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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Birth name | Mönkhbatyn Davaajargal | |
| Date of birth | March 11 1985 | |
| Place of birth |  Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia |
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| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | |
| Weight | 153 kg (337 lb) | |
| Career* | ||
| Heya | Miyagino | |
| Current rank | Yokozuna | |
| Record | 324-127-21 | |
| Debut | March, 2001 | |
| Highest rank | Yokozuna (May, 2007) | |
| Yusho | 5 (Makuuchi) 1 (Jūryō) |
|
| Special Prizes | Outstanding Performance (3) Fighting Spirit (1) Technique (2) |
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| Gold stars | 1 (Asashōryū) | |
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* Career information is correct as of September 2007. |
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Hakuhō Shō (born March 11, 1985 as Mönkhbatyn Davaajargal, Mongolian: Мөнхбатын Даваажаргал) is a professional sumo wrestler (rikishi) from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. On May 30, 2007 at the age of 22 he became the second native of Mongolia promoted to the highest rank in sumo, yokozuna.
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Early Career
Like many of his countrymen in professional sumo, Hakuhō belongs to a family in the Mongolian wrestling tradition. His father Jigjid Mönkhbat won a silver medal in freestyle wrestling at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Davaajargal came to Japan on October 25th 2000, when he was fifteen years old, but with a weight of only 62 kg no sumo training stable (heya) accepted him. Hearing this, pioneering Mongolian rikishi Kyokushūzan asked his heya master to intercede, and Davaajargal was accepted to Miyagino stable on the last day of his two-month stay in Japan, December 24 2000. Under the ring name (shikona) Hakuhō (lit. white phoenix) he made his ring debut at the March tournament (honbasho) in Osaka in March, 2001. As his weight increased he steadily rose in the ranks, reaching the second highest jūryō division in January 2004, and the top division in May of the same year. He enjoyed great success in subsequent tournaments, winning a gold star (kinboshi) for defeating Yokozuna Asashōryū while still at the lowest makuuchi rank of maegashira. This earned him quick promotion to the rank of komusubi in January 2005 and sekiwake only one tournament later. His progress was delayed by an injury which forced him to take leave (zen-kyu) from the Nagoya tournament in 2005. Ōzeki promotion came in March 2006, just a few weeks after his twenty-first birthday. This made him the fourth youngest wrestler to reach that rank in modern sumo history.
Ōzeki
At his first tournament as ōzeki in May 2006, Hakuhō won his first championship (yūshō) with a 14-1 record. After another strong performance (13-2) in July Hakuhō flirted with promotion to yokozuna, but an uncharacteristically poor 8-7 showing in September shelved such early hopes. An accidental injury in November prevented him from participating in the November tournament,[1] putting him at risk for demotion (kadoban) in January 2007, when he scored a respectable ten wins on his return to the ring.
Promotion to Yokozuna
On March 25 2007 Hakuhō won his second championship in Osaka[2] and on May 27, 2007 a third championship in the very next tournament, with a perfect 15-0 record.[3] Winning two consecutive championships satisfies the de facto minimum requirements for promotion to the top rank in sumo. On the day following the tournament, the Yokozuna Deliberation Council unanimously recommended his promotion to yokozuna[4] which was formally announced by the Nihon Sumo Kyokai on May 30, 2007.[5] He performed his inaugural ring-entering ceremony (dohyo-iri) at Meiji Jingu in the rarer Shiranui style on June 1.
Hakuhō's first tournament as a yokozuna was in July 2007. His 25 match winning streak was brought to an end by Kotomitsuki on the 10th day, and further losses to Kotooshu and Chiyotaikai put him out of contention for the title. He finished the tournament with an 11-4 record. Hakuhō's first tournament championship as a yokozuna came in September 2007 with a 13-2 record, triumphing over Chiyotaikai on the last day. Fellow Mongolian Kyokutenhō was runner-up in this basho. His second title as a yokozuna, and fifth overall, came in the following tournament in November with a 12-3 score. He lost to Kotomitsuki on the final day but the championship had already been decided earlier in the day when his only challenger Chiyotaikai pulled out through injury. His yokozuna rival Asashōryū missed both these tournaments through suspension.
Family
In February, 2007, Hakuhō married a 22 year-old university student in Tokyo after a three-year relationship. The couple welcomed a daughter in May.
Top Division Record
| January Hatsu basho, Tokyo |
March Haru basho, Osaka |
May Natsu basho, Tokyo |
July Nagoya basho, Nagoya |
September Aki basho, Tokyo |
November Kyūshū basho, Fukuoka |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | x | x | East Maegashira #16 12–3 F |
East Maegashira #8 11–4 |
Maegashira #3 8–7 |
West Maegashira #1 12–3 O★ |
| 2005 | West Komusubi 11–4 T |
West Sekiwake 8–7 |
East Sekiwake 9–6 |
East Sekiwake 6–3–6 |
West Maegashira #1 9–6 |
West Komusubi 9–6 |
| 2006 | West Sekiwake 13–2 O |
East Sekiwake 13–2 OT |
West Ōzeki 14–1 |
East Ōzeki 13–2 |
East Ōzeki 8–7 |
Sat out due to injury |
| 2007 | West Ōzeki 10–5 |
West Ōzeki 13–2 |
East Ōzeki 15–0 |
West Yokozuna 11–4 |
West Yokozuna 13–2 |
East Yokozuna 12–3 |
| Record given as win-loss-absent Championship Retired Demoted from makuuchi Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique Also shown: ★=Kinboshi |
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References
- ^ "Hakuho out of Kyushu tourney" (English). The Japan Times Online (2006-10-10). Retrieved on 2007-05-26.
- ^ "Hakuho stuns Asa to win tourney" (English). The Japan Times Online (2007-03-26). Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
- ^ "Undefeated Hakuho dominates Asashoryu" (English). Japan Times (2007-05-28). Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
- ^ Kyodo News (2007-05-29). "Hakuho to receive promotion" (English). The Japan Times Online. Retrieved on 2007-05-29.
- ^ "Hakuho promoted to Yokozuna" (English). Nihon Sumo Kyokai (2007-05-30). Retrieved on 2007-05-30.
- ^ Rikishi in Juryo and Makunouchi (English). szumo.hu. Retrieved on 2007-08-24.
See also
External links
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