Akebono Taro dead at age 54
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First foreign-born sumo grand champion dies aged 54
TOKYO: Akebono, a Hawaiian who was the first foreign-born sumo wrestler to become a grand champion, has died aged 54, US officials and Japanese media said Thursday.Born Chad Rowan in 1969, Akebono was among the most successful sumo wrestlers of the 1990s.He reached the sport's highest rank of yokozuna, or grand champion, in 1993 and became a Japanese citizen in 1996.Akebono won 11 tournaments before retiring as a wrestler in 2001 to train younger fighters.He died in early April after heart...
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Pioneering Hawaiian-born sumo champion Akebono dies aged 54
Tributes paid to wrestler, who was born Chad Rowan and became the sport's first non-Japanese grand champion in 1993.
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Akebono: Pioneering US-born sumo wrestling champion dies aged 54
Pioneering US-born former sumo wrestling champion Akebono has died, his family announced in a statement Thursday. Widely considered to have blazed a trail for other foreign sumo wrestlers, the 54-year-old died of heart failure at a hospital in Japan. Born Chad George Ha’aheo Rowan in Hawaii, Akebono became the first non-Japanese yokozuna – a sumo grand champion, the highest rank in the sport. “It is with sadness that we announce Akebono Taro died of heart failure earlier this month while...