Wakanoshō Eidō

is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler. Wrestling for Minatogawa stable, including when it was still called Tokiwayama, his highest rank is .

Early life Takeda has a long history with martial arts, having started karate in kindergarten. In elementary school, he practiced judo and sumo, and began focusing exclusively on sumo starting in middle school. During those years, he placed third at the All-Japan Prefectural Middle School Sumo Championships and the All-Japan Middle School Sumo Championships. In his junior year, his club had the opportunity to visit Chiganoura stable, and after meeting Takakeishō, he became convinced to pursue a professional career. After graduating, he attended Saitama Sakae High School, a school renowned for its sumo program and Takakeishō’s alma mater. There, he placed in the top 16 at the National Sports Festival and at a substitute tournament held in place of the All-Japan High School Athletic Meet Sumo Competition, which was canceled that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Career At the start of his professional career, Takeda was given the shikona (ring name) by combining the kanji for ; taken from the ring name of the former Wakanohana I, who had taught Tokiwayama (the former Takamisugi), the stablemaster of his stable, and the kanji for , which is also found in the names of his peers and .

Wakanoshō worked his way through the lower divisions without ever winning a championship, though he steadily climbed the ranks. Later, he recalled his frustration at seeing wrestlers his age have much faster-paced careers, such as Hakunofuji and Kotoeihō. At the January 2025 tournament, he found himself in a position to potentially be promoted to the ranks. He finished the tournament with only two losses and secured promotion to the division. With this promotion, he becomes the fourth wrestler born in 2003 to be promoted to , following Hakunofuji, Aonishiki and Kotoeihō. He is also the 31st alumni of Saitama Sakae to have reached this rank. This absence resulted in a demotion to the division for the July tournament. However, he managed to climb back up the rankings, returning to the division for the November 2025 tournament. During the January tournament, he emerged as the leader of the competition, winning the championship on the final day of the tournament. Promoted to 3, Wakanoshō found himself in a position to potentially be promoted to the division. He started the tournament among the tournament leaders, finishing with a record of . This result tied him with , meaning the title would be decided in a playoff. Wakanoshō lost the match by ('frontal force out'), missing out on a second consecutive championship.

Although he missed out on the championship, it was announced that his record would be enough to promote him to the division for the May tournament, making him the first wrestler to be promoted to the top division since Minatogawa (the former Takakeishō) took over his . This promotion also makes him the first wrestler from Tochigi Prefecture to be promoted to in seven years—the first since Takagenji for the July 2019 tournament. In his first tournament in the top division, Wakanoshō posted a winning record on Day 14. During the July tournament, Wakanoshō performed well, racking up five consecutive wins, but suffered a loss on the sixth day of the tournament, injuring his right knee in the process and having to be wheeled out of the ring in a wheelchair. The next day, it was confirmed that Wakanoshō was withdrawing from the tournament after suffering a contusion to his right femur. In August, it was announced that Wakanoshō had ruled out the possibility of undergoing surgery and was now focusing on rehabilitation with the goal of competing in the September tournament.

Career record