1. Overview
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi (born Toyoichi Kumamoto; January 24, 1933 - November 4, 1999) was a professional sumo wrestler from Shime, Fukuoka, Japan. Making his professional debut in March 1953, he achieved the highest rank of Maegashira 1 (West Maegashira 1) in the top division in March 1965. His notable career highlights include winning a Jūryō championship, receiving one Fighting Spirit Prize (敢闘賞KantōshōJapanese), and earning one Kinboshi (gold star) by defeating a Yokozuna. He retired from active competition in May 1967.
2. Early life and sumo debut
Wakasugiyama was born Toyoichi Kumamoto on January 24, 1933. He attended Fukuoka Prefectural Yamada High School, where he served as the captain of the sumo club. After graduating, he took a job in a coal mine. His talent was recognized by former Jūryō wrestler Kenryu, who was the father of future Sekiwake Kyokaho. Kenryu scouted Kumamoto, leading him to join the Tokitsukaze stable. Wakasugiyama made his professional sumo debut in March 1953, a relatively late start for a wrestler at 20 years old.
3. Sumo career
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi's sumo career spanned 77 tournaments, marked by his steady progression through the ranks, periods of fluctuation between divisions, and moments of significant achievement.
3.1. Early career and rank progression
After his initial debut, Wakasugiyama's first official rank was Jonidan in May 1953, where he wrestled under his birth name, Kumamoto. He demonstrated a strong foundation built from his high school experience, specializing in a powerful right-hand dominant style, characterized by a deep right-hand grip, throwing techniques, and a solid yori (force-out) attack. This allowed him to steadily climb the ranks. In May 1954, he officially changed his ring name from Kumamoto to Wakasugiyama. He achieved promotion to Jūryō (the second highest division) in March 1958. His breakthrough in Jūryō came in January 1959, when he secured the Jūryō championship with an impressive 12-3 record while ranked East Jūryō 8.
3.2. Makuuchi career and peak performance
Following his Jūryō championship, Wakasugiyama made his Makuuchi (top division) debut in March 1959. For approximately two and a half years after his top division entry, he frequently moved between the *makuuchi* and *jūryō* divisions. From September 1961, he experienced a prolonged stagnation in *jūryō* for over three years.
However, in January 1965, he achieved his third promotion to *makuuchi*, where he delivered a remarkable performance, achieving a 12-3 record. This strong showing put him in contention for the championship, ultimately finishing second to Ōzeki Sadanoyama, who won with a 13-2 record. For this outstanding performance, he received his only Fighting Spirit Prize (敢闘賞KantōshōJapanese) and also the Raiden-shō award. This success propelled him to his highest career rank, West Maegashira 1, for the subsequent March 1965 tournament. In this tournament, he faced higher-ranked wrestlers, including Yokozuna and Ōzeki. On the sixth day of the March 1965 tournament, Wakasugiyama defeated Yokozuna Tochinoumi by *yori-kiri* (force out), earning him his sole Kinboshi (gold star) of his career.
3.3. Decline and retirement
Following his peak performance in early 1965, Wakasugiyama's performance began to decline. He returned to the middle and lower ranks of *makuuchi* and was eventually demoted back to *jūryō* after the November 1966 tournament. His final tournament as a *sekitori* (a wrestler in the top two divisions) was March 1967, where he suffered a significant 4-11 loss in the lower ranks of *jūryō*, ensuring his demotion to *makushita*. He subsequently retired from professional sumo at the age of 34 after the May 1967 tournament, where he was ranked East Makushita 8 and finished with a record of 1 win and 6 losses.
4. Post-retirement life
After retiring from sumo, Wakasugiyama initially worked for a trading company called "Toyo Shoji" for a period. Following his departure from the company, he returned to his hometown of Shime, Kasuya-gun, where he opened and operated a restaurant specializing in sumo cuisine.
5. Death
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi passed away on November 4, 1999, at the age of 66. His cause of death was pulmonary edema.
6. Records and statistics
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi's professional sumo career encompassed 77 tournaments, from his debut in March 1953 to his retirement in May 1967.
6.1. Overall career record
- Total career record: 496 wins, 495 losses, 4 absences (Winning percentage: .501)
- Top division (*makuuchi*) record: 128 wins, 187 losses (Winning percentage: .406)
- Active service duration: 77 tournaments
- Top division (*makuuchi*) duration: 21 tournaments
- Sanshō (Special Prizes): 1 (Fighting Spirit Prize in January 1965)
- Raiden-shō: 1 (January 1965)
- Kinboshi (Gold Stars): 1 (against Tochinoumi)
- Division Championships: 1 (Jūryō championship in January 1959)
6.2. Tournament-by-tournament record
| Year | January | March | May | July | September | November |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | N/A | Jonokuchi | Jonidan 26 East | Tournament not held | Sandanme 58 East | Tournament not held |
| 1954 | Sandanme 40 East | Sandanme 32 East | Sandanme 28 East | Tournament not held | Sandanme 8 East | Tournament not held |
| 1955 | Sandanme 3 East | Sandanme 6 West | Sandanme 8 West | Tournament not held | Sandanme 3 East | Tournament not held |
| 1956 | Makushita 45 West | Makushita 32 East | Makushita 31 West | Tournament not held | Makushita 31 West | Tournament not held |
| 1957 | Makushita 35 West | Makushita 26 West | Makushita 13 West | Tournament not held | Makushita 3 West | Makushita 6 West |
| 1958 | Makushita 3 East | Jūryō 23 East | Jūryō 17 East | Jūryō 10 East | Jūryō 7 East | Jūryō 3 West |
| 1959 | Jūryō 8 East | Maegashira 20 East | Maegashira 17 West | Maegashira 18 East | Maegashira 11 West | Maegashira 15 East |
| 1960 | Jūryō 5 East | Jūryō 7 East | Jūryō 1 West | Maegashira 14 East | Maegashira 8 West | Maegashira 13 West |
| 1961 | Maegashira 10 West | Maegashira 10 West | Maegashira 10 West | Maegashira 14 West | Jūryō 2 West | Jūryō 4 East |
| 1962 | Jūryō 8 West | Jūryō 11 East | Jūryō 12 West | Jūryō 13 West | Jūryō 9 West | Jūryō 4 East |
| 1963 | Jūryō 1 East | Jūryō 6 East | Jūryō 3 East | Jūryō 4 East | Jūryō 9 West | Jūryō 12 East |
| 1964 | Jūryō 16 West | Jūryō 7 West | Jūryō 5 West | Jūryō 7 East | Jūryō 5 East | Jūryō 2 East |
| 1965 | Maegashira 13 West | Maegashira 1 West | Maegashira 4 West | Maegashira 11 West | Maegashira 7 West | Maegashira 12 East |
| 1966 | Maegashira 11 East | Jūryō 3 West | Jūryō 2 West | Maegashira 15 East | Jūryō 2 West | Maegashira 13 West |
| 1967 | Jūryō 6 West | Jūryō 14 West | Makushita 8 East | Tournament not held | Tournament not held | Tournament not held |
Notes:
- Numbers in each cell denote `wins-losses-absences`.
- Achievements: `Y` = Championship; `P` = Playoff(s); `*` = Kinboshi (gold star); `F` = Fighting Spirit Prize.
- Divisions: Makuuchi - Jūryō - Makushita - Sandanme - Jonidan - Jonokuchi.
- Makuuchi* ranks: Yokozuna - Ōzeki - Sekiwake - Komusubi - Maegashira.
- The Kyushu tournament was first held in 1957, and the Nagoya tournament in 1958.
6.3. Makuuchi opponent record
The following table details Wakasugiyama's head-to-head win-loss records against specific opponents during his tenure in the *makuuchi* division.
| Rikishi name | Wins | Losses | Rikishi name | Wins | Losses | Rikishi name | Wins | Losses | Rikishi name | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asasegawa | 2 | 4 | Ichinoya | 1 | 0 | Iwakamikaze | 4 | 1 | Udagawa | 5 | 4 |
| Oikawa | 4 | 3 | Oikaze | 0 | 2 | Osegawa | 2 | 0 | Ōtaka | 0 | 1 |
| Oginohana | 6 | 6 | Kaiyama | 2 | 5 | Uminoyama | 3 | 4 | Kairyuyama | 1 | 7 |
| Kanenohana | 5 | 8 | Kitanokuni | 2 | 0 | Kitanofuji | 1 | 1 | Kimunishiki | 1 | 2 |
| Kiyonokuni | 0 | 1 | Kiyonosato | 2 | 5 | Kirinji | 1 | 2 | Kunitonishiki | 2 | 0 |
| Koinose | 1 | 1 | Kotetsuyama | 2 | 2 | Kotozakura | 0 | 1 | Sadanoyama | 0 | 3 |
| Shinobuyama | 1 | 1 | Shimanishiki | 2 | 0 | Shinkawa (Tamahibiki) | 3(1) | 3 | Daiho | 2 | 1 |
| Daishin | 2 | 3 | Taihō | 0 | 1 | Daimonji | 0 | 1 | Daio | 0 | 3 |
| Takashinishiki | 1 | 0 | Tamaarashi | 1 | 0 | Tamanoumi | 1 | 2 | Tamanoshima | 0 | 1 |
| Tsunenishiki | 3 | 3 | Tsurugamine | 2 | 2 | Dewanishiki | 1 | 3 | Tensuizan | 1 | 1 |
| Tochioyama | 0 | 2 | Tochinoumi | 2 | 1 | Tochimitsu | 1 | 1 | Narutokai | 1 | 3 |
| Naruyama | 1 | 4 | Hagurogawa | 1 | 0 | Hasegawa | 2 | 1 | Hanamitsu | 0 | 2 |
| Hagonishiki | 3 | 1 | Hirokawa | 0 | 4 | Fukudayama | 6 | 3 | Fusanobori | 2 | 3 |
| Fujinishiki | 2 | 7 | Fujinokawa | 0 | 1 | Maedagawa | 3 | 3 | Matsunobori | 3 | 4 |
| Misogihō | 1 | 0 | Miyanishiki | 1 | 2 | Myobudani | 3 | 4 | Yasozome | 1 | 0 |
| Yoshinohana | 1 | 2 | Yoshinoyama | 1 | 2 | Wakasatsuma | 6 | 5 | Wakatenryu | 0 | 1 |
| Wakanami | 2 | 5 | Wakanaruto | 0 | 3 | Wakanoumi | 1 | 4(1) | Wakanokuni | 1 | 4 |
| Wakanosu | 1 | 5 | Wakabukuro | 1 | 0 | Wakafutase | 0 | 1 | Wakamaeda | 1 | 2 |
| Wakamiyama | 0 | 1 |
Note: Numbers in parentheses indicate the number of wins or losses that were by `fukosen` (opponent default) or `fusensho` (default win).
7. Shikona changes
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi used two different Shikona (ring names) throughout his sumo career:
- Kumamoto Toyoichi (熊本 豊一Kumamoto ToyoichiJapanese): May 1953 tournament - March 1954 tournament
- Wakasugiyama Toyoichi (若杉山 豊一Wakasugiyama ToyoichiJapanese): May 1954 tournament - May 1967 tournament
8. Legacy and evaluation
Wakasugiyama Toyoichi's career, though not reaching the very top ranks of sumo, stands as a testament to persistence and the ability to achieve significant success despite a late start in the sport. His strong foundation in high school sumo and dedication allowed him to steadily climb the ranks, culminating in a Jūryō championship and a notable period in the Makuuchi division. His peak performance in January 1965, earning a Fighting Spirit Prize and a Kinboshi against a Yokozuna, highlighted his capability to challenge and defeat the sport's elite. While he couldn't maintain this highest level, his long tenure in the top divisions and his ability to regain sekitori status multiple times underscored his resilience. His post-retirement life, transitioning from a corporate job to running a sumo restaurant, also reflected a continued connection to his roots and the world of sumo. Wakasugiyama's career is remembered for these moments of exceptional achievement and his consistent effort over more than a decade in the professional sumo world.