Shock as Japan sumo wrestler dies after head injury
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TOKYO, April 30, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – A Japanese sumo wrestler has died after landing on his head during a bout last month in a horrifying injury that caused shockwaves and calls for reform in the sport.
Hibikiryu, a lower-tier wrestler whose real name was Mitsuki Amano, died of acute respiratory failure on Wednesday at a Tokyo hospital, the Japan Sumo Association said in a statement in the evening.
“May his soul rest in peace, and we express our heartfelt gratitude towards his contribution” to the sport, the statement said.
The 28-year-old was thrown by his opponent during a March 26 bout, and video widely shared at the time showed him lying virtually motionless but apparently conscious.