Kiyonohana Oyo

Kiyonohana Oyo - 清乃華 玉誉 (born November 8, 1950) is a former Chinese professional sumo wrestler from Fujian Province. He made his debut in May 1968 and wrestled for Hanakago stable. He reached the juryo division in July 1974. His highest rank was juryo 5 and he retired in September 1978.

## **Early Life**

Zhang was born in Osaka's Higashinari Ward to Chinese parents from Fujian Province. He attended Seifu Senior High School where he was a gymnast (the school had a prestigious gymnastics program). However, he dropped out and joined Hanakago stable.

## **Career**

### **Early Career**

He made his professional debut in May 1968 and was given the shikona "Kiyonohana" (清乃華). He breezed through the bottom three divisions and was promoted to makushita by March 1969 after only four tournaments. However, he was stuck in makushita and struggled to break it through into the juryo division. In April 1973, he participated in an exhibition tournament in China to commemorate the restoration of diplomatic relations between Japan and China. In May 1974, he produced a 6-1 record at the rank of makushita 4 and was promoted to juryo in the following July 1974 tournament.

### **Juryo Career**

Upon promotion to juryo, he changed his official birthplace from Osaka to Fujian to honor his heritage and the restoration of diplomatic relations between China and Japan. Therefore, this made him the first Chinese wrestler to reach the elite sekitori ranks. Two more have since followed: Sokokurai of Inner Mongolia in January 2010 and Nakanokuni of Beijing in September 2010. Kiyonohana was ranked in juryo for a total of 13 tournaments, reaching as high as juryo 5 in September 1977. His last juryo appearance was in May 1978 and he subsequently announced his retirement after the September 1978 tournament.

## **Retirement from Sumo**

After retiring, he trained at a restaurant called "Chanko Kitanofuji" (ちゃんこ北の富士) before branching out and opening his own chanko restaurant called "Chanko Beya" (ちゃんこ北の富士).

## **Personal Life**

* He acquired Japanese citizenship in 1986 and subsequently changed his name from Li Hua Zhang to Kazushi Yoshida (Yoshida is his wife's surname).
* When Sokokurai was promoted to juryo, he was invited to Kiyonohana's restaurant to celebrate the promotion.
* In April 1973, he participated in an exhibition tournament in China to commemorate the restoration of diplomatic relations between Japan and China. He subsequently changed his birthplace from Osaka to Fujian upon promotion to juryo.

## **Fighting Style**

Kiyonohana was a yotsu-sumo wrestler who prefers grappling to pushing and thrusting techniques. He favored a migi-yotsu (left hand outside, right hand inside) position when gripping his opponent's mawashi (belt). His most common kimarite was yorikiri, or force out. He was also fond of employing uchigake, or inside leg trip.

## **Record**

### **Division Results**

* **Total:** 281-255-2/536 (63 basho)
* **Juryo:** 84-111/195 (13 basho)
* **Makushita:** 170-136-2/306 (44 basho)
* **Sandanme:** 16-5/21 (3 basho)
* **Jonidan:** 5-2/7 (1 basho)
* **Jonokuchi:** 6-1/7 (1 basho)

### **Achievements**

* **1st** Chinese Professional Sumo Wrestler
* **1st** Chinese Sekitori

## **Shikona History**

* Kiyonohana (1968.05 - 1973.05)
* Hari (1973.07 - 1974.01)
* Kiyonohana Reika (1974.03 - 1974.09)
* Kiyonohana Oyo (1974.11 - 1978.09)

## **Gallery**

Kiyonohana poses with his kesho-mawashi (c. 1976)Kiyonohana prepares for his upcoming matchKiyonohana poses with his kesho-mawashi in a shrineKiyonohana dines with fellow Chinese sekitori Sokokurai (c. 2010)Kiyonohana's tegata

## **Sources**

* Kiyonohana Oyo Japanese Wikipedia Article
* Kiyonohana Oyo Rikishi Information