Michinoku Stable

The Michinoku stable (陸奥部屋, Michinoku-beya) is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Tokitsukaze ichimon or group of stables. It was established in 1974 by former maegashira Hoshikabuto, who branched off from Izutsu stable. Former ozeki Kirishima became the current head coach in December 1997. It absorbed Tatsutagawa stable in November 2000 upon the retirement of the stablemaster there. After the death of Izutsu Oyakata in September 2019, all personnel from Izutsu stable moved to Michinoku on October 1st 2019.

As of January 2023 it has 11 active sumo wrestlers.

## **History**

Michinoku stable was established in 1974 by former maegashira Hoshikabuto, who branched off from Izutsu stable. The stable produced their first sekitori when Hoshiiwato was promoted to juryo in 1981.

When Hoshiiwato retired from active competition in 1991, he took over Michinoku stable. He oversaw the promotion to the jūryō division of two wrestlers from Argentina, Hoshitango and Hoshiandesu. He left the Sumo Association in December 1997 and was succeeded as head coach by former ōzeki Kirishima.

Under the tutelage of Kirishima, Michinoku stable has produced several wrestlers with top division experience, including Jūmonji, Toyozakura and Hakuba. In February 2010 Michinoku Oyakata was elected to the Sumo Association's board of Directors, but was forced to step down from his post in April 2011 when four of his wrestlers (Jūmonji, Toyozakura, Hakuba and Kirinowaka) were ordered to retire after being found guilty of match-fixing. The retirement of Ryūhō in 2012 left it with no sekitori until Kiribayama reached the jūryō division in 2019. Kiribayama reached the top makuuchi division in January 2020, the first for the stable since Hakuba in 2008.

After the death of Izutsu Oyakata in September 2019, all personnel from Izutsu stable moved to Michinoku on 1 October 2019. This expanded the stable to 15 wrestlers, the most senior of whom is yokozuna Kakuryū. As of January 2021, it had 17 wrestlers.

## **Ring Name Conventions**

In the past wrestlers at this stable took ring names or shikona that began with the character 星 (read: hoshi), meaning star, in deference to two of their former owners, but many now use 霧 (read: kiri), meaning fog or mist, after the current owner Kirishima, such as Kiribayama, Kirinoryu and Kirinofuji.

## **Owners**

* 1997-present: 9th Michinoku Kazuhiro (yakuin taigu iin, former ozeki Kirishima)
* 1991-1997: 8th Michinoku Yuji (former maegashira Hoshiiwato)
* 1974-1991: 7th Michinoku Yoshio (former maegashira Hoshikabuto)

## **Coaches**

* Urakaze Tomimichi (iin, former maegashira Shikishima)
* Tatsutayama Hirokazu (sanyo, former maegashira Sasshunada)

## **Notable Active Wrestlers**

* Kirishima (best rank ozeki)
* Yuki (best rank makushita)
* Nikko (best rank sandanme)

## **Notable Former Wrestlers**

### **Makuuchi**

* Kakuryu (the 71st yokozuna) - *transferred from Izutsu stable*
* Hakuba (former komusubi)
* Toyozakura (former maegashira) - *transferred from Tatsutagawa stable*
* Shikishima (former maegashira) - *transferred from Tatsutagawa stable*
* Jumonji (former maegashira) - *transferred from Tatsutagawa stable*
* Hoshiiwato (former maegashira)
* Ryuho (former maegashira)

### **Juryo**

* Hoshiandesu (former juryo)
* Hoshitango (former juryo)
* Taikan (former juryo) - *transferred from Izutsu stable*
* Kirinowaka (former juryo)

## **Other personnel**

* Fukunosato Kunio (wakaimonogashira, former juryo)