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朝潮太郎(4代)
Asashio Tarō

Personal information
Birth name	Suehiro Nagaoka
Date of birth	December 9, 1955 (1955-12-09) (age 54)
Place of birth	Kochi, Japan
Height	1.82 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)
Weight	175 kg (390 lb)
Career*
Heya	Takasago
Record	564-382-33
Debut	March, 1978
Highest rank	Ozeki (May, 1983)
Retired	March, 1989
Yūshō	1 (Makuuchi) 1 (Makushita)
Sanshō	Outstanding Performance (10) Fighting Spirit (3) Technique (1)
Kinboshi	5
* Career information is correct as of July 2007.

Asashio Tarō IV (born 9 December 1955 as Suehiro Nagaoka) is a former sumo wrestler from Muroto, Kochi, Japan. His highest rank was ozeki. He is currently the head coach of Takasago stable.

Career

Joining Takasago stable in March 1978 after a successful amateur sumo career at Kinki University, he began his professional career in the third highest makushita division, and was promoted to the top makuuchi division in November 1978. He initially competed under his own surname, Nagaoka, but in March 1979 he was given the shikona of Asashio (or "morning tide"), which had previously been used by several past greats in Takasago stable, including his own stablemaster. Asashio was promoted to komusubi in May 1980 and sekiwake in July 1980. In November 1981 he lost a playoff for the tournament championship to new yokozuna Chiyonofuji. He was runner-up to Chiyonofuji once again in May 1982 and to Kotokaze in January 1983.

After accumulating a record ten Shukun-sho, or Outstanding Performance prizes for his achievements in tournaments, he was promoted to sumo's second highest rank of ozeki in May 1983. Having lost three top division championship playoffs in his career, he finally took his only tournament championship in March 1985 with a 13-2 record. After that he was rarely a threat in tournaments, usually posting only eight or nine wins. He retained his rank until March 1989, when after a poor start to the tournament he announced his retirement from the ring at the age of thirty-three.

After retirement

Asashio remained in the sumo world as an oyakata, or elder, and became the head coach of Wakamatsu stable. In the 1990s he coached Asanowaka and Asanosho, both like himself former college champions, to the top division. He then had even greater success with the Mongolian star Asashoryu, coaching him all the way to yokozuna. In 2002 Wakamatsu stable merged with Takasago stable and Asashio became head coach there. From February 2000 until February 2008 he was also a Director of the Japan Sumo Association.^[1] He was in charge of the Public Relations department, but left his post after the controversy over Asashoryu's suspension in August 2007.^[2] Takasago was seemingly unable to control his most senior wrestler, often unaware of whether Asashoryu was in Japan or back in Mongolia, and this damaged his standing within the Sumo Association.^[3] In February 2009 he became head of the shimpan (judging) department, replacing Takanohana.

Top division record

• "P" designates a win or loss of additional playoff bout(s) for the championship because two or more wrestlers finished with identical records

References

See also

• Glossary of sumo terms
• List of sumo tournament winners
• List of past sumo wrestlers