In 1989, Great Britain’s Nathan John Strange became the first ever professional sumo wrestler from Europe. Fighting under the ring name Hidenokuni, the London-born wrestler garnered quite a following. After his second tournament, he was promoted to the fifth jonidan division of the sport. However, his stablemates treated him harshly as they weren’t too pleased with the attention he was getting. As a result, he retired within a few months. Since then, there have been no professional British sumo wrestlers. Looking to change that is Nicholas Tarasenko, a 15-year-old student from Hull city.
Nicholas Tarasenko Joins the Minato Stable
Earlier this month, after he finished his GCSE exams, the 187-centimeter-tall teenager left his hometown in Yorkshire to head to Japan. He has joined the Minato-beya in Saitama Prefecture, which is led by Minatofuji, who reached the rank of maegashira 2. The stable’s most successful wrestler to date was Ichinojo from Mongolia, who was promoted all the way to sekiwake and won the top division championship in July 2022. It will be some achievement if Tarasenko can achieve anything like that, but he has already shown a lot of potential.
Having spent years practicing judo and playing rugby, the youngster made his sumo debut two years ago in Estonia during a trip to visit his grandmother. His Estonian-born father had connections with Baruto, who reached sumo’s second–highest rank of ozeki. Baruto hosts a sumo tournament for people aged under 18, which Tarasenko decided to join. He went on to win the 90-kilogram class gold despite only having had one hour of sumo training prior to the competition. He was also four years under the age limit. The following year, he was invited to train at the Minato-beya.
Lofty Ambitions
An ambitious young man, he has already joked about making his mark in the sport. Speaking to The Japan Times’ John Gunning last year, he said with a smile, “I’m trying to get past yokozuna — see if I can become so good that they make a new ranking. You always gotta aim high.” He added, “There’s more pressure on me to be the best because it’s one foreigner per stable and if I don’t do my best, it feels like I’m disrespecting everyone that was helping me as well, so now I have to become the best. I can’t settle for less.”
If Tarasenko passes his Japanese exams, he could make his professional debut as early as the spring basho in Osaka next March. British fans of the sport will be excited to see how he progresses. Sumo first appeared on television in the UK in the 1960s when the BBC broadcast segments on Japanese culture and sports. Its popularity reached its peak between 1988 and 1992 thanks to the program, Channel 4 Sumo. During that period, London’s historic Royal Albert Hall hosted a five-day tournament. The 154-year-old Kensington venue will be hosting its second sumo competition in October 2025.
