Ikioi retires

[Seiyashi 4,108]

The writing has been on the wall for a long time now, but it's just dried:

Ex-sekiwake Ikioi (real name Toguchi Shota, Isenoumi stable) has retired, and assumes the toshiyori name of Kasugayama.

He ends his career with an almost even record of 546W - 545L, and only 14 absences from the last two basho sat out in makushita (most likely to allow ex-Bushoyama, the last borrower of his kabu, time to secure another kabu from a retired oyakata).

Edited June 21, 2021 by Seiyashi

[RabidJohn 1,855]

I'm so relieved he isn't going to try to come back.

Best of luck to Kasugayama-san.

[Swami 245]

Another member of the old guard exits stage left - who will be next?

I hope the new Kasugayama enjoys success in his new role.

Swami

[Seiyashi 4,108]

15 minutes ago, Swami said:

Another member of the old guard exits stage left - who will be next?

My guess is it's not going to be Shohozan; in fact I'm guessing Shohozan retires only before the Hatsu 2022 basho because Nishonoseki will be 65 on January 12th. Hakuho or Okinoumi will go first.

[dada78641 884]

Shame, I always liked seeing him on the dohyo, in part because he was in upper maegashira a lot and even made it to sekiwake once, so I was always expecting him to have his "moment" where he suddenly surprises everyone by breaking through. He even had a single jun-yusho (Kyu 2015) and very nearly got into the yusho playoff the basho before that.

I got into sumo in around 2014, and it's weird seeing so many makuuchi mainstays from that era exiting the sport now.

[pricklypomegranate 730]

Another one of my favourites gone. Farewell Ikioi and may your oyakata career have success as well. A great singer and Hakuho-impersonator, but most importantly, a determined and kind rikishi with a great sense of humour. 

[yohcun 401]

I'll always remember Haru 2018. Ikioi was clearly very injured. Every day, after his bout, he'd be walking back up the hanamichi so gingerly it was a wonder he was doing sumo at all.

He got 11 wins. And one of the losses was a hairpull, so he could've easily had 12. The Osaka crowd was loving it. It's like their noise was feeding him energy or something. It was amazing.

[Eikokurai 3,437]

I always loved his pre-bout poise and tachiai. During sonkyo he would place his hands, palm up, on his knees and take a deep slow breath. At the shikiri, he had this way of gently and precisely flopping his feet into position, and in bouts where he chose to touch down first and wait, his back was always perfectly parallel to the ground with one fist up ready to tap down. Really nice posture.

Beating Hakuho for his first kinboshi (see the tachiai posture):

A day 15 bout against Tokshoryu which shows his sonkyo and feet positioning thing (Ikioi won the Juryo yusho despite losing this).

 

Edited June 21, 2021 by Eikokurai

[Kaminariyuki 500]

Hate to lose a good Osaka boy but I reckon he knows when it's time.

All the best to Kasugayama

1

[I am the Yokozuna 194]

Really really liked Ikioi's sumo. Ever since his horrific it was always was a question of when he would retire not if. Wish him all the best in his next stage in his life. Hope he gets married soon (even though I feel the lady just does not want to be an okami and she might push him in a different career) and get to train sumotori to be as enthusiastic and as respectful as he was on the dohyo. 

Edited June 23, 2021 by I am the Yokozuna

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

43 minutes ago, I am the Yokozuna said:

Wish him all the best in his next stage in his life. Hope he gets married soon (even though I feel the lady just do not want to be an okami and she might push him in a different career) and get to train sumotori to be as enthusiastic and as respectful as he was on the dohyo. 

To prove we've really arrived in the 21st century, I'd rather like to see him as her caddy.

[Asashosakari 19,648]

21 minutes ago, Jakusotsu said:

To prove we've really arrived in the 21st century, I'd rather like to see him as her caddy.

I understand the sentiment, but just like an okamisan is more than just "the woman married to the stablemaster", a (professional) caddy is more than just "the guy that carries the golfer's bag".

Edited June 21, 2021 by Asashosakari
added a word

[Seiyashi 4,108]

2 minutes ago, Asashosakari said:

19 minutes ago, Jakusotsu said:

To prove we've really arrived in the 21st century, I'd rather like to see him as her caddy.

I understand the sentiment, but just like an okamisan is more than just "the woman married to the stablemaster", a caddy is more than just "the guy that carries the golf bag".

As I understand it, professional caddies are sort of like the golfer's conscience and factotum, responsible for a lot of the miscellaneous stuff going on around the golfer and trusted to provide advice when called on - a bit like a super-tsukebito, really. An existing relationship might make things both easier and harder.

I used to play bridge with my eventual life partner. We were definitely more in sync than your average bridge partnership, but when things went haywire there was an added dimension of ugliness.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Seiyashi

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

9 minutes ago, Asashosakari said:

I understand the sentiment, but just like an okamisan is more than just "the woman married to the stablemaster", a (professional) caddy is more than just "the guy that carries the golfer's bag".

Exactly. So why the "but"?

[WAKATAKE 2,671]

8 hours ago, Seiyashi said:

My guess is it's not going to be Shohozan; in fact I'm guessing Shohozan retires only before the Hatsu 2022 basho because Nishonoseki will be 65 on January 12th. Hakuho or Okinoumi will go first.

I can see the current Nishonoseki not staying as a consultant due to his health. Not necessarily 100% after his fall a few years ago

[Asashosakari 19,648]

28 minutes ago, Seiyashi said:

As I understand it, professional caddies are sort of like the golfer's conscience and factotum, responsible for a lot of the miscellaneous stuff going on around the golfer and trusted to provide advice when called on - a bit like a super-tsukebito, really. An existing relationship might make things both easier and harder.

Right, the best caddies are often not just pretty decent (at least club level) golfers themselves, they also have some skills one finds in good coaches, so they're able to provide direct feedback on the course.
 

21 minutes ago, Jakusotsu said:

Exactly. So why the "but"?

My point was that Ikioi caddying for his wife wouldn't make much of a statement on equality, unless it's at a charity tournament or something where the results don't matter. She's at her job  when playing golf and I'm pretty sure she'd rather have a caddy that helps her do that job well than one whose presence announces "we're in a marriage of equals".

Edit: Anyway, the 21st century answer to "there are some rikishi wives who don't want to become okamisan but have to be one anyway" shouldn't be a desire for a simple role reversal. Injustices should be removed, not redirected at a different group of people.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Asashosakari

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

Agreed on all acounts. Or to put it another way: both scenarios  (Ikioi acting as caddy or Mamiko acting as okamisan) are on the same level of ridiculous. It's the expectation of the latter that has no place in modern society.

(...and I was kidding in my initial statement, of course...)

[Kintamayama 45,503]

Another reason for me to be sad. My favorite, ever since he got punched. I loved his march before the last shikiri.

And his crow. What will happen to his crow now? Do you think I can buy it after the D-shiki?

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

1 minute ago, Kintamayama said:

And his crow. What will happen to his crow now?

Plucked apart, every last feather.

I'm not sure I'll be strong enough to watch...

[ryafuji 815]

15 minutes ago, Kintamayama said:

 My favorite, ever since he got punched.

In case anyone is unaware of this story:

Wrestler quits after punching rival | The Japan Times

[Seiyashi 4,108]

32 minutes ago, Jakusotsu said:

Agreed on all acounts. Or to put it another way: both scenarios  (Ikioi acting as caddy or Mamiko acting as okamisan) are on the same level of ridiculous. It's the expectation of the latter that has no place in modern society.

(...and I was kidding in my initial statement, of course...)

Let's hope Araiso's experiment with hiving off the heya-management functions of the okami-san to an employee works and gets emulated, then that goes some way to fixing that systemic problem.

EDIT: Oh, and by the way, Sanspo confirms that his engagement with Mamiko Higa has been broken off:

https://www.sanspo.com/article/20210622-4R7EPKOFEZKCPFJATWQBLXKUSM/

So there goes that talk of caddying and okamisans, at least for now.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Seiyashi

[Seiyashi 4,108]

17 minutes ago, ryafuji said:

34 minutes ago, Kintamayama said:

 My favorite, ever since he got punched.

In case anyone is unaware of this story:

Wrestler quits after punching rival | The Japan Times

A bit more filling to the story, divulged by Kintamayama himself: https://tachiai.org/2019/07/30/tachiai-interviews-kintamayama-part-1-its-like-breathing-for-me-i-love-sumo-so-much/

TLDR: Ikioi, then 19, used harite against Kotokanyu, a wrestler about twice his age, in a makushita bout on day 8 of Aki 2006. Kotokanyu got pissed off by the slaps, went to the other shitakubeya after the bout, and gave Ikioi a hiding. A bit like what went down between Ishiura and Hokaho last year, except way more serious.

Edited June 21, 2021 by Seiyashi

[Yamanashi 3,903]

4 hours ago, I am the Yokozuna said:

Really really liked Ikioi's sumo. Ever since his horrific it was always was a question of when he would retire not if. Wish him all the best in his next stage in his life. Hope he gets married soon (even though I feel the lady just do not want to be an okami and she might push him in a different career) and get to train sumotori to be as enthusiastic and as respectful as he was on the dohyo. 

If there are 105 kabu and 41 heya, why does he need to have an okami-san?

[Benihana 1,937]

37 minutes ago, Yamanashi said:

If there are 105 kabu and 41 heya, why does he need to have an okami-san?

Because, someday, he'll be head of his own heya. And a shisho "needs" an okamisan. Regarding this, Japan is a bit backwards. I'm 100% positive, an okamisan who embraces the role, is an advantage for any heya. Especially when it comes down to be a second mother for the younglings. But apart from that and the traditional representation, a male manager can do the job, too.

 

EDIT: And regarding that broken off engagement...i'm sure the silky voiced devil won't stay single for a long time...

Edited June 21, 2021 by Benihana

[Gurowake 4,100]

1 hour ago, Benihana said:

Because, someday, he'll be head of his own heya.

Will he?  He doesn't have enough Makuuchi basho (60) or sanyaku basho (25) to open his own heya.  You might think he had plenty of Makuuchi basho, but he didn't even make Makuuchi until 2012, so he clearly hasn't had 10 years' worth of basho since then, and he's nowhere close on sanyaku basho.  I don't follow what heya might have retiring shisho that don't already have successors, but unless there's one lined up for him, I don't think he'll necessarily be getting to run a heya.