21 Facts About Kotomitsuki Keiji

Kotomitsuki Keiji is a Japanese former professional sumo wrestler from Okazaki City.

Kotomitsuki Keiji reached the top makuuchi division in November 2000 and won one yusho or tournament championship, in September 2001.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was a runner-up in eight other tournaments, and earned thirteen sansho or special prizes.

Kotomitsuki Keiji is one of six wrestlers in the history of sumo to receive all three sansho in the same tournament, accomplishing the feat in the November 2000 honbasho.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was promoted to the top makuuchi division in May 2000 but missed the entire tournament through injury.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was awarded all three special prizes on offer; a rare achievement.

Kotomitsuki Keiji took his only top division yusho or championship in September 2001, whilst ranked as a maegashira.

Kotomitsuki Keiji recovered to produce another runner-up performance in September 2002, and was runner-up in September 2003 and January 2004, each time from a maegashira position.

Kotomitsuki Keiji holds the record for most tournaments spent at sekiwake in the modern era.

Kotomitsuki Keiji lost to Kisenosato on the final day, missing the chance of a playoff for the championship with Asashoryu and the first yusho for a Japanese born wrestler since January 2006.

At the age of 31 years 3 months, Kotomitsuki Keiji proved the naysayers wrong, becoming the oldest wrestler to attain the rank in the modern era.

Kotomitsuki Keiji scored a respectable ten wins on his ozeki debut in September 2007, but at the end of 2007 he underwent surgery to remove gallstones.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was not at his best in the 2008 New Year tournament but won his eighth bout on the final day to achieve a kachi-koshi or winning score.

In May 2010, Kotomitsuki Keiji faced allegations of gambling on professional baseball, which is illegal in Japan.

Kotomitsuki Keiji initially denied the claims, which were reported in the tabloid magazine Shukan Shincho.

Kotomitsuki Keiji's stablemaster said Kotomitsuki would sit out the forthcoming Nagoya tournament.

Furuichi, who was allegedly accompanied by a member of the Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicate, then demanded more money from Kotomitsuki Keiji the following month, saying that the gang had wanted 100 million yen.

In December 2013, Kotomitsuki Keiji was arrested for allegedly employing non-Japanese without valid visas at his restaurant.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was a yotsu-sumo wrestler, and his favourite grip on the mawashi was migi-yotsu, with his left hand outside and right hand inside his opponent's arms.

Kotomitsuki Keiji was fond of dashinage, and was one of the few rikishi to employ uchi-muso, a technique which involves tapping the opponent's inner thigh with the back of the hand to off-balance him, before twisting him down.

Shortly before the September 2008 tournament Kotomitsuki Keiji announced his engagement, to a former hospital worker from Aichi Prefecture whom he had known since 1999.