Hokutōriki Hideki
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Real name | Hideki Kimura | |
| Date of birth | October 31, 1977 | |
| Place of birth | Tochigi, Japan | |
| Height | 183.0cm (6'0") | |
| Weight | 147.0kg (324lb) | |
| Career* | ||
| Heya | Hakkaku | |
| Rank | Juryo 1 | |
| Record | 419-392-18 | |
| Debut | March 1993 | |
| Highest rank | Sekiwake (July, 2004) | |
| Yushos | 1 (Sandanme) | |
| Special Prizes | Outstanding Performance (1) Fighting Spirit (3) |
|
| Gold stars | 1 (Asashoryu) | |
|
* Career information is correct as of January 2007. |
||
Hokutōriki Hideki (Japanese: 北勝力 英樹, born October 31, 1977) is a sumo wrestler, from Tochigi, Japan. The highest rank he has reached is sekiwake.
Hokutōriki made his professional debut in March 1993, joining the Hakkaku stable run by former yokozuna Hokutoumi. It took nearly nine years for him to achieve sekitori status, but in his top division debut in May 2002 he made an immediate impression, finishing as runner-up with a strong 11-4 record and the fighting spirit prize. The highlight of his career to date came two years later in May 2004 when, ranked as maegashira 1, he defeated Asashoryu on the sixth day, ending the yokozuna's 35 bout winning streak. He finished the tournament with a superb 13-2 record, and fought Asashoryu again on the final day in a playoff for the title. Although he lost the match, after the tournament he was promoted to sumo's third highest rank of sekiwake. He managed only a 3-12 record in his sekiwake debut and since then has bounced up and down the maegashira ranks. In November 2006 he pulled out of the tournament on the ninth day with no wins at all and was relegated to the juryo division.
