Akebono was the very first foreign-born man to reach the level of yokozuna. He remains a bridge between cultures and will be remembered for his ferocity and size in the ring, his generosity, kindness and care for others outside the ring.

Thank you to John Jacques, Bumbo Kalima, and Lynn Matsuoka for sharing your memories of Chad (who later became Akebono). You knew him personally, and you give us all the gift of your stories.

Time Codes:
0 News - more media, RollerTown
6:30 Akebono sumo overview
17:00 Tributes and stories about Chad
19:30 John Jacques stories about staying close to his Hawaiian roots and bringing Hawaiian high school kids to train with Chad in Japan
32:00 John introduces Bumbo Kalima
stories about Chad's generosity, protection, and drive
Chad's tiny Nova
39:00 Lynn Matsuoka stories about Chad babysitting and how this made him a yokozuna, how he could adapt to anything, bringing Aloha into the world of sumo, how he introduced girls to Lynn to get her feedback, and how he mentored young teens

Sources:
https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2024/04/12/everybody-loved-him-family-fans-remember-sumo-star-akebono-gentle-giant/
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9B%99%E5%A4%AA%E9%83%8E
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akebono_Tar%C5%8D

Music:
"Advanced Japanese Folk" by Audiotoolz
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Audiotoolz/ProgressiveFolk/02-audiotoolz-advancedjapanesefolk
Under creative commons license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/
News Theme by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Artist: http://incompetech.com/
Intro/Outtro music by MARiAN - Tokyo Trap_
Vaquero Perdido Mini Vandals from the Youtube Free Music Library