Makuuchi
Template:Short description Template:DMCA
Page Module:Message box/ambox.css has no content.
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (January 2008) |
Script error: No such module "Nihongo"., or Script error: No such module "Nihongo"., is the top division of the six divisions of professional sumo. Since 2004 its size is fixed at 42 wrestlers (Template:Tlit), ordered into five ranks according to their ability as defined by their performance in previous tournaments.
This is the only division that is featured on NHK's standard live coverage of sumo tournaments. The lower divisions are shown on their satellite coverage, with only the Template:Tlit broadcast having bilingual English commentary.
Template:Tlit literally means "inside the curtain", a reference to the early period of professional sumo, when there was a curtained-off area reserved for the top ranked wrestlers, to sit before appearing for their bouts.
Wrestlers are considered for promotion or demotion in rank before each grand tournament according to their performance in the previous one. Generally, a greater number of wins than losses (Template:Tlit) results in a promotion, and the reverse (Template:Tlit) results in demotion. There are stricter criteria for promotion to the top two ranks, which are also privileged when considered for demotion.
Overview
At the top fixed positions of the division are the "titleholder" or Template:Tlit ranks of Template:Tlit, Template:Tlit, Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit. There are typically 8–12 Template:Tlit wrestlers, with the remainder, called Template:Tlit, ranked in numerical order from 1 downwards.
Script error: No such module "Nihongo". literally means "the three ranks", even though it actually comprises four ranks. The discrepancy arose because the Template:Tlit was traditionally regarded as an Template:Tlit with a special license to wear a particular rope around his waist and perform a distinctive ring-entry ceremony. In modern use Template:Tlit has a somewhat flexible definition. This is largely because the top two ranks of Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit have significant differences from the lower two ranks and from each other. Therefore, a reference to Template:Tlit can sometimes mean only the bottom three ranks, or in other cases only Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit.
For each Template:Tlit, here must be at least one Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit on each side, east and west, normally two of each rank, but there may be more. Although there is usually a Template:Tlit there is no requirement for one, and it has sometimes happened that no active Template:Tlit or no Template:Tlit were listed in the ranks. If there is more than one Template:Tlit but only one Template:Tlit, the lower rank will be filled out by designating one of the Template:Tlit as Template:Tlit. There is no recorded instance of there being fewer than two Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit in total.
There are a number of privileges and responsibilities associated with the Template:Tlit ranks. Any wrestler who reaches one of them is entitled to purchase one of the membership shares in the Japan Sumo Association, regardless of the total number of tournaments they have spent in the top Template:Tlit division. They may be called on to represent all sumo wrestlers on certain occasions. For example, when the president of the Sumo Association makes a formal speech on the opening and closing days of a tournament, he is flanked by all the Template:Tlit wrestlers in their Template:Tlit. Similarly they may be called to assist in welcoming a VIP, such as members of the Imperial Family, to the arena.
The Template:Tlit can be split into two groups: the senior Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit, and the junior Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit.
The former group have special promotion criteria and higher salaries, and have additional perks such as a higher number of junior wrestlers to assist them, an entitlement to park in the Sumo Association compound and voting rights in the election for Association directors. Senior Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit also have added responsibilities. They are expected to represent wrestler views to the Association, assist in advertising events and meet event sponsors.
The latter group, Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit, have lesser responsibilities and just like Template:Tlit are still eligible for one of the three special prizes (Template:Tlit), that are awarded for exceptional performance of lower ranking wrestlers at the end of each tournament.
Template:Makuuchi rikishi banzuke
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Hatnote list' not found. Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
Page Module:Message box/ambox.css has no content.
Script error: No such module "Nihongo". is the highest rank in sumo. The name literally means 'horizontal rope' and comes from the most visible symbol of their rank, the Script error: No such module "Nihongo". worn around the waist.[1] The rope is similar to the Template:Tlit used to mark off sacred areas in Shinto, and like the Template:Tlit it serves to purify and mark off its content.[1] The rope, which may weigh up to 20 kilograms (44 lb), is not used during the matches themselves, but is worn during the Template:Tlit's Template:Tlit ring entrance ceremony.
As of May 2025, a total of 75 sumo wrestlers are officially recognized by the Japan Sumo Association to have earned the rank of Template:Translit; considering that formal record-keeping only began with Tanikaze Kajinosuke and Onogawa Kisaburō in 1789, this roughly averages out to one every three years.
History
There are two competing legends regarding the origin of the Template:Tlit rank. According to one, a 9th-century wrestler named Hajikami tied a Template:Tlit around his waist as a handicap and dared anyone to touch it, creating sumo as it is now known in the process. According to the other, legendary wrestler Akashi Shiganosuke tied the Template:Tlit around his waist in 1630 as a sign of respect when visiting the Emperor and was posthumously awarded the title for the first time. There is little supporting evidence for either theory—in fact, it is not even certain that Akashi actually existed—but it is known that by November 1789, Template:Tlit starting from the fourth Template:Tlit, Tanikaze Kajinosuke, and the fifth Template:Tlit, Onogawa Kisaburō, were depicted in Template:Tlit prints as wearing the Template:Tlit. These two wrestlers were both awarded Template:Tlit licences by the prominent Yoshida family.[2]
Before the Meiji era, the title Template:Tlit was conferred on Template:Tlit who performed sumo in front of the Template:Tlit. This privilege was more often determined by a wrestler's patron having sufficient influence rather than purely on the ability and dignity of the wrestler. Thus, there are a number of early wrestlers who were, by modern standards, Template:Tlit in name only. In these early days, Template:Tlit was also not regarded as a separate rank in the listings, but as an Template:Tlit with special dispensation to perform his own ring entering ceremony.
At first, the Yoshida family and the rival Gōjō family fought for the right to award a wrestler a Template:Tlit license. The Yoshida family won this dispute, because the 15th Template:Tlit Umegatani Tōtarō I, one of the strongest wrestlers of his time, expressed his wish that he be awarded a license by the Yoshida family in February 1884, and consequently Gōjō family licenses were no longer officially recognized.
In May 1890, the name Template:Tlit was written on the Template:Tlit for the first time due to the 16th Template:Tlit Nishinoumi Kajirō I's insistence that his Template:Tlit status be recorded. In February 1909, during the reigns of the 19th Template:Tlit, Hitachiyama Taniemon, and the 20th, Umegatani Tōtarō II, it was officially recognized as the highest rank. Since the establishment of the Script error: No such module "Nihongo". on 21 April 1950, wrestlers have been promoted to Template:Tlit by the Japan Sumo Association. The first Template:Tlit promoted by the Sumo Association was the 41st Template:Tlit Chiyonoyama Masanobu.
Criteria for promotion
In modern sumo, the qualifications that an Template:Tlit must satisfy to be promoted are that he has enough power, skill and dignity/grace (品格 Template:Tlit) to qualify. There are no absolute criteria, nor is there a set quota: there have been periods with no wrestlers at Template:Tlit rank, and there have been periods with as many as four simultaneously.
The power and skill aspects are usually considered with reference to recent tournament performance. The de facto standard is to win two consecutive championships as Template:Tlit or an equivalent performance. In the case where the "equivalent performance" criterion is used, the wrestler's record over the previous three tournaments is taken into account with an expectation of at least one tournament victory and one runner-up performance, with none of the three records falling below twelve wins. Thus, a consistent high level of performance is required. Winning two tournaments with a poor performance between them is not usually sufficient. Also, achieving runner-up performance in three consecutive tournaments is not sufficient: an example is Template:Tlit Kisenosato in 2013 and 2016. The rules are not set in stone; hence, in reaching their conclusion the Yokozuna Deliberation Council and Sumo Association can interpret the criteria more leniently or strictly and also take into account other factors, such as total number of tournament victories, the quality of the wins, and whether the losses show any serious vulnerabilities.
The issue of Template:Tlit (dignity and grace) is more contentious, as it is essentially a subjective issue. For example, Hawaiian-born Template:Tlit Konishiki, in particular, was felt by many to be unfairly kept from Template:Tlit status due to his non-Japanese origin, and many Sumo Association members even openly said that foreigners (Template:Tlit) could never achieve the Template:Tlit needed to be a Template:Tlit. In the case of Konishiki, other issues such as his weight were also cited.[3] The debate concerning foreigners having the dignity to be a Template:Tlit was finally laid to rest on 27 January 1993, when Hawaiian-born Template:Tlit Akebono was formally promoted to Template:Tlit after only eight months as an Template:Tlit. Since then, the issue of whether foreigners have the necessary dignity has become irrelevant as seven of the ten wrestlers to achieve sumo's ultimate rank following Akebono in 1993 were not born in Japan: Musashimaru in the United States and Asashōryū, Hakuhō, Harumafuji, Kakuryū, Terunofuji, and Hōshōryū all in Mongolia.
Other wrestlers have also been held back. For example, Chiyonoyama in the 1950s was not immediately promoted due to his relative youth despite winning consecutive tournaments, although he later achieved the top rank.[4] On the other hand, Futahaguro was given the title of Template:Tlit in 1986, despite immaturity being cited in opposition to his promotion.[5] After being promoted, he was involved in several misbehaviors that embarrassed the Sumo Association such as hitting one of his Template:Tlit (manservant or personal assistant) over a trivial matter in a scandal that had six of his seven Template:Tlit decide to leave him.[6] The promotion again proved to be a fiasco when it was later revealed that he had a heated argument with his stable boss, Tatsunami, and stormed out of the Template:Tlit, allegedly striking Tatsunami's wife on the way. Futahaguro eventually retired after only one and a half years at the top rank and became the only Template:Tlit in sumo history ever to retire without having won at least one top division championship.
Becoming
Elevation to Template:Tlit rank is a multi-stage process. After a tournament, the Yokozuna Deliberation Council, a body of lay people (that is, not former sumo wrestlers) who are appointed by the Japan Sumo Association to provide an independent quality control on Template:Tlit promotion, meet and discuss the performance of the top-ranked wrestlers. Usually, at the instigation of the Japan Sumo Association, they can make a recommendation that a particular Template:Tlit-ranked wrestler has the necessary attributes to be promoted. Their recommendation is then passed to the Judging division and then the Board of Directors of the Sumo Association who make the final decision.
If a wrestler is deemed to have met the criteria, then he will be visited in his training stable by a member of the Sumo Association Board of Directors who will formally give him the news. In the following days, a Template:Tlit or ceremonial rope will then be made in his stable, and he will practice the ring entrance ceremony with advice from a previous or current Template:Tlit. Finally, he will have his inaugural ceremonial ring entry ceremony held at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo, which is usually completed within a couple of weeks of the tournament end.
Retiring
Unlike other sumo ranks, a Template:Tlit cannot be demoted, but in exchange their performance is held to a very high standard. A Template:Tlit is expected to regularly win championships, or at least be a serious contender for them, and even a single Template:Tlit (losing record) can pose concerns. It is common for a Template:Tlit to withdraw from a tournament for health reasons, even after the tournament has started, if they find themselves unable to perform at the expected level. A Template:Tlit who is consistently unable to compete at the peak of the sport is expected to retire from competition altogether. The strength and informal nature of these expectations are a major reason that the promotion criteria for Template:Tlit are so strict in the first place.
Retirement can also in some cases (such as Futahaguro, Asashōryū, or Harumafuji) be prompted by a judgment that the Template:Tlit has not upheld the dignity of the rank, independent of tournament performance.
Notices
In extremely rare instances the Yokozuna Deliberation Council can, with over two-thirds of the members in favor, issue notices to Template:Tlit whose performance as well as poise and character are contrary to what is expected of the rank.[7] These notices are, in increasing level of severity:
- Script error: No such module "Nihongo".
- Script error: No such module "Nihongo".
- Script error: No such module "Nihongo".
Notices have been issued three times since the council's inception in 1950:
- January 2010: Recommendation to Retire issued to Asashōryū.[7]
The recommendation was issued following allegations that Asashōryū punched and injured an acquaintance in a drunken brawl at a nightclub during the January 2010 tournament. It has been suggested in the media that Asashōryū chose to retire before the Sumo Association could follow through on the council's recommendation.[8] - November 2018: Encouragement issued to Kisenosato.[7]
Kisenosato lost his first five matches in the November 2018 tournament before withdrawing. Prior to that, he had withdrawn (either partially or fully) without a winning record in eight out of ten tournaments as Template:Tlit. The withdrawals were due in part to injuries suffered at the end of his winning tournament run in March 2017. He eventually retired from the sport after three consecutive defeats in the January 2019 Template:Tlit. - November 2020: Warning issued to two Template:Tlit, Hakuhō and Kakuryū.[9]
According to the council, both wrestlers did not perform to the level required of the Template:Tlit rank between November 2019 and November 2020. In that timeframe, Hakuhō sufficiently performed three times (Template:Tlit in November 2019 and March 2020, plus a 10-win performance in July 2020) while Kakuryū sufficiently performed just once (runner-up in March 2020 with 12 wins). Both of them sat out of the September 2020 and November 2020 tournaments due to injury.
The warning to Hakuhō and Kakuryū was upheld in March 2021.[10] Kakuryū sat out for two additional tournaments since the warning was first issued, eventually retiring during the March 2021 Template:Tlit.[11] After sitting out of the January 2021 tournament due to COVID-19, Hakuhō won two matches in March before withdrawing when doctors told him that he would require kneecap surgery.[10] Hakuhō returned to win the July 2021 tournament with a perfect 15–0 record before retiring.
Template:Tlit ceremonies and traditions
The formal establishment of the rank from Tanikaze's time appears to have in part come from a desire to let the very best have a separate ring entry ceremony (Template:Tlit) from the remaining top division wrestlers. The Template:Tlit is a ceremonial presentation of all the top-division wrestlers that is held before the competitive bouts of the day. The normal ceremony for top-division wrestlers is to be introduced and form a circle around the wrestling ring (Template:Tlit) wearing specially decorated heavy silk "aprons", called Template:Tlit. A brief symbolic "dance" is carried out before filing off to change into their fighting Template:Tlit and prepare for their bouts.
A Template:Tlit, however, is introduced after the lower-ranked wrestlers and is flanked by two other top-division wrestler "assistants". The "dewsweeper" or Template:Tlit precedes the Template:Tlit, while the "sword bearer" or Template:Tlit follows him into the arena. The sword is a Japanese katana and symbolises the samurai status of the Template:Tlit. The Template:Tlit will always be the more highly ranked of the assisting wrestlers. As indicated above, during the ceremony the Template:Tlit will wear his Template:Tlit around his waist.[1] The ceremonial aprons of all three form a matching set.
Once in the ring, the Template:Tlit takes centre stage and performs a much more complex ritual dance. The dance can take one of two forms, one of which the Template:Tlit usually chooses when he is first promoted. In addition to the slightly different routine, the choice of the Template:Tlit's ritual can also be determined by the knot used to tie the rope around his waist: the "Template:Tlit" style has only one loop at the back, while the "Template:Tlit" style has two. The styles are named after 10th Template:Tlit Unryū Kyūkichi and 11th Template:Tlit Shiranui Kōemon of the Edo period, although there is no historical proof that they actually carried out the dances that have been attributed to them. Indeed, some scholars[who?] believe that earlier historians have confused the ring-entering rituals of these two Template:Tlit.
When a former Template:Tlit reaches the age of 60, he usually performs a special ring-entering ceremony known as Template:Tlit, wearing a red Template:Tlit, in celebration of his longevity. This ceremony first took place with the former Template:Tlit Tachiyama in 1937.
Active Template:Tlit
- Hōshōryū, the 74th Template:Translit, from Mongolia, promoted January 2025
- Ōnosato, the 75th Template:Translit, from Japan, promoted May 2025
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Script error: No such module "Nihongo"., or champion rank, is immediately below Template:Tlit in the ranking system. Until the Template:Tlit rank was introduced, Template:Tlit was the highest rank attainable. Technically, there must always be a minimum of two Template:Tlit on the Template:Tlit, one on the east side and one on the west. If there are fewer than two regular Template:Tlit in practice, then one or more Template:Tlit will be designated "Template:Tlit". This was seen for five tournaments from May 1981 to January 1982, when three Template:Tlit (Wakanohana, Chiyonofuji and Kitanoumi) fulfilled this role at various times.[12] The designation would not be used again until the March 2020 Template:Tlit, when only Takakeishō held the Template:Tlit rank and Kakuryū was designated Template:Tlit.[13] In the first three tournaments of 2023, Takakeishō again was the only Template:Tlit and the Template:Tlit designation was given to Terunofuji.[14][15] The promotion of Ōnosato to Template:Translit in May 2025 left Kotozakura as the lone Template:Translit, and so Ōnosato was given the special designation.[16]
There is no strict limit to the number of Template:Tlit. In 2012, the Template:Tlit listed a record-high six Template:Tlit for the May, July, and September tournaments.
Promotion to Template:Translit
The promotion of a wrestler to Template:Translit is a multi-tournament process. A wrestler typically will be considered for promotion if he has achieved a total of at least 33 wins over the three most recent tournaments at the rank of either Template:Translit or Template:Translit,[17] including ten or more wins as a Template:Translit in the last completed tournament. Promotion is discretionary and there are no hard-and-fast rules, though a three-tournament record of 33 wins while ranked Template:Tlit throughout is considered a near-guarantee. Starting an Template:Translit run from the rank of Template:Tlit is possible as well, but an even higher standard will be applied, such as winning a Template:Tlit and securing 34 wins or more. Other factors toward promotion will include tangibles such as defeating the Template:Translit and fellow Template:Translit, and the wrestler's overall consistency, prowess, and quality of sumo — for example, a record of illegal maneuvers or reliance on certain dodging techniques would count against the dignity expected of an Template:Translit.
Promotions are recommended by the Judging Division to the board of directors of the Japan Sumo Association. If it is a first promotion to the rank, a member of the Board of Directors will formally visit the wrestler's stable to inform the new Template:Translit of his promotion. The Template:Translit will usually make a speech on this occasion, promising to do his best to uphold the dignity of the rank.
During the Edo period, wrestlers often made their debuts as Template:Translit based on size alone, though their real competitiveness had not been tested. The system was called "guest Template:Translit" (Script error: No such module "Nihongo".). Most of these vanished from the Template:Translit soon after, but a few wrestlers, notably Tanikaze Kajinosuke, remained as real wrestlers.
Demotion from Template:Translit
Like the other Template:Translit ranks, but unlike a Template:Translit, an Template:Translit may be relegated. For an Template:Translit, relegation is a two-step procedure. First, the Template:Translit must have a losing record in a tournament (7–8 or worse), known as a Template:Translit. At this point, the Template:Translit is called [[glossary of sumo terms#kadoban|Template:Translit]]. If he makes a winning record (8–7 or better) in the next tournament (which is called Template:Translit), he is restored to regular Template:Translit status. If, on the other hand, he suffers another losing record in the next tournament while Template:Translit, he is relegated to Template:Translit in the following tournament. (No matter how badly he does, he will not fall lower than Template:Translit.)
If he wins ten or more bouts in this tournament, he is restored to Template:Translit for the following tournament. However, if he fails to win ten or more bouts, he is treated just like any other wrestler in any further attempts at being promoted back to Template:Translit. This system has been in place since the Nagoya Tournament of 1969. Since that time, six wrestlers have managed an immediate return to Template:Translit: Mienoumi, Takanonami, Musōyama, Tochiazuma (who managed it on two occasions), Tochinoshin and Takakeishō. Three others–Kaiketsu, Terunofuji and Kirishima–failed to secure ten wins after their first Template:Translit demotion, but eventually returned to the Template:Translit rank.[18]
Mitakeumi is the only wrestler to be demoted from Template:Translit after three consecutive losing records instead of two. He entered the July 2022 Template:Translit at Template:Translit status, but withdrew in the middle of the tournament after a stablemate tested positive for COVID-19. Under the Sumo Association's COVID protocols at the time, Mitakeumi's Template:Translit rank and Template:Translit status were extended to the following tournament in September,[19] where he sustained another losing record and was subsequently demoted.
Benefits of being an Template:Tlit
In addition to a salary increase, there are a number of perks associated with reaching Template:Tlit rank:[citation needed]
- He is guaranteed a higher rank in the Sumo Association when he first retires.
- He will be given a three-year temporary membership of the Sumo Association on his retirement if he does not yet own a share.
- He will receive a special merit payment on his retirement (the amount decided by his strength and longevity as an Template:Tlit).
- He is given a parking space at the Sumo Association headquarters.
- He can vote in the election of the Sumo Association directors.
- Normally, he will receive additional support from his stable in terms of junior wrestlers to act as his manservants.
- He can wear purple fringed ceremonial aprons (Template:Tlit).
- He may be called on to represent the wrestlers on formal occasions such as when VIPs visit a sumo tournament, or on formal visits to Shinto shrines.
List of active Template:Tlit
- Kotozakura, since March 2024
- Aonishiki, since January 2026
- Kirishima, since May 2026 (and previously from July 2023 to May 2024)
List of active former Template:Tlit
- Takayasu, from July 2017 to December 2019
- Asanoyama, from May 2020 to July 2021
- Shōdai, from November 2020 to November 2022
- Mitakeumi, from March to September 2022
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Script error: No such module "Nihongo". is the third-highest rank in professional sumo wrestling, and is one of the Template:Tlit ranks. The term is believed to derive from guarding the Template:Tlit (大関 or 関) at his side (脇).
It represents the highest rank a wrestler can achieve by continuously making a Template:Tlit (a winning record in the tournament) in tournaments. Promotion to Template:Tlit depends on either a space being available, which is quite common, or having a record in the previous tournament that is very convincing. Typically 11–4 or better as a Template:Tlit is sufficient for promotion to Template:Tlit even with no normal space available; lower ranks need progressively more wins. There are special promotion criteria, typically a minimum of 33 wins over three tournaments, for advancement from Template:Tlit to Template:Tlit; merely recording consecutive winning records while at the Template:Tlit rank is not enough to advance. In the 1980s, Sakahoko stayed at Template:Tlit for nine consecutive tournaments without even getting close to Template:Tlit consideration, and Goeidō was stuck at the rank for fourteen consecutive tournaments, a modern-day record, between May 2012 and July 2014, before being promoted to Template:Tlit in September 2014.
Unlike the higher ranks of Template:Tlit and [[Yokozuna (sumo)|Template:Tlit]], a wrestler will nearly always lose the rank immediately after having a Template:Tlit tournament (a losing record during a tournament). Very occasionally, however, a lucky Template:Tlit might keep his rank even with a 7–8 record if there are no obvious candidates to replace him, as when the Template:Tlit and the upper Template:Tlit have also had losing records. This has happened five times since the six-tournaments-a-year era began in 1958, most recently with Gōeidō in July 2013. In each case, the wrestler was merely moved from the Template:Tlit East rank to the less prestigious West side.
For many purposes, Template:Tlit and the Template:Tlit rank are treated together as the junior Template:Tlit ranks, as opposed to Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit. For example, records of number of tournaments [[List of sumo record holders#Most tournaments ranked at komusubi or sekiwake|ranked in junior Template:Tlit]] are often referred to collectively in sumo publications.
For wrestlers reaching this rank, the benefits are similar to that for a Template:Tlit. The salary is higher than for a Template:Tlit and also the wrestler is usually called to appear to flank the chairman of the Sumo Association during the speeches he makes on opening and closing days of the 15-day tournaments that are held six times a year. He may also be called on to represent the wrestlers on behalf of the Sumo Association at other events, especially if the number of Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit is low. If this is the highest rank a wrestler reaches, even if it is only for one tournament, he will always be referred to as "former sekiwake (ring name)" after his retirement, an indicator of a successful sumo career, even if not achieving the exceptional standards of the two highest ranks.
Any Template:Tlit must have a minimum of two wrestlers ranked at Template:Tlit. If circumstances require this can rise to three or four, for example if both Template:Tlit have winning records and an Template:Tlit has been demoted. However, this is relatively rare. The minimum of two requirement means that a certain amount of luck can lead to wrestlers achieving this rank on occasion, if the performance of other wrestlers leaves no obvious candidates to fill the rank. This luck factor is less common than it is for Template:Tlit promotions.
List of active Template:Tlit
- Atamifuji, since May 2026 (previous rank: Script error: No such module "lang".)
- Kotoshōhō, since May 2026 (previous rank: Script error: No such module "lang". 5)
Wrestlers with most Template:Tlit appearances in history
Names in bold indicate a still active wrestler.
| Name | Total | First | Last | Highest rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tamagaki | 25 | October 1797 | November 1811 | Template:Tlit |
| 2 | Kotomitsuki | 22 | January 2001 | July 2007 | Template:Tlit |
| 3 | Hasegawa | 21 | January 1969 | January 1974 | Template:Tlit |
| Kaiō | 21 | January 1995 | July 2000 | Template:Tlit | |
| Kotonishiki | 21 | November 1990 | January 1997 | Template:Tlit | |
| 6 | Musōyama | 20 | March 1994 | March 2000 | Template:Tlit |
| 7 | Mitakeumi | 19 | November 2016 | November 2022 | Template:Tlit |
| 8 | Tochiazuma | 17 | September 1997 | November 2001 | Template:Tlit |
| Wakanosato | 17 | January 2001 | September 2005 | Template:Tlit | |
| 9 | Nayoroiwa | 15 | May 1938 | March 1953 | Template:Tlit |
| Takatōriki | 15 | July 1991 | November 1998 | Template:Tlit | |
| Gōeidō | 15 | May 2009 | July 2014 | Template:Tlit |
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote". Script error: No such module "Nihongo". literally means "the little knot", the knot referring to the match-up between two wrestlers. It is the fourth highest rank in sumo wrestling and is the lowest of the titleholder ranks, or Template:Tlit.
At Template:Tlit, achieving Template:Tlit (8–7 or better) is not sufficient to guarantee promotion to a higher rank. Promotion to the next highest rank, Template:Tlit, depends on either a space being available, which is quite common, or having at least 11 wins in the previous tournament if no normal Template:Tlit slot is available. This general requirement can be seen by the promotion of Tochiōzan to a third Template:Tlit slot for March 2014 with 11 wins when the other two Template:Tlit had winning records, while Tochinoshin was not promoted with 10 wins for November 2015 in a similar situation.
For many purposes, this and the Template:Tlit rank are treated together as the junior Template:Tlit ranks, as opposed to Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit, where extremely stringent promotion criteria exist. For example, records of number of tournaments [[List of sumo record holders#Most tournaments ranked at komusubi or sekiwake|ranked in junior Template:Tlit]] are often referred to collectively in sumo publications.
For wrestlers reaching this rank, the benefits are a salary increase and also appearing to flank the chairman of the Sumo Association during the speeches he makes on opening and closing days of the official tournaments, held six times a year. He may also be called on to represent the wrestlers on behalf of the Sumo Association at other events, especially if the number of Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit are low. If this is the highest rank a wrestler reaches, even if it is only for one tournament, he will always be referred to as "former Template:Tlit (ring name)" after his retirement, an indicator of a successful sumo career, even if not achieving the exceptional standards of the two highest ranks.
Any Template:Tlit must have a minimum of two wrestlers ranked at Template:Tlit. If circumstances require this can rise to three or four, for example if both Template:Tlit have winning records and an upper Template:Tlit produces such a good score that he cannot reasonably be denied a promotion. However, this is relatively rare. The minimum of two requirement means that a certain amount of luck can lead to wrestlers achieving this rank on occasion, if the performance of other wrestlers leaves no obvious candidates to fill the rank.
Template:Tlit is widely regarded as a difficult rank to maintain, as wrestlers at this rank are likely to face all the Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit in the first week of a tournament, with a Template:Tlit normally scheduled for the opening day. Template:Tlit face mainly Template:Tlit in the second week, but often by this time wrestlers new to the rank are exhausted and demoralized such that they lose these matches too. Few men making their Template:Tlit debut return a Template:Tlit or winning record in the ensuing tournament, and those that do are likely to promote even higher.
Before World War II, when there were fewer tournaments per year and more weight was placed on the performance at each tournament, there were several instances of Template:Tlit immediately advancing to Template:Tlit after nearly winning a tournament, but there have been no instances of this since then. Today being currently ranked at Template:Tlit is a necessary condition for any further promotion in addition to exceptional performance.
List of active Template:Tlit
- Wakatakakage, since May 2026 (previous rank: Script error: No such module "lang". 1)
- Takayasu, since May 2026 (previous rank: Template:Translit)
Wrestlers with most Template:Tlit appearances in history
Names in bold indicate a still active wrestler.
| Name | Total | First | Last | Highest rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miyagino | 23 | October 1818 | January 1834 | Template:Tlit |
| 2 | Takamiyama | 19 | November 1969 | January 1979 | Template:Tlit |
| 3 | Akinoshima | 15 | November 1988 | September 2000 | Template:Tlit |
| 4 | Dewanishiki | 14 | May 1950 | May 1962 | Template:Tlit |
| Takayasu | 14 | September 2013 | May 2026 | Template:Tlit | |
| Tochiōzan | 14 | May 2009 | September 2017 | Template:Tlit | |
| 6 | Amatsukaze | 13 | March 1765 | March 1778 | Template:Tlit |
| Kotonishiki | 13 | September 1990 | January 1999 | Template:Tlit | |
| Tosanoumi | 13 | January 1996 | September 2003 | Template:Tlit | |
| Template:Interlanguage link multi | 13 | January 1925 | May 1933 | Template:Tlit |
Template:Tlit (前頭) is the lowest of five ranks in the top Template:Tlit division.
All the Template:Tlit wrestlers who are not ranked in Template:Tlit are ranked as Template:Tlit, numbered from one at the top downwards. In each rank there are two wrestlers, the higher ranked is designated as "east" and the lower as "west", so No. 1 east is treated as a higher rank than No. 1 west, and so on.[20]
The number of wrestlers in Template:Tlit is fixed (at 42 since 2004) but the number in Template:Tlit is not. Thus, the number of Template:Tlit ranks can vary, but is typically between 15 and 17. (This gives a Template:Tlit division split of around 10 Template:Tlit and 32 Template:Tlit).
Movement within the Template:Tlit ranks can be minor or extreme, depending on a wrestler's score in the previous 15-bout tournament. For example, a Template:Tlit 2 who has an 8–7 record might only be promoted one level to Template:Tlit 1 for the next tournament. Conversely, a Template:Tlit 14 who wins the division championship could be promoted as high as Template:Tlit. Indeed, this happened in March 2000 when Takatōriki won the championship with a 13–2 record.
Template:Tlit ranked five or below are likely to only fight amongst themselves (unless their winning record in the middle of a tournament prompts their scheduling with higher-ranked wrestlers) while those ranked Template:Tlit four or above (Template:Tlit) are likely to have several matches against Template:Tlit wrestlers, including Template:Tlit and Template:Tlit. Wrestlers at Template:Tlit 1 and 2 will usually face everybody in the Template:Tlit (outside of their own stable and family), and these are therefore considered very difficult ranks to maintain. If a lower-ranked Template:Tlit has a score which puts them in contention for the title in the second week of the tournament, it is common for them to be matched against increasingly higher-ranked opponents later in the Template:Tlit; for instance, in January 2020, the lowest-ranked wrestler in the tournament, Template:Tlit 17 Tokushōryū, was in contention for the title having only faced opponents in the lower half of the Template:Tlit and was matched against Template:Tlit Takakeisho, the highest-ranked Template:Tlit participating in the tournament, on the final day, clinching the Template:Tlit with his victory.
When a Template:Tlit defeats a [[yokozuna (sumo)|Template:Tlit]], it is called a gold star or Template:Tlit and he is rewarded monetarily for the victory for the remainder of his career. A bout where a wrestler earns a Template:Tlit by defeating a Template:Tlit generally causes great excitement at a sumo venue and it used to be common for audience members to throw their seat cushions into the ring (and onto the wrestlers) after such a bout, though this is technically prohibited and has significantly decreased in recent times.
Wrestlers with most Template:Tlit appearances without a Template:Tlit title
Names in bold indicate a still active wrestler.
| Total | Wrestler | First | Last | Highest rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | Sadanoumi | May 2014 | November 2025 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| 53 | Higonoumi | March 1993 | November 2001 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| 52 | Asanowaka | March 1994 | May 2004 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| Toyohibiki | July 2007 | May 2017 | Script error: No such module "lang". 2 | |
| 51 | Kotoryū | July 1996 | March 2005 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| 50 | Tokitsuumi | September 1998 | September 2007 | Script error: No such module "lang". 3 |
| 49 | Kitakachidoki | January 1989 | May 1998 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| 46 | Minatofuji | July 1993 | July 2001 | Script error: No such module "lang". 2 |
| 44 | Narutoumi | October 1949 | November 1960 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| 43 | Daiyū | May 1963 | September 1972 | Script error: No such module "lang". 1 |
| Hirosegawa | January 1943 | May 1958 | Script error: No such module "lang". 3 |
See also
- Glossary of sumo terms
- List of sumo record holders
- List of sumo top division champions
- List of sumo top division runners-up
- Professional sumo divisions
- List of active sumo wrestlers
- List of past sumo wrestlers
References
Page Template:Reflist/styles.css has no content.
- ^ a b c Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Klein, Barbara Ann. "Sumo 101: Making the Tsuna". sumofanmag.com. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Joya (12 July 2017). Japan And Things Japanese. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-136-22186-6.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gould, Chris (April 2007). "Konishiki". sumofanmag.com. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Kuroda, Joe (December 2005). "Rikishi of Old: Chiyonoyama". sumofanmag.com. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.双羽黒 光司 (in 日本語). Fsinet.or.jp. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Haberman, Clive (2 January 1988). "Tokyo Journal; Wrestler fails to keep hold on an honorable past". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 December 2011.
- ^ a b c Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Sumo yokozuna council issues rare 'encouragement' notice to struggling Kisenosato". Mainichi Daily News. Mainichi. 26 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."End of the line for Asashoryu". Japan Times. 6 February 2010. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Sumo: Advisory board issues warning to rehabbing yokozuna duo". mainichi.jp. Kyodo. 24 November 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Sumo: Hakuho remains subject to warning over injury absences". Kyodo News. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Sumo: Yokozuna Kakuryu retires after missing 5th straight tourney". Kyodo News. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Miki, Shuji (23 February 2017). "SUMO ABC (45) / While there need not be any yokozuna, 2 ozeki must always exist – in theory". The Japan News/The Yomiuri Shimbun. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."38年ぶりに「横綱大関」復活 9組目の「親子幕内」も" ["Yokozuna-Ōzeki" revived for the first time in 38 years]. Asahi Shimbun (in 日本語). 24 February 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."【初場所新番付】大関は２人名を連ねるのが慣例のため照ノ富士兼務し「横綱大関」に". Nikkan Sports. 26 December 2022. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."【夏場所新番付】霧馬山の大関とりなるか、若貴以来30年ぶりの兄弟関脇も誕生／三役以上編". Nikkan Sports. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."大関1人で新横綱の大の里が「横綱大関」に 新横綱では千代の富士以来44年ぶり" (in 日本語). Sports Nippon. 30 June 2025. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Uchida, Kai (29 May 2023). "SUMO/ Kiribayama secures ozeki promotion to join Takakeisho". Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 22 July 2025.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."霧島の大関昇進が満場一致で決定 特例を除く２度目の昇進は魁傑、照ノ富士に次いで３人目の快挙" (in 日本語). Nikkan Sports. 25 March 2026. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."豊昇龍が新関脇 かど番御嶽海は据え置き―大相撲秋場所" (in 日本語). Jiji. 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Professional rankings: The Banzuke". Scgroup.com. Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}