Sakaizawa
| Sakaizawa Kenichi | |
|---|---|
| 境澤 賢一 | |
 |
|
| Personal information | |
| Born | Kenichi Sakaizawa April 11, 1983 Saitama, Japan |
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 162 kg (357 lb) |
| Career | |
| Stable | Mihogaseki → Onoe |
| Record | 199-149-15 |
| Debut | March, 2006 |
| Highest rank | Maegashira 15 (March, 2008) |
| Retired | May, 2011 |
| Championships | 1 (Jūryō) 1 (Makushita) 1 (Jonokuchi) |
| * Up to date as of Sep. 2012. | |
Sakaizawa Kenichi (born 11 April 1983 as Kenichi Sakaizawa) is a former sumo wrestler from Saitama, Japan. He made his professional debut in March 2006, and reached the top division in March 2008. His highest rank was maegashira 15. He was forced to retire by the Japan Sumo Association, as a result of the 2011 match-fixing scandal (yaocho).
He started sumo in the third grade. He went to Tottori Johoku High School and was an amateur sumo champion for Nihon University. He placed in the Best 16 at the All Japan Sumo Tournament in his third and fourth years. He joined Mihogaseki stable in March 2006, but when Onoe Oyakata (former Hamanoshima) broke off and established Onoe stable in August of the same year, Sakaizawa followed him. He rose quickly up the ranks, losing just two bouts in his first five tournaments and winning two yusho or tournament championships in the jonokuchi and makushita divisions with perfect 7–0 records. He made his debut as an elite sekitori ranked wrestler in July 2007 upon promotion to the juryo division. However he injured his elbow on the seventh day in this tournament in a match against Masatsukasa. Although the initial prognosis was that he would be out for six weeks, he returned to the tournament on Day 11 and finished with a 7–6–2 record. This was enough to keep him in the division, and he won the juryo division championship in November 2007 with a 13–2 record.
Sakaizawa was promoted to the top makuuchi division in March 2008, only twelve tournaments after his professional debut, which at the time was equal to the second fastest rise to the top division since the introduction of the 6 tournaments a year system in 1958. However, he had to withdraw on the seventh day of his debut tournament after suffering injuries to his knees and an ankle in a bout with Kakizoe. He was hit by a hard face slap (harite) from Kakizoe following a matta or false start and appeared to briefly lose consciousness. This was to prove to be his only tournament in the top division. Having been unable to train properly he turned in a poor 3–12 record at juryo 5 in May 2008 and was relegated back to the makushita division. However he returned to juryo in November 2008.
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