Ukrainian Wrestler Makes History, Wins Japan’s Top Sumo Championship for the First Time

Ukrainian sumo wrestler Danylo Yavghustyshyn has made sports history, becoming the first athlete from Ukraine ever to win the Emperor’s Cup—the top prize in professional sumo—at Japan’s prestigious Kyushu Basho tournament, Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne reported on November 23.

The November 9–23 tournament in Fukuoka is the final of six annual sumo events known as basho, and this year it featured two Ukrainian wrestlers: Serhii Sokolovskyi, who competes under the shikona Shishi Masaru, and Yavghustyshyn, known in the ring as Aonishiki.

According to Suspilne, Aonishiki won 12 of his 15 bouts, earning him a place in the playoff for the championship. There, he faced Mongolia’s Sügragchaa Byambasuren, better known as Hōshōryū Tomokatsu, one of the rising stars of the top division.

In the title bout, Aonishiki secured victory with a behind-the-back throw executed using the technique okurinage. As Suspilne noted, this was his fourth career win over Hōshōryū — and the one that delivered him the Emperor’s Cup.

Suspilne noted that there are several historic benchmarks set by the 21-year-old, including being the first Ukrainian ever to win a top-division sumo tournament, being the first European champion in nearly eight years and at 21 years and eight months, Yavghustyshyn is now the fourth-youngest champion in the history of the elite makuuchi division.

Ukraine has become only the seventh country in the world with an athlete winning an Emperor’s Cup.

The win also puts Aonishiki on a fast track to the rank of ōzeki, the second-highest title in sumo. According to Suspilne, Japan’s Nikkan Sports reported that the Sumo Association’s judging department convened an emergency meeting and issued a recommendation supporting his promotion if he continues his performance. The Association’s board is expected to meet on November 26 to discuss the matter.

Since his debut, Aonishiki has competed in only 14 professional tournaments, making him the second-fastest wrestler in history to win a top-division championship (excluding the tsukedashi promotion system). Only Japanese wrestler Miyakeya Takerufuji, who accomplished the feat in 10 tournaments, achieved it faster.

Asked by BBC Sport whether he was satisfied with how rapidly he had progressed, Aonishiki responded: “No, this is just the beginning.”

As Suspilne reports, Yavghustyshyn was forced to leave Ukraine with his family after Russia launched its full-scale invasion. He initially relocated to Germany, but in April 2022, he moved to Japan at the invitation of Arata Yamanaka, captain of the Kansai University sumo club. The two had met at the 2019 Youth World Championships in Osaka, where Yavghustyshyn won bronze in the 100-kg division.

The January Grand Sumo Tournament marked a historic moment for Ukrainian athletes as two wrestlers, Shishi (Serhii Sokolovskyi) and Aonishiki (Danylo Yavhusishyn), faced off in the prestigious Juryo division. This was the first time in sumo history that two Ukrainians competed against each other at this level.

Born in Vinnytsia, he discovered sumo at the age of seven and also trained in judo and freestyle wrestling. He later captured gold at the 2019 European Sumo Championships in Tallinn and won three national titles at the 2021 Ukrainian Sumo Championships in Melitopol.

Earlier, the January Grand Sumo Tournament marked a historic moment for Ukrainian athletes as two wrestlers, Shishi (Serhii Sokolovskyi) and Aonishiki (Danylo Yavhusishyn), faced off in the prestigious Juryo division. This was the first time in sumo history that two Ukrainians competed against each other at this level.

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