Yoshibayama
| Yoshibayama Junnosuke | |
|---|---|
| 吉葉山 潤之輔 | |
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| Personal information | |
| Born | Junnosuke Ikeda April 3, 1920 Hokkaidō, Japan |
| Died | November 26, 1977 (aged 57) |
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 143 kg (315 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Takashima |
| Record | 357-171-85-1hold |
| Debut | May, 1938 |
| Highest rank | Yokozuna (January, 1954) |
| Retired | January, 1958 |
| Championships | 1 (Makuuchi) 1 (Makushita) |
| Special Prizes | Outstanding Performance (3) |
| Gold Stars | 2 (Terukuni) |
| * Up to date as of September 2007. | |
Yoshibayama Junnosuke (吉葉山 潤之輔, April 3, 1920 - November 26, 1977), real name Junnosuke Ikeda, was a sumo wrestler from Atsuta, Hokkaidō, Japan. He was the sport's 43rd yokozuna. He suffered a number of injuries and only won one tournament championship, but he was a popular wrestler. After his retirement he was head coach of Miyagino stable.
He entered sumo in a curious way. He had travelled to Tokyo on a train to attend school, but was met at the station by a sumo wrestler who was expecting a new recruit, who had in fact had second thoughts and not made the trip. The conspicuously large Ikeda was mistaken for him and taken back to Takashima stable before he even realised what was going on. He made his professional debut in May 1938. After suffering appendicitis he had to undergo emergency surgery and changed his shikona from Hokutoyama to Yoshibayama in honour of the doctor (a Shosaku Yoshiba) who had saved his life. He got to the verge of promotion to the jūryō division in 1942 but was then drafted into the Japanese army and took part in World War II. He was seriously wounded in gunfights during his service. He was shot in the leg twice, and the second bullet permanently lodged itself in his foot. He was actually reported as dead for some time. He came back alive, but was surprisingly thin when he returned to Japan. It is generally believed among sumo scholars that if he hadn't been conscripted and lost several years of his career, he could have become an even stronger and longer lasting wrestler than he was.
In spite of his war injury, he returned to sumo in 1947 and was promoted to the top makuuchi division in November of that year. He remained in the maegashira ranks until September 1950, but was then was promoted to ōzeki in May 1951, after two successive runner-up performances of 13-2 at the rank of sekiwake. He recorded an azukari, or hold, on the 12th day of September 1951 tournament. The reason is that his opponent, Azumafuji, couldn't stand up any more. Yoshibayama could have been awarded a win, but sportingly insisted the draw. In May 1953 he finished with 14 wins and only one loss, but the championship went to undefeated maegashira Tokitsuyama whom Yoshibayama had not been paired against.
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