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Tsushimanada Masamitsu
對馬洋 勝満
Tsushimanada during the November 2022 tournament
Personal information
Born	Masamitsu Umeno (1993-06-27) June 27, 1993 (age 31) Isahaya, Nagasaki Prefecture Japan
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	137.8 kg (304 lb)
Career
Stable	Sakaigawa
University	Nihon University
Current rank	see below
Debut	May, 2016
Highest rank	Jūryō 9 (March, 2023)
* Up to date as of 31 January 2024.

Tsushimanada Masamitsu (對馬洋 勝満), born June 27, 1993, as Masamitsu Umeno (梅野 勝満, Umeno Masamitsu) is a Japanese professional sumo wrestler from Isahaya, Nagasaki. His highest rank is jūryō 9.

Early life

Masamitsu Umeno comes from a family originally from the island of Tsushima. His grandmother (Hideko Umeno) was the oldest ama diver in Tsushima. He began sumo in his fourth year at Isahaya City Yue Elementary School, later saying of his introduction to sport that he saw it only as an extension of playground games. He then went to Isahaya Agricultural High School, and joined their basketball team before leaving it for the school's sumo club because his high school coach was also the coach of a small sumo club in Isahaya where Umeno used to go. He then graduated from Nihon University where he was a member of their sumo club and a classmate of Churanoumi. During his time as a student, he won the Eastern Japan Student Sumo Championship three time in the under 100 kg category. In his fourth year, however, he suffered a meniscus injury to his left knee and to his anterior cruciate ligament at the All Japan University Sumo Tournament in Uwajima, Ehime on 29 April 2015. He aggravated his injury at the East Japan Student Sumo Individual Weight Classification Championships and was unable to take part in more tournaments during his student years.

After graduating, he worked for a while in a company in Isahaya, but was motivated to become a professional wrestler by Churanoumi. He joined professional sumo in 2016, entering Sakaigawa stable, his master (former komusubi Ryōgoku IV) also being from his home prefecture. His stablemate Hiradoumi, who reached the top makuuchi division in September 2022, is also from Nagasaki, and the two of them have maintained a friendly rivalry. His professional debut was postponed because of his torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, and this injury could have cost him his wrestling career by putting him over the maximum age for becoming a wrestler at the time (23). However, in September 2016, that same age was raised to 25, allowing him to become a wrestler.

Career

During his maezumo debut, he suffered a concussion and was unable to get up. Wrestling under his real name of Umeno Masamitsu, he changed his shikona, or ring name, to Tsushimanada in 2017, to evoke 20th century ōzeki Tsushimanada Yakichi, who was originally from Tsushima Island like his family, and to whom he thought he was related to. However, after further investigation his master declared "it was not the case." In 2019, Tsushimanada was competing to win the makushita division championship but failed against then-former ōzeki Terunofuji who was making his comeback in the divisions after his injury and 4 tournament absence. While in makushita, in the final day of the May 2022 tournament, Tsushimanada defeated upper division wrestler and former komusubi Shōhōzan. This proved to be Shōhōzan's final match.

In September 2022, it was announced that he would be promoted to jūryō for the November 2022 tournament, hence being the fourth sekitori in his stable. His promotion also makes him the first wrestler from his hometown to be promoted sekitori in 45 years, since the retirement of former maegashira Shishihō Yoshimasa. Tsushimanada began his first jūryō tournament with a victory over Rōga. However, he suffered a narrow make-kochi losing record in his first tournament as a sekitori, achieving a score of 7–8. After his first tournament at sekitori, he visited his hometown of Isahaya for the first time in seven years, because he decided that he would not return until he became a sekitori. Tsushimanada maintained his sekitori rank due to the balance of promotion and demotion within the ranking. After a good performance during the 2023 January tournament, in which he scored five wins in a row during his last five matches, he was promoted to jūryō 9, his highest rank at the time. However, after a weak performance at the March tournament, Tsushimanada was relegated to jūryō 14, threatening him with demotion back to the makushita division. Nevertheless, he managed to go from a 1–6 score at Day 7, to a kachi-koshi score of 8–7, notably winning his last four bouts and securing his jūryō status. At the following tournament in July, however, Tsushimanada recorded his worst score in the division, relegating him to the makushita division after only five tournaments as a sekitori.

He began 2024 in the rank of makushita 2, putting him in a position of possible repromotion in the jūryō division. Despite being defeated by Kitaharima on the first day, Tsushimanada recorded a run of four consecutive victories (kachi-koshi) before suffering defeat in his sixth match against Hakuōhō, who was returning to competition after missing two tournaments. In January 2024, it was announced that Tsushimanada's score was sufficient to grant him a second promotion to the jūryō division. On this occasion, Tsushimanada confided to Yahoo! Sports that, on the advice of his master, he now saw his new promotion as a springboard to reach the makuuchi division, quoting the former Ryōgoku as having told him that he should have a "stronger feeling than when was aiming for his first jūryō promotion".

Fighting style

At the time of his repromotion to jūryō in 2024, Tsushimanada described his ideal style as an always forward style, made to secure a migi-yotsu, or left hand outside, right hand inside grip on his opponent's mawashi.

Career record

See also

• Glossary of sumo terms
• List of active sumo wrestlers

References

1. "十両松鳳山３勝止まり、関取転落は確実「体と相談しながらゆっくり考えます」進退明言せず". Nippon Shimbun (in Japanese). 5 March 2022. Archived from the original on 28 February 2023.
2. ^ "夏場所総決算号" [Summer tournament general issue]. Sumo Magazine [ja] (June 2016). Baseball Magazine, Inc.: 107.
3. ^ Izuka Saki (19 February 2024). "ベテラン兄弟子・妙義龍と佐田の海が成長を後押し 大相撲3月場所で再十両の對馬洋「幕内に上がりたい」". Yahoo! Sports (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 February 2024.
4. "新十両の對馬洋関 飛躍誓う 諫早市役所と母校を訪問". Nagasaki Shimbun (in Japanese). 3 December 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
5. ^ Minoru Uchida (30 December 2022). "【第一線で活躍する諫早人】對馬洋 勝満". Face Passeport (in Japanese). Vol. 32. FaceNagasaki. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
6. ^ "対馬にいた"伝説の海女"が潜り続ける理由。海と共にたくましく生きてきた海女の生きがい". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 5 March 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
7. "花の新十両データバンク". Sumo Magazine [ja] (August 2016). Baseball Magazine, Inc.: 107.
8. ^ "名古屋場所総決算号" [Nagoya tournament general issue]. Sumo Magazine [ja] (August 2016). Baseball Magazine, Inc.: 107.
9. "花の新十両データバンク". Sumo Magazine [ja] (November 2022). Baseball Magazine, Inc.: 29.
10. "新弟子検査、徳田ら１２人がパス／大相撲夏場所前に". Shikoku Shimbun (in Japanese). 27 April 2016. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
11. "郷土の名を背負って 平戸海にインタビュー". NHK (in Japanese). 12 March 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
12. ^ "夏場所総決算号" [Summer tournament general issue]. Sumo Magazine [ja] (May 2018). Baseball Magazine, Inc.: 22.
13. ^ "対馬洋、新十両に喜び「結果だけドキドキしながら待っていました」ケガ乗り越え昇進、師匠に感謝". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 28 September 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
14. "【相撲編集部が選ぶ九州場所13日目の一番】 照ノ富士（寄り切り）對馬洋". Baseball Magazine (in Japanese). 22 November 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
15. "十両松鳳山３勝止まり、関取転落は確実「体と相談しながらゆっくり考えます」進退明言せず". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 22 May 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
16. ^ "大相撲十両昇進の對馬洋 地元の諫早市役所で抱負述べる". NHK (in Japanese). 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
17. "新十両の対馬洋、ご当地場所で関取初白星　狼雅を下手投げで下す「先に仕掛けたのがよかった」". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 13 November 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
18. "Tsushimanada Masamitsu (Hatsu 2023)". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
19. "対馬洋が"入れ替え戦"制して十両残留「意地を出した」　敗れた勇磨の新十両は微妙な状況に". Sports Nippon (in Japanese). 29 May 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
20. "37歳北はり磨が白星発進　對馬洋を突き落として納得の表情　「全部勝つ」と誓い". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 15 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
21. "西幕下５枚目の伯桜鵬が５勝目で再十両昇進へ１歩前進「今まででは一番良かった」左肩状態も良好". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
22. "北はり磨、記録的な復活劇　若隆景、対馬洋、伯桜鵬とともに再十両". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 31 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
23. "Tsushimanada Masamitsu Information". Sumo Reference. Retrieved 5 October 2022.

External links

Tsushimanada Masamitsu's official biography (English) at the Grand Sumo Homepage

• 1993 births
• Living people
• Japanese sumo wrestlers
• Sumo people from Nagasaki Prefecture
• Nihon University alumni