Taro Akebono, a Hawaii-born sumo wrestler who turned the game’s first overseas grand champion, has died. He was 54.
He died of coronary heart failure in early April whereas receiving care at a hospital in Tokyo, the US Forces in Japan mentioned in a press release on Thursday.
Born Chad George Ha’aheo Rowan in Hawaii, Akebono turned Japan’s sixty fourth yokozuna, or grand champion sumo wrestler, in 1993, the primary foreign-born sumo wrestler to win the game’s highest title. He went on to win a complete of 11 grand championships.
He’s survived by his spouse, a daughter and two sons, in keeping with the U.S. Forces in Japan.
Motoko Wealthy contributed reporting.
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