sumo Association. Archived from the original on 29 December 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2020.
  3. "Daieisho and Akiseyama unbeaten after six days as Meisei loses". Japan Times. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  4. "Sumo: Daieisho wins maiden Emperor's Cup on final day". The Mainichi. 24 January 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
  5. "明瀬山が右下顎骨骨折で休場 7日目まで1勝6敗". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 16 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  6. "元幕内38歳明瀬山が現役引退、年寄「井筒」襲名 幕内在位4場所、自己最高位は東前頭12枚目". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  7. "Akiseyama Mitsuhiko Rikishi Information". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 2018-05-28.
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