#TOCHINOSHIN PROFESSIONAL#

'When I fell from the makuuchi division to the (third-tier) makushita, my way of thinking about sumo changed.' 'It's like I was able to really give my all after I was hurt,' Gorgadze said.

'I'm grateful for being able to come to Japan and to be able to be a part of sumo.'Īnd though his career was sidetracked by a serious knee injury, Gorgadze skillfully made use of his size and exceptional physical strength to rise to a spot among the sport's elite, becoming the third European ozeki, and the first from his homeland.

'I arrived from Georgia knowing nothing, and the Kasugano stable nurtured me,' he said. Having competed in judo before entering Japanese sumo in 2006, Gorgadze needed only two years to reach the elite makuuchi division. Gorgadze won one grand sumo tournament, in January 2018, and wrestled as an ozeki in seven meets between July 2018 and September 2019. Find Tochinoshin Tsuyoshi stock images in HD and millions of other royalty-free stock photos, illustrations and vectors in the Shutterstock collection. 'I've been unable to generate any power,' said Gorgadze, whose left shoulder, injured in January, has only gotten worse. On Thursday, his record at the ongoing Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan fell to 0-5. He was demoted to sekiwake after posting losing records in the first two tournaments of 2019 but returned to ōzeki after winning ten matches at the May 2019 Basho.The 35-year-old Kasugano stable representative, whose real name is Levan Gorgadze, had been wrestling in the second-tier juryo division. In May 2018, after finishing as runner-up with a 13–2 record and a total of 37 wins in his last three tournaments, he was promoted to ōzeki. In January 2018, he took his first top-division yūshō (championship). He has eleven special prizes, six for Fighting Spirit, three for Technique, and two for Outstanding Performance, as well as two kinboshi or gold stars for defeating yokozuna. After a long hiatus due to injury, he began his comeback from the rank of makushita 55 in March 2014, logging four championships in a row in lower divisions on his way back to the top division in November 2014. He reached the top makuuchi division just two years later in May 2008.

#TOCHINOSHIN PROFESSIONAL#

He made his professional debut in March 2006. Tochinoshin Tsuyoshi (born Levan Gorgadze) is a professional sumo wrestler from Mtskheta, Georgia. Tochinoshin will stay in his homeland until the end of the week and then he will return to Japan to start preparing for the Nagoya Basho tournament, which kicks off on July 7 and ends on July 21. Your contribution to all my successes is significant”, said Georgian Ozeki. I want to apologize and thank each of them for their enormous support. I love it but am not able to answer them all. “I receive many messages, calls, and letters from my fans online. Levan Gorgadze (Tochinoshin) addressed Georgian fans gathered at Caucasus University and thanked them for their great support and love. I want to live in my homeland, with my family. I was born here, I grew up here and moved to Japan for a while, due to my professional duties. 'After the end of my career, I want to live in Georgia. Levan Gorgadze also talked about his life as a sumo wrestler, the great success he achieved, and Japan-Georgia relations.Īs Tochinoshin claimed, despite the fact that he’s been living in Japan for 14 years already, his heart belongs to Georgia and after finishing sumo career, he wants to return and live in his homeland. Georgian sumo wrestler Tochinoshin (Levan Gorgadze) met his Georgian fans at Caucasus University within the framework of his visit to Georgia.ĭuring the meeting, he answered various questions asked by loyal fans and recalled the most important details of Natsu Basho 2019 such as the injury received at the end of the tournament, the fatal mistake of the referee and the fight against Yokozuna.