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Rejuvenated Terunofuji Celebrates 8th Emperor's Cup in Style
Lone yokozuna Terunofuji easily defeated Takakeisho on the final day of the Summer Basho to cap a successful comeback to the raised ring.
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Grand champion Terunofuji put the finishing touches on his title-winning performance on Sunday, May 28 with a dominant win over ozeki Takakeisho on the final day of the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament.
A day after wrapping up his eighth Emperor's Cup, Terunofuji was all business in the final bout of the tournament when he shoved Takakeisho off the raised ring to improve to 14-1.
"After the tournament started I was determined to do my best for all 15 days and felt like I did that," Terunofuji said after receiving the Emperor's Cup at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan. "My stablemates have been with me through good times and bad times and I owe a lot to them."
Takakeisho, who secured a winning record to maintain his ozeki status for the July tournament in Nagoya, dropped to 8-7 and never seriously threatened the Mongolian yokozuna.
The win over Takakeisho capped an impressive comeback for Terunofuji, who withdrew from the September tournament in 2022 and then sat out three straight basho before coming back in this tournament.
During that time he had surgery on both knees and went through a lengthy rehabilitation process.
Terunofuji Reflects on Knee Surgery, Summer Basho
"I decided to have the surgery because I wanted to start a new page and show people I can do it," Terunofuji said. "From the very beginning of this tournament I knew I could deliver. It would be an insult to the sport if I thought otherwise."
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Author: Jim Armstrong
The author is a longtime journalist who has covered sports in Japan for over 25 years. You can find his articles on SportsLook.
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