Nankairyū Tarō
| Nankairyū Tarō | |
|---|---|
| 南海龍太郎 | |
| Personal information | |
| Born |
Kiriful Saba February 22, 1965 Apia, Samoa |
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
| Weight | 153 kg (337 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Takasago |
| Record | 139-93-16 |
| Debut | September, 1984 |
| Highest rank | Maegashira 2 (May, 1988) |
| Retired | November, 1988 |
| * Up to date as of August 2007. | |
Nankairyū Tarō (born 22 February 1965 as Kiriful Saba) is a former sumo wrestler from Samoa. His highest rank was maegashira 2.
Career
Born in Apia, Western Samoa, he joined Takasago stable in 1984. He was given the fighting name of Nankairyū, or "South Seas dragon." In November 1987 he became the third non Asian sumo wrestler, after Takamiyama and Konishiki, to reach the top makuuchi division. In May 1988 he reached his highest rank of maegashira 2 and upset ozeki Hokuten'yū. He also looked to have defeated yokozuna Ōnokuni but a rematch was called, which he lost.
Nankairyū was a heavy drinker, and received adverse publicity after he got into a confrontation with a hotel clerk while drunk in July 1987.[1] His problem was made worse by the fact that he spoke neither English nor Japanese well and consequently had difficulty making himself understood to the Japanese media.[1] During the tournament of September 1988 he had a heated argument with his stable boss, former yokozuna Asashio Tarō III and fled the stable, never to return. His stablemaster died of a stroke just a few weeks later.[1]
After sumo
Nankairyū became a professional wrestler for New Japan in 1990.
Career record
| Year in sumo | January Hatsu basho, Tokyo |
March Haru basho, Osaka |
May Natsu basho, Tokyo |
July Nagoya basho, Nagoya |
September Aki basho, Tokyo |
November Kyūshū basho, Fukuoka |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | x | x | x | x | (Maezumo) | West Jonokuchi #40
5–2 |
| 1985 | West Jonidan #124
6–1 |
East Jonidan #51
7–0–P |
West Sandanme #62
6–1 |
West Sandanme #18
2–5 |
West Sandanme #49
3–4 |
East Sandanme #62
6–1 |
| 1986 | East Sandanme #17
4–3 |
West Sandanme #3
6–1 |
West Makushita #33
3–4 |
West Makushita #45
4–3 |
West Makushita #30
5–2 |
East Makushita #16
6–1 |
| 1987 | West Makushita #3
4–3 |
West Makushita #2
4–3 |
West Jūryō #13
10–5 |
East Jūryō #8
9–6 |
East Jūryō #4
11–4 |
West Maegashira #12
8–7 |
| 1988 | East Maegashira #12
8–7 |
East Maegashira #8
9–6 |
West Maegashira #2
6–9 |
East Maegashira #5
7–8 |
West Maegashira #5
6–8–1 |
East Maegashira #9
Retired 0–0 |
| Record given as win-loss-absent Top Division Champion Retired Lower Divisions Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique Also shown: ★=Kinboshi(s); P=Playoff(s) | ||||||