Takanohana Reflects on First Photo and Life with New Wife

Although Takanohana has almost stopped watching sumo broadcasts, he still wakes up at 4 a.m. and continues to practice shiko.

 

Takanohana Koji, known as the “Great Yokozuna of the Heisei Era,” retired from the Japan Sumo Association in 2018. Last August, he made headlines by remarrying a woman he had been romantically involved with during his teenage years. Almost a year later, on June 1, he established the “Takanohana General Incorporated Association” to share the philosophy and physical theories he developed through sumo, and held a social gathering. The woman he married was someone he had been seriously dating when he was 17 during his sumo career in the Juryo division. The first report on their relationship was in the January 5-12, 1990 issue of “FRIDAY.”

“Do I remember that day? Of course, I do. I never imagined that, having just moved up to Juryo, I would be photographed by a tabloid magazine. I didn’t realize I was being photographed until the article came out, but looking back, there was a car that looked suspiciously like it was involved. And of course, FRIDAY’s headline was quite flashy, ‘The Night of the Love Match’ or something like that (laughs). From that day on, I started living a life where I had to keep an eye on everything around me, 360 degrees (laughs).” 

In an article published in *FRIDAY*, it detailed the romantic date of the then 17-year-old prodigy Takahanada (then his shikona) and his first love, a woman one year older known as A. Takahanada, who was heralded as a future yokozuna, was featured in a detailed report about their date.

 

“Mastering his ‘twofold strategy’ with perseverance. Takahanada executed a ‘love lift’ on an 18-year-old beauty that night.”

 

In November 1989, after achieving an 8-7 winning record at the Kyushu tournament, Takahanada was spotted in Yokohama in December, dressed in jeans, a leather half-coat, and with his long hair slicked back and casually tied. He had come to visit A, who was attending a high school in Tokyo, and was nurturing their relationship.

 

After spending about two hours at A’s home, the couple, aged 17 and 18, lingered at the entrance for 40 minutes, chatting. They then bought canned coffee from a vending machine and continued their farewells for another two hours. They walked together, shoulder to shoulder, between A’s home and the station, and a photo captured a moment where Takahanada lifted A in a manner reminiscent of his wrestling moves, as they said their goodbyes.