Umegatani Tōtarō II facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Umegatani Tōtarō |
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| 梅ヶ谷 藤太郎 | |
Umegatani, circa 1912
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| Personal information | |
| Born | Oshida Otojirō March 11, 1878 Toyama, Japan |
| Died | September 2, 1927 (aged 49) |
| Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) |
| Weight | 158 kg (348 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Ikazuchi |
| Record | 168-27-116 47draws-2holds(Makuuchi) |
| Debut | June, 1892 |
| Highest rank | Yokozuna (June, 1903) |
| Retired | May, 1915 |
| Elder name | Ikazuchi |
| Championships | 3 (Makuuchi, unofficial) |
| * Up to date as of June 2020. | |
Umegatani Tōtarō II (梅ヶ谷 藤太郎, March 11, 1878 – September 2, 1927) was a famous Japanese professional sumo wrestler. He came from Toyama City, in Toyama Prefecture. He became the 20th yokozuna, which is the highest rank in sumo.
Umegatani was well-known for his big rivalry with another yokozuna named Hitachiyama Taniemon. Their time in sumo was so exciting that it was called the "Ume-Hitachi Era." This period made sumo super popular, more than ever before in the Meiji period of Japan.
Contents
Umegatani's Sumo Journey
Umegatani Tōtarō II was born with the name Oshida Otojirō (押田 音次郎). Later, he changed his name to Koe Otomatsu (小江 音松).
Starting in Sumo
In 1891, when he was just 13 years old, a group of sumo wrestlers saw him. This group was led by a high-ranking wrestler called ōzeki Tsurugizan Taniemon II. The ōzeki was so impressed that he asked his own master, the 15th yokozuna Umegatani, to invite young Oshida to join their sumo stable.
Oshida's father was not sure about letting his son join sumo so young. But Umegatani Tōtarō I promised to take good care of him. So, in June 1892, at age 14, Oshida joined the Ikazuchi stable.
Rising Through the Ranks
At the stable, he was trained by a wrestler named Onigatani. Umegatani quickly became a stronger wrestler. He made his debut in the jūryō division in January 1897. By January 1898, he had reached the top makuuchi division.
At first, he wrestled under the name Umenotani Otomatsu (梅ノ谷 音松). But before his fourth tournament as an ōzeki (a high rank below yokozuna), he officially took on the famous name Umegatani Tōtarō. This was in January 1902.
The Great Rivalry and Yokozuna Promotion
In May 1903, Umegatani faced Hitachiyama. Both wrestlers were ōzeki and had not lost any matches yet. This fight caused huge excitement all over Japan! Umegatani lost the match, but after the tournament, both he and Hitachiyama were promoted to yokozuna. Umegatani became a yokozuna because Hitachiyama insisted on it.
Umegatani became sumo's highest-ranked wrestler at just 25 years and 3 months old. At that time, he was the youngest yokozuna ever! This record stood for many years until Terukuni became yokozuna in 1942.
His Amazing Record
Before June 1909, there was no official system for winning championships (called yūshō). But Umegatani had the best record in at least three tournaments before this system started. He also had other great performances that many people consider unofficial championships. For example, in the spring 1904 tournament, he had a slightly better record than Hitachiyama.
Even though he didn't win any official championships, he was given a special prize when he retired in June 1915. This was to honor his great contributions to sumo. Umegatani was known for his excellent and traditional sumo techniques. He was very heavy for his height, but he moved with great skill.
Later Career and Retirement
Towards the end of his career, Umegatani missed many matches because he was sick. He retired from sumo at the age of 37. In the top makuuchi division, he won 168 matches and lost only 27. This means he won about 86.2% of his fights!
So many people wanted to attend his retirement ceremony that it lasted for three days! Umegatani passed away at 49 years old. He was still very active in the sumo world as a judge and the head of the Ikazuchi stable. After he died, his stable closed down.
See also
- Glossary of sumo terms
- List of past sumo wrestlers
- List of yokozuna
