Sekiwake Aonishiki has become the holder of the Emperor's Cup and now holds the title of ozeki.
At the Kyushu tournament, the 21-year-old Ukrainian rikishi achieved victory over yokozuna Hoshoryu (Biyambasuren Sukhbaatar) in the decisive match.
The kettei-sen was arranged after Aonishiki impressively defeated ozeki Kotozakura.
Kotozakura, weighing 179 kilograms, attempted to grab the 140-kilogram Danilo Yavgushishin by the belt, but Aonishiki, maintaining a low stance, was able to throw his opponent.
In the final match, after exchanging blows, Hoshoryu found himself in a difficult situation and made a mistake, which allowed Aonishiki to claim victory.
The jury has already recommended awarding Aonishiki the title of ozeki, and this decision was supported by Hakkaku, the head of the Japan Sumo Association. The final decision will be made on November 26 at a council meeting.
Danilo Yavgushishin, the real name of Aonishiki Arata, was born on March 23, 2004, in Vinnytsia, Ukraine, and represents the country in professional sumo.
He became the second Ukrainian wrestler in the top division of makuuchi after Shishi Masaru and the first to win the Emperor's Cup (November 2025). He began his sumo career in September 2023 at the age of 19, and his current rank is sekiwake.
Danilo started practicing sumo wrestling at the age of 7 and placed third at the junior world championship in 2019, also becoming the winner of the European championship in the weight category up to 92 kg. In 2021, he won the Ukrainian sumo championship three times in various categories. After the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022, he left Ukraine, initially seeking refuge in Germany, and then went to Japan, where he was taken in by Arata Yamanaka, the captain of the Kansai University sumo club.
Without student status, Danilo trained at the Kansai University club, where he repeatedly outperformed his opponents, including the future sumo wrestler from the Miyagino stable — Seihakuhō. His successes led to him being introduced to Aminishiki, the head of the Adzigawa stable, who, although initially reluctant to accept a foreign wrestler, ultimately agreed.
Shikona is Aonishiki's wrestling pseudonym, based on the kanji 青 (meaning "blue," referring to the color of the Ukrainian flag) and 安 (meaning "calm"). This name also refers to the shikona of his coach Aminishiki, and the second part of the name, Arata, is taken in honor of Yamanaka, who sheltered Danilo.
Aonishiki began his career in professional sumo in September 2023, and at the tournament in November 2023, he won in the lower division of jonokuchi. Two months later, he won in the next division of jonidan, and by November 2024, he reached jūryō, passing through it in two tournaments, and by March 2025, he reached makuuchi, becoming one of the most promising wrestlers of European descent. He became the second rikishi from Ukraine in this division. In his first tournament, he achieved an impressive result, winning 11 matches out of 15 days, which earned him a special prize for fighting spirit and promotion to maegashira #9. At the tournament in May 2025, he also showed an 11-4 result, received his second consecutive special prize, and was promoted to maegashira #1.
At the July 2025 tournament, Aonishiki became the holder of his first career kimboshi — a prize awarded to maegashira rank wrestlers for defeating a yokozuna. In the third round, he defeated yokozuna Hoshoryu, thus setting a record for the fastest acquisition of the first kimboshi star in 12 tournaments. As a result, Aonishiki performed confidently at the tournament, showing an 11-4 record and again receiving a special prize for technical excellence.
By the September 2025 tournament, Aonishiki reached the rank of sanyaku, becoming the first representative of his stable at this level. He was appointed komusubi and set a record for the fastest achievement of sanyaku ranks — just 12 tournaments. At the September tournament, he again showed a double-digit result (11-4), marking the fourth consecutive time he received a special prize for technical excellence and was promoted to sekiwake. At the November 2025 tournament, he was placed in the position of eastern sekiwake, which was another record for 13 tournaments.
At the November 2025 tournament, Aonishiki won in makuuchi and captured the Emperor's Cup for the first time. After 15 tournament days, he had the same record (12-3) as yokozuna Hoshoryu, whom he had previously defeated. As a result, a tiebreaker kettei-sen was arranged, which the Ukrainian wrestler won, earning him two special prizes — the first in his career, the shukun-shō for outstanding performance, and the third gino-shō for technical excellence. Aonishiki matched the record series of yokozuna Onosato, who received special prizes for five consecutive tournaments. This victory opened the way for Aonishiki's promotion to ozeki. The question of promotion was contentious, as he had enough victories to be a candidate but had only participated in one tournament at the sanyaku positions. Nevertheless, on November 22, 2025, it was announced that the judges would gather to consider his candidacy, and after the end of the basho, they recommended awarding Aonishiki the second hierarchical title, which is to be confirmed on November 26.
Tatar S.Maidar
source: MiddleAsianNews
