TOKYO (AP) Mongolian grand champion Hakuho has set the record for most career wins in sumo after toppling ozeki Takayasu in the Nagoya grand sumo tournament.
Hakuho reached the milestone 1,048th win on Friday, surpassing the total that former ozeki Kaio finished on in 2011.
The Mongolian yokozuna started his sumo career at age 16, and made his tournament debut in 2001.
His success underscores a growing population of foreign rikishi in Japan’s centuries-old national sport. Three of the four rikishi currently holding the yokozuna rank are Mongolian.
Still, Japan’s conservative sumo association bans foreign nationals from becoming stable master.