Kirishima Tetsuo is a Mongolian professional sumo wrestler born Byambachuluun Lkhagvasuren in 1996. He made his debut in March 2015 for Michinoku stable under the ring name Kiribayama Tetsuo and reached the top makuuchi division in January 2020. He later moved to Otowayama stable and has held the rank of ōzeki, which he lost in 2024 and regained in 2026. He has won the makuuchi championship three times and has received nine special prizes.
Early life
Lkhagvasuren grew up in a nomadic community in Dornod Province, near the border between China and Russia, where riding horses to help with herding strengthened his legs and waist. He later moved to Ulaanbaatar and practised judo and bökh before being invited to Japan in 2014 to try sumo at Michinoku stable. The stablemaster, former ōzeki Kirishima, was initially reluctant to accept a foreign recruit but eventually agreed, and the young wrestler received the ring name Kiribayama.
Rise through the ranks
After starting his career in 2015, he struggled with the language and early setbacks, including a knee injury that forced him to change his fighting style toward forward momentum. He won the makushita championship in 2018 and was promoted to the jūryō division in March 2019. He reached the top makuuchi division later that year, becoming the first wrestler promoted to that rank from his stable since 2008.