Akebono, Hawaii-Born Sumo Champion in Japan, Dies at 54

Taro Akebono, a Hawaii-born sumo wrestler who became the sport’s first foreign grand champion and helped to drive a resurgence in the sport’s popularity in the 1990s, has died in Tokyo. He was 54.

He died of heart failure in early April while receiving care at a Tokyo hospital, according to a statement from his family that was distributed by the United States military in Japan on Thursday.

When he became Japan’s 64th yokozuna, or grand champion sumo wrestler, in 1993, he was the first…