Tokitenkū Yoshiaki

was a sumo wrestler.

He made his professional debut in 2002, reaching the top makuuchi division just two years later. The highest rank he reached was komusubi, which he held on three separate occasions, but never retained for more than one tournament. He earned one special prize, for Technique. He wrestled for the Tokitsukaze stable and acquired Japanese citizenship in 2014.

Tokitenkū was diagnosed with malignant lymphoma in 2015 and retired from sumo in 2016 to become a coach; he was the first Mongolian-born wrestler to acquire the right to remain with the Sumo Association as a coach following retirement as an active wrestler. He died in January 2017.

Early life and sumo background Born in Töv Province, Mongolia, Tokitenkū was the son of a Mongolian wrestler, who reached a rank equivalent to komusubi in Mongolian wrestling. He first came to Japan in March 2000 to study at Tokyo University of Agriculture, having deferred his studies at Mongolian State University of Agriculture.

Although he joined the university's sumo club and won the under 100 kg collegiate championships in his first year, he originally intended to return to Mongolia to teach what he had learned about agricultural administration and food technology in Japan. He came back strongly posting three winning records in the next three tournaments, which sent him up to maegashira 1 for the September 2010 tournament. However, there he recorded a disastrous 2–13 score.

Tokitenkū returned to the komusubi rank for the first time in 35 tournaments in July 2013, the second longest post-1925 wait for a san'yaku return after Aobajō's 47 tournament wait between 1975 and 1983.

Tokitenkū achieved this despite being ranked as low as maegashira 8 in May.

Having been in and out of hospital since October, he also withdrew from the January 2016 tournament to discuss his future with his stablemaster before the spring tournament in Osaka. After missing his fifth consecutive tournament in July 2016, his rank on the banzuke had dropped through the un-salaried ranks to West 26 in the fourth-tier Sandanme division. He had become a Japanese citizen in January 2014 and had purchased the Magaki kabu (elder stock) in May 2014 from former yokozuna Wakanohana Kanji II, making him the first Mongolian-born wrestler to acquire the right to remain with the sumo association following retirement. He became known as Magaki Oyakata and worked as a coach at Tokitsukaze stable, the second Mongolian-born wrestler to remain as a coach after Kyokutenhō. He recalled his most memorable bout as being his playoff win for the sandanme championship in January 2003, against his stablemate Toyonoshima.

Tokitenkū died on 31 January 2017 at the age of 37. He had been housebound since October, His most common winning technique was yori-kiri, or force out, although he also relied on pull-down techniques such as hataki-komi and hiki-otoshi. He was fond of throwing moves (nage). which he successfully used nineteen times in his career. He also used the extremely rare trip nimaigeri (ankle kicking twist down) on fourteen occasions, although he was not credited with the technique in the top division until May 2011 in a win over Shōtenrō.

Career record