Mienoumi Tsuyoshi

is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Matsusaka, Mie. He was the 57th yokozuna of the sport. After retiring he founded the Musashigawa stable and was a chairman of the Japan Sumo Association. He was the first rikishi in history who was demoted from the rank of Ozeki but still managed the promotion to Yokozuna.

Career

His father was a construction worker who competed in amateur sumo tournaments. The young Mienoumi did judo in junior high school and was introduced to a sumo coach at Dewanoumi stable, but was initially rejected due to his short stature. Mienoumi won his first makuuchi tournament or yūshō in November 1975 and was promoted to ōzeki the following January. At the time of his promotion, he was the first ōzeki from Mie Prefecture to be promoted since the first Sakaigawa in 1857, 119 earlier. He lost a majority of bouts in the next two tournaments, resulting in an automatic demotion back to sekiwake, but a good result of 10 wins to 5 losses in the next tournament was sufficient to restore him to ōzeki.

In May 1979 he was a runner-up for the fourth time, to Wakanohana with a 13–2 record. He followed that up with a superb 14–1 record in the following tournament, defeating Wakanohana, Kitanoumi and Wajima, only losing the championship in a playoff to Wajima on the final day. In September 1979 he was finally promoted to yokozuna. The 97 tournaments it took him to do so is the slowest ever progress to sumo's top rank. His oyakata declared that he would be happy with just one more yūshō before Mienoumi's retirement. On September 8, 2008, he became the chairman of the Japan Sumo Association following the resignation of Kitanoumi. One of his first actions was to demand a controversial tightening up of the rules for the tachi-ai, or initial charge, which led to many false starts in the September 2008 tournament. Following a series of scandals involving wrestlers gambling and associating with organised crime members, he was suspended for the July 2010 tournament and announced his resignation the following month. He also cited health concerns, as he had been undergoing treatment for stomach cancer. In September 2010 he also stood down as head of Musashigawa stable, although he remained a coach there. Former ōzeki Musōyama is now head coach of what is now Fujishima stable. In December 2012 he announced that the former Musashimaru would inherit his elder name when Musashigawa reached 65 years of age in February 2013. Upon retiring he became the director of the Sumo Museum at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan, a position he held for exactly ten years before stepping down in February 2023 on the occasion of his 75th birthday. He remarked upon his pride at being in the sumo world for 60 years, and that eight of his disciples were currently elders of the Sumo Association.

Family Mienoumi was married in September 1974.