Ukrainian refugee Danylo Yavhusishyn wows Japan to win his country’s first elite sumo title

Danylo Yavhusishyn has become the first Ukrainian to win a sumo tournament in Japan. The 21-year-old, who fled the war in Ukraine three years ago, won the Kyushu tournament after a tie-breaking victory over grand champion Hoshoryu from Mongolia. Related: Sumo wrestling at the Royal Albert Hall – picture essay Yavhusishyn, whose ring name is Aonishiki Arata, addressed fans in fluent Japanese after his victory. He told fans at Fukuoka Kokusai Center that he was glad that he was able to compete to the best of his abilities. “I am happy that I am able to achieve a goal of mine,” he said of his victory, which was also televised. Yavhusishyn, who arrived in Japan three years ago after fleeing Ukraine, has climbed the sumo ranks at record speed. The Japan Sumo Association will soon hold a special meeting to promote him to “ozeki”, the second highest ranking under “yokozuna”, or grand champion, national broadcaster NHK said. He competed in the world junior sumo championships as a teenager but left Ukraine after Russia’s February 2022 invasion. Yavhusishyn, who is listed at 6ft tall and 310lbs, arrived in Japan two months later and made a blistering start to his career, reaching sumo’s upper divisions in only a year and winning promotion to the fourth-highest rank. Yavhusishyn was born in Vinnytsia in central Ukraine and took up sumo at the age of seven, becoming a national champion when he was 17. His age meant he narrowly avoided Ukraine’s military draft for men aged 18 and older when war broke out and he sought refuge in Germany before moving to Japan. His parents stayed in Germany and he arrived in Japan knowing nothing of the language. He initially lived and trained with a Japanese sumo wrestler, Arata Yamanaka, who he made friends with at the world junior sumo championships. “I only met him once in person and he welcomed me, even though I couldn’t speak a word of Japanese,” Yavhusishyn said in 2024. “I was surprised when he said OK. If it were the other way around, I would have refused.” Yavhusishyn became the second Ukraine-born professional sumo wrestler when he made his debut in July 2023, following in the footsteps of compatriot Serhii Sokolovskyi, better known as Shishi. Yavhusishyn’s promotion to sumo’s upper divisions is the fifth-fastest since the current system of six tournaments a year was introduced in 1958. His parents have since come to visit their son in his new home. He said he now has his sights on reaching the top of the sumo hierarchy. “I am happy [now] but there is one higher status. I want to work toward that,” he said.