A Ukrainian who fled the war with Russia to Japan won a professional sumo tournament held by the Japan Sumo Association.
According to local media on the 24th, Aonishiki Arata, a 21-year-old of Ukrainian origin with a Japanese name, defeated Hoshoryu Tomokatsu, 26, a yokozuna, the highest rank in sumo, in the final of an official tournament hosted by the Japan Sumo Association at Fukuoka Kokusai Center the day before to claim the championship trophy.
In Japan's professional sumo tournaments, many foreign-born wrestlers, especially from Mongolia, are already active. But Aonishiki is drawing attention because it has been only three and a half years since entering Japan alone to escape the war in Ukraine.
He began learning sumo in Ukraine at age 7 and competed in the 2019 World Junior Championships. He then entered Japan in the spring of 2022. At the time, due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, he had evacuated to Germany with his family. Then, taking the World Junior Championships as an opportunity, and with help from the Kansai University sumo team coach he knew through the event, he entered Japan.
The Asahi Shimbun said, "The Japan Sumo Association plans to promote Aonishiki, who won this time, to 'ozeki,' the second-highest rank after yokozuna," noting, "The time from debut to promotion to ozeki is the second fastest among all sumo wrestlers since 1989."