page_title: Akinoshima Katsumi
section_title: Career
hierarchical_section_title: Akinoshima Katsumi / Career
caption_attribution_description: English: photo taken of a hand print of the wrestler Akinoshima that is owned by myself
context_page_description: Akinoshima Katsumi is a former sumo wrestler from Akitsu, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. He made his professional debut in 1982, and after reaching the top division in 1988 he remained there for 15 years. His highest rank was sekiwake. He was known as the "giant killer" having defeated more yokozuna than any other untitled wrestler in the history of sumo, earning himself 16 gold stars or kinboshi over his career, four more than his nearest kinboshi earning rivals, Takamiyama and Tochinonada. He also has received 19 performance prizes, another record in sumo history.
  Akinoshima was a member of Futagoyama stable and was a stablemate of the wrestling brothers Takanohana II and Wakanohana III during their rise in sumo and subsequent yokozuna reigns. Akinoshima was a wrestler always capable of surprise wins, but lacked consistency, spending most of his career as a maegashira. After his retirement in 2003 he became an elder of the Japan Sumo Association and in 2009 he became head coach of the Takadagawa stable.
context_section_description: Akinoshima received his first kinboshi on his defeat of the yokozuna Ōnokuni in September 1988.  He went on to receive at least one kinboshi from every yokozuna he faced.  He won 14 of his 16 kinboshi in a period of just four years from 1988 to 1992, and he would earn only two more in the last 11 years of his top division career. It is notable that due to sumo rules, Akinoshima never faced his stablemates, Wakanohana and Takanohana in the sumo ring. Had he had this chance, he may have attained even more kinboshi than his already unrivaled record. His record of 16 kinboshi is four clear of his nearest rival.  He also had a remarkable hold over the ōzeki Konishiki, whom he defeated in every one of their first seven meetings, and he had a 25-10 overall career advantage over him.
  He had an ongoing rivalry with another maegashira star Kotonishiki, and managed to chalk up only a 9-39 win/loss record against him during their respective top division careers. Only three wrestlers in the history of sumo have ever lost more times to another than Akinoshima did against Kotonishiki.  He won his last bout against Kotonishiki in March 2000, but injured his elbow in the win.  Ironically, this injury would be one factor that led to his eventual retirement in May 2003. After losing to Iwakiyama on the 14th day of the tournament he faced certain demotion to jūryō and announced his retirement with immediate effect, not appearing on the final day. He was the last top division wrestler from the Shōwa era to retire.
  He competed in the top division for 91 tournaments, which at the time of his retirement was the third highest in history, after Takamiyama and Terao. He never won a top division tournament title, his best result being 12-3 in March 1992 when he finished runner-up to Konishiki. He was ranked in the titled san'yaku ranks for 27 tournaments, 15 at komusubi and 12 at sekiwake. However, he was never consistent enough to earn promotion to ōzeki, often dropping matches to less talented opponents.
  He won his nineteenth sanshō or special prize in 1999, breaking the record of eighteen held by his rival Kotonishiki. The last two came in September 1999, a tournament in which he was also runner-up for the second time.
  He was an extremely diligent trainer, setting himself the target of one hundred practice bouts every day. He suffered a severe shoulder injury in 1995, which required surgery.
caption: Akinoshima's tegata
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