Taro Akebono, a Hawaiian-born sumo wrestler who became the sport’s first foreign champion and helped spur the sport’s resurgence in popularity in the 1990s, has died in Tokyo . He is 54 years old.
He died of heart failure in early April while receiving care at a Tokyo hospital, according to a statement from his family distributed Thursday by the U.S. military in Japan.
When he became Japan’s 64th yokozuna, or champion sumo wrestler, in 1993, he was the first foreign-born sumo wrestler to achieve the sport’s highest title in its 300-year modern history. year of the sport. He has won a total of 11 major championships.
Akebono, who was 6-foot-8 and weighed 466 pounds when he was first named yokozuna at age 23, towered over his opponents. He is known for using his height and arm reach to his advantage, keeping his opponents at a distance and pushing them out of the ring.
Akebono’s rivalry with Japanese brothers Takanohana and Wakanohana, both major champions, was a major driving force in sumo’s resurgence in popularity in the 1990s.
Taro Akebono was born Chad George Ha’aheo Rowan in Waimanalo, Hawaii, in 1969. He moved to Japan in 1988 at the invitation of a Hawaiian wrestler.
In 1992, a year before he became grand champion, the panel that decides which wrestlers are worthy of the honor denied it to another Hawaiian, saying no foreigner could possess it. possesses dignity worthy of that title.
Akebono later said in interviews that he rarely considered his nationality in the ring but considered himself first and foremost a sumo wrestler. He became a naturalized Japanese citizen in 1996.
“I didn’t think, ‘I’m an American, I’m going to go out there, put my flag in the middle of the ring and take on the Japanese,’” he said. told the New York Times in 2013.
He gained acceptance and fame in the sumo world partly because the Japanese people appreciated his devotion to the sport.
Yoshihisa Shimoie, editor of Sumo magazine, “He made me forget I was a foreigner because of his serious attitude towards sumo.” said in 1993.
According to his family, Akebono is survived by his wife Christine Rowan, daughter Caitlyn, 25, and sons Cody, 23, and Connor, 20.
In 2001, Mr retired from sports at age 31, citing chronic knee problems. He continued to train younger wrestlers, while also competing in kickboxing, professional wrestling, and mixed martial arts.
“I am retiring feeling extremely grateful for the opportunity to become a yokozuna and experience something available to only so few,” he said at the time of his retirement.
Motoko Giau Report contributions.
