Ex-sumo champ Akebono sues over collision
By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer
Former sumo star Chad Rowan, who went by the ring name Akebono, is suing an O'ahu motorcycle dealership and a Mainland motorcycle company, claiming that defects in a 2001 Black Ultra Avenger motorcycle caused him to be involved in an accident.
Advertiser library photo • Sept. 3, 2001
The lawsuit, filed by attorneys Craig Shikuma and Kenneth Nakasone, says the motorcycle's steering and perhaps other parts did not work properly when Rowan was in a collision Feb. 8, 2001, traveling west on H-1 Freeway's Middle Street off-ramp.
Chad Rowan made sumo history when he became the first foreigner to achieve yokozuna status.
The lawsuit said Rowan had deep cuts to his right hand, arm and foot and one of the toes on his right foot was nearly severed.
Rowan bought the motorcycle three days before the accident. The dealership named, Indian Motorcycle Hawai'i, declined to comment.
The lawsuit asks for general and special damages, to be determined at trial.
Rowan, a Waimanalo native, retired in 2001 after a history-making 13-year career in Japan's national sport, in which he became the first foreigner to achieve yokozuna status.
Last year, he was inducted into the Hawai'i Sports Hall of Fame.
