Asahiyama stable (2016)

For the stable that became defunct in 2015, see Asahiyama stable.

Asahiyama stable (朝日山部屋, Asahiyama-beya) is a stable of sumo wrestlers, part of the Isegahama ichimon (or group of stables). It is located in Chiba prefecture.

The stable's predecessor in the name had a very long history in sumo, however the current incarnation is unrelated to it. A year after the closing of the previous incarnation of the stable, the retired former Kotonishiki, after several years of borrowing elder names, finally acquired the vacant elder name of Asahiyama, and set up his stable, a dream he had had long before. He financed a building to house his stable in Kamagaya, Chiba, near Kunugiyama Station on some land he had procured, quite near the stable he originally wrestled for, Sadogatake of the Nishonoseki ichimon.[1][2] Owner Asahiyama's hope was that he could bring together the demanding training he learned as an active wrestler in his original stable, Sadogatake (one of the strongest stables in sumo) and the warmheartedness towards trainees that he later learned as a coach at Oguruma stable.[3]

He took three low-ranked wrestlers from the aforementioned Oguruma stable (which, along with Sadogatake, is also a member of the same Nishonoseki ichimon) to join his new stable.[4] In January 2017 the stable left the Nishonoseki ichimon and joined the Isegahama ichimon (to which the previous incarnation of Asahiyama stable had belonged.) It was announced in February 2017 that Asahiyama's 18-year-old son, Akihide, would be joining the stable as a new recruit upon graduation from high school in March.[5] He fought under the name Wakaseido. In January 2023, it had eight wrestlers, with no sekitori yet.

The stable is known for being an organization that breaks away from the traditional shackles of sumo stables. In 2021, it organized a shelter for animals awaiting adoption, launching a program to take in cats abandoned during the COVID crisis. Since the death of comedian Ken Shimura, the stable has also taken in his dog.[6] Also in 2021, the stable also opened a bakery under the impetus of the ōkami-san, who is a certified baking instructor, and the second daughter of the master, who is a certified nutritionist. The stable's bakery is known for its success, as the setting made it popular, with customers coming not only from the neighborhood but also from other prefectures.[7]

  1. ^ "元琴錦の中村親方が朝日山襲名　年内に部屋再興へ Former Kotonishiki, Nakamura elder to take the elder name Asahiyama and start own stable". Nikkan sports. 1 January 2016.
  2. ^ "元関脇琴錦の朝日山親方、独立へ　４４番目の部屋起こす Former Sekiwake Kotonishiki, Elder Asahiyama, goes independent and opens the 44th sumo stable". Asahi Shimbun. 19 March 2016.
  3. ^ "元琴錦「朝日山部屋」再興　３力士連れ尾車から独立 Kotonishiki revives Asahiyama stable, branches out independently with 3 wrestlers from Oguruma". Nikkan Sports. 1 June 2016.
  4. ^ "Asahiyama stable information". Sumo Reference. Archived from the original on 15 October 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  5. ^ "元琴錦の長男が入門し春場所初土俵…ラグビー経験生かし父譲りの"Ｆ１相撲"を目指す" (in Japanese). Hochi.co.jp. 6 February 2017. Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  6. ^ "朝日山部屋は動物のパラダイス　志村けんさん愛した保護犬も「うちにとっては家族」／親方衆の癒やし". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 5 September 2023. Retrieved 5 September 2023.
  7. ^ "相撲部屋にパン屋？朝日山部屋の「あさひベーカリー」癖になる味、弟子も思わず購入". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 20 September 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.