Wakamotoharu Minato

1.1. Childhood and education

Born in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Wakamotoharu was raised in Fukushima. He was a notably active child among his three brothers, enjoying outdoor activities like splashing in puddles and climbing trees. He began practicing sumo in the second grade of elementary school, alongside softball and judo. Despite his initial dislike for sumo, he possessed a natural talent for the sport, often achieving the best results in tournaments among his siblings. He also showed a creative side, being skilled at drawing and crafting.

Wakamotoharu focused solely on sumo from junior high school. Although he once confessed to his father that he "really disliked sumo," he had written in his elementary school graduation essay that he aspired to become a sumo wrestler whose name everyone would recognize. His father observed that Wakamotoharu would win easily if promised a reward like a manga, but would lose just as easily without one, noting that his son's talent often led to victories, which made it difficult for him to quit sumo despite his initial reluctance.

As a high school student at Gakuhō Fukushima High School in Fukushima City, he was a victim of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. During the post-disaster reconstruction, he and his younger brother, Wakatakakage, temporarily moved to the Arashio stable in Tokyo for a month of training and shelter, facilitated by his elder brother, Wakatakamoto, who was already a wrestler there. This experience, and the stable's hospitality, led Wakamotoharu to decide to pursue a professional sumo career in the same stable as a gesture of gratitude.

1.2. Family background

Wakamotoharu is part of a prominent sumo family. His grandfather, Wakabayama Sadao, achieved the rank of komusubi. His father, who wrestled in the Makushita division (reaching West Makushita 51), now operates a chankonabe restaurant in Fukushima. Wakamotoharu has an elder brother, Wakatakamoto, and a younger brother, Wakatakakage. All three brothers became professional wrestlers between 2009 and 2017 and currently belong to the Arashio stable.

While Wakatakamoto has not advanced beyond the makushita division, Wakatakakage was the first to surpass their grandfather's highest rank, reaching sekiwake in 2022. The ring names (shikona) of the three brothers were inspired by the "three arrows" parable of the 16th-century warlord Mōri Motonari. Wakamotoharu's shikona is derived from the first Kanji of his grandfather's shikona and the name of the second son in the parable, Kikkawa Motoharu. The "Waka" (若) character in their names comes from their grandfather Wakabayama and father Wakashinobu.

1.3. Amateur career

Wakamotoharu started sumo in elementary school and continued through high school. During his time at Gakuhō Fukushima High School, he was a scholarship student and participated in the Inter-High School Championships (National High School General Athletic Meet) individual competition for three consecutive years. In his third year, he achieved runner-up in the Tohoku regional tournament. Although he primarily used a left-hand grip (hidari-yotsu) from elementary school, his father once encouraged him to try pushing techniques during a warm-up in his third year of junior high, which unexpectedly led him to the top eight in that tournament. Despite his talent, he lacked strong ambition, often winning easily when a reward was offered but losing without one.

2.1. Debut and early career

Wakamotoharu made his professional debut in Maezumo in November 2011, initially using the shikona 荒大波_Araonami^Japanese. In his first official tournament (honbasho) in January 2012, under the new shikona 剛士_Goshi^Japanese, he won the Jonokuchi championship (yūshō) with a perfect 7-0 record. He continued to progress, and in July 2013, he achieved a makushita division championship with an undefeated 7-0 record, a victory that coincided with the return of his stablemate Sōkokurai to the ring after a legal battle.

In May 2017, he adopted his current shikona, Wakamotoharu. In January 2019, he secured another makushita division championship with a perfect 7-0 score, earning him promotion to the Jūryō division alongside Kiribayama. This promotion made him and his younger brother Wakatakakage the twentieth pair of brothers in sumo history to achieve the status of sekitori (a wrestler in the top two divisions). However, his master, former komusubi Ōyutaka, expressed reservations, stating that the promotion was "three years too late" and criticizing Wakamotoharu's perceived lack of effort in training. Senior wrestler Sōkokurai also noted that he had to encourage Wakamotoharu to put in the necessary effort for promotion since late 2018.

In his debut jūryō tournament, Wakamotoharu only managed five wins and was demoted back to makushita. However, he quickly returned to jūryō after achieving a 6-1 record at makushita 1 in September 2019.

In November 2019, Wakamotoharu was involved in a social media incident when a picture of him bound to a chair and gagged with tape was posted by fellow wrestler Abi. This prank was widely criticized for seemingly making light of past incidents of violence within sumo stables. The Japan Sumo Association responded by issuing a warning to Abi and Wakamotoharu and subsequently banning sumo wrestlers from having individual social media accounts.

In January 2021, Wakamotoharu, along with his stablemaster and ten other wrestlers from Arashio stable, tested positive for COVID-19. This led to his absence from the January 2021 tournament. Despite the full absence, his rank was only lowered by one due to the circumstances.

2.2. Makuuchi career and promotions

In December 2021, Wakamotoharu was promoted to the top Makuuchi division for the January 2022 tournament, joining his younger brother Wakatakakage. They became the 12th pair of brothers in history to be ranked in the top division simultaneously. He was the second wrestler from Arashio stable to reach the top division after Wakatakakage, and the first since the current stablemaster, former Maegashira Sōkokurai, took over. Reflecting on his promotion, Wakamotoharu noted the difficulty of starting 2021 by sitting out the January tournament due to COVID-19 but ending it with his best result as a sekitori, an 11-4 record in November, which secured his promotion. He expressed a desire to surpass his younger brother in the rankings. Upon his promotion, his hometown supporters' association in Fukushima presented him with a replica of the keshō-mawashi worn by his grandfather Wakabayama, which depicts a lion dance scene and is displayed in his parents' chanko restaurant.

In his makuuchi debut at the January 2022 tournament, Wakamotoharu secured a winning record (kachi-koshi) on Day 14 by defeating Tobizaru. He followed this with another 9-6 winning record in the March 2022 tournament, defeating Endō on Day 12 to reach 8-4.

During the July 2022 tournament, his bout against Yokozuna Terunofuji was controversially stopped after two minutes when Wakamotoharu's mawashi came undone. After a lengthy mono-ii (consultation) and a reset of positions, Terunofuji quickly defeated him with an underarm throw. Wakamotoharu later commented that he had put in his full effort and wished people would focus on that rather than the mawashi incident.

After achieving consecutive 10-5 winning records in the top maegashira ranks, Wakamotoharu was promoted to Komusubi for the January 2023 tournament. He secured a winning record in his san'yaku (the three highest ranks below yokozuna) debut on Day 14. This promotion marked the third time in history that brothers simultaneously held san'yaku ranks, and the fourth pair of brothers to achieve san'yaku status, following Wakanohana and Takanohana in 1992. He maintained his komusubi rank for the March banzuke, where he reached 10 wins by Day 13 before finishing with an 11-4 record, defeating Kotonowaka on the final day.

In May 2023, he was promoted to sekiwake, making him and Wakatakakage the fourth siblings in history to reach sumo's third-highest rank, and the first since the Takanohana and Wakanohana brothers in the early 1990s. During the May tournament, he notably defeated Ōzeki Takakeishō on Day 14. He concluded the tournament with a 10-5 record and was awarded the Technique prize.

Following the May tournament, the possibility of Wakamotoharu's promotion to ōzeki was discussed, with the chairman of the judging committee, Sadogatake, indicating that the July tournament would be a key one for his ōzeki bid if he achieved good results. Wakamotoharu would need 12 wins at the July basho to reach the typical ōzeki promotion requirement of 33 wins in the san'yaku ranks over three consecutive tournaments. He expressed surprise at being an ōzeki-tori (candidate for ōzeki), having spent most of his career trying to catch up to his younger brother, Wakatakakage. He also mentioned his aspiration to emulate former ōzeki Kaiō and Chiyotaikai.

Before the July tournament, Wakamotoharu received a new keshō-mawashi from his Fukushima patronage association. Designed by his mother, who had a background in the design industry, the mawashi features flowers and fruits from Fukushima Prefecture, evoking the beauty of Hanamiyama Park. However, during the tournament, Wakamotoharu's ōzeki promotion chances diminished when he suffered his fourth defeat on Day 12 to the returning ōzeki Kirishima. He finished the tournament with a 9-6 record, falling short of the 12 wins needed for ōzeki consideration. His performance on Day 14, where he used a henka (side-step) against Hōshōryū, drew criticism from Chairman Hakkaku, who questioned if such sumo was what fans wanted to see from an ōzeki.

Wakamotoharu lost his san'yaku status for the first tournament of 2024, being demoted to the rank of maegashira 1. On Day 2 of the tournament, he claimed his very first kinboshi (gold star) with an upset victory over Yokozuna Terunofuji in a match lasting 1 minute and 42 seconds. This was followed the next day with a victory over ōzeki Takakeishō. Wakamotoharu finished the tournament with 10 wins, a record that earned him promotion back to the san'yaku ranks. For his achievement in beating the yokozuna and several other san'yaku-ranked opponents, he received the Outstanding Performance Prize.

At the May 2024 tournament, Wakamotoharu withdrew on the seventh day due to a left toe injury sustained during training. He later returned on Day 11 but was defeated by Hiradoumi, resulting in a losing record. After two strong tournaments in September and November 2024, the press again discussed Wakamotoharu's potential for ōzeki promotion if he could perform well in January 2025, buoyed by his brother Wakatakakage's return to san'yaku.

2.3. Major achievements and awards

Wakamotoharu Minato has accumulated several significant achievements and awards throughout his professional sumo career:

• Divisional Championships (Yūshō):**
  • Jonokuchi Division: 1 (January 2012)
  • Makushita Division: 2 (July 2013, January 2019)
• Special Prizes (Sanshō):** 2
  • Technique Prize: 1 (May 2023)
  • Outstanding Performance Prize: 1 (January 2024)
• Gold Stars (Kinboshi):** 1
  • Against Yokozuna Terunofuji (January 2024)