Futen'ō Izumi

Futen'ō Izumi (born August 28, 1980, as Izumi Uchida in Tensui, Tamana District, Kumamoto, Japan), is a former sumo wrestler. A former amateur champion, he turned professional in 2003, reaching the top division the following year. He earned two special prizes. His highest rank was komusubi, which he held for one tournament. He retired in May 2011 after falling down the banzuke to the third makushita division. He is now a sumo coach.

Early life and sumo background He was born to a family of orange farmers. He had loved sumo since elementary school and had the full support of his parents in turning professional, although his father wished him to complete his education first. After finishing high school he went to Nihon University, where he gained the amateur equivalent of the yokozuna title, winning the All Japan Championship in 2000 and the Kokutai (Japan Games) in 2002.

Career Futen'ō entered professional sumo in January 2003. He joined Dewanoumi stable, one of the most prestigious heya in sumo. Its longstanding history was one of the reasons he chose that particular stable. To make matters even worse for him, he was suspended for the July 2010 tournament (along with about a dozen other wrestlers) after admitting involvement in illegal betting on baseball. By November 2010 he had fallen to Makushita 51, but he produced a winning record of 5–2 in that tournament, his first kachi-koshi in over two years.

His shikona, or sumo name of Futen'ō was adopted upon his first promotion to the jūryō division, and was thought up by his father. He stayed in sumo as a coach under the elder name Inagawa Oyakata. In June 2014 he moved from Dewanoumi stable to Chiganoura stable. It had been thought that he would taker over the running of that stable when its head coach, former sekiwake Masudayama, reached the mandatory retirement age of 65 in April 2016, but the job went to the former komusubi Takamisugi instead. Inagawa left Chiganoura stable the following month and joined Kise stable to work as a coach there.

Fighting style Futen'ō had a straightforward fighting style, winning nearly 60 percent of his matches by yori-kiri or force out, the most common technique in sumo. His favourite grip on his opponent's mawashi was hidari-yotsu, a right hand outside, left hand inside position.

Family Futeno announced his engagement in April 2008, to a 27-year-old former nurse whom he met in Nagoya in 2005. They officially celebrated their union in August.

Career record