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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. ==Career== 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 an undefeated ''maegashira'' whom Yoshibayama had not been paired against.〔 He was promoted to ''yokozuna'' after winning his first championship with a perfect 15-0 record in January 1954, but wasn't able to win any championships in his ''yokozuna'' career. Although he was popular with the public, he ate and drank to excess and had several internal ailments, including kidney problems.〔 Having finally reached his physical limit, he announced his retirement during the January 1958 tournament. His old rival Kagamisato, who had been promoted to ''ōzeki'' alongside him in May 1951, also decided to retire on the final day, the first time that two ''yokozuna'' had quit in the same tournament. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Yoshibayama Junnosuke」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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