Akebono Tarō

Akebono Tarō, born Chadwick Ha'aheo Rowan in Waimānalo, Hawaii, on 8 May 1969 and died on 6 April 2024, was an American-born Japanese professional sumo wrestler and later professional wrestler. He joined sumo in Japan in 1988, trained by the pioneering Hawaiian wrestler Takamiyama, reached the top division in 1990, and after tournament championships in November 1992 and January 1993 became the first non-Japanese-born wrestler to reach yokozuna, the highest rank in sumo. Among the tallest and heaviest wrestlers ever, he helped raise the popularity of sumo in the early 1990s through his rivalry with Takanohana and Wakanohana. He won eleven tournament championships in his career, took Japanese citizenship in 1996, and retired from sumo in 2001. He later fought in K-1 and became a professional wrestler, winning All Japan Pro Wrestling titles before retiring in 2017 through ill health.