Takasago stable
He was an amateur sumo competitor at Kinki University, although he never won any titles. He was recruited by ex-"ōzeki" Asashio (himself a former collegiate competitor) and joined Wakamatsu stable (later Takasago stable) in March 1992. He began as a "makushita tsukedashi," meaning he could make his debut at the bottom of the third "makushita" division. He was promoted to the second "jūryō" division in January 1993 and captured the tournament championship in that division in November 1993 with a score of 11-4. Following a 9-6 in January 1994 he was promoted to the top "makuuchi" division in March of that year.