
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, May 24, 1993                   TAG: 9305240097
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

SUMO

Ozeki (champion) Takanohana beat American yokozuna (grand champion) Akebono in a showdown match and won the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament in Tokyo with a 14-1 record.

Takanohana and Akebono, Japan's first foreign grand champion, came into the final match tied at 13-1. Takanohana charged hard into his bigger rival, grabbed his belt, pushed him backward and fell on top of him.

Takanohana, then 19, became the youngest champion in modern sumo history when he won the January 1992 tournament. This championship was his third, tying him with Akebono, also known as Chad Rowan. American ozeki Konishiki, or Salevaa Fuauli Atisanoe, threw down sekiwake (junior champion) Wakanohana, Takanohana's older brother and winner of the last tournament in March. Konishiki, however, finished at 7-8, becoming the first ozeki ever to have six losing tournaments.

Wakanohana received the outstanding performance award for his 10-5 record, which included a victory over Akebono.

by CNB