Ukrainian Sumo Champion Aonishiki’s Ceremonial Apron Design Inspired by 80’s Street Artist Keith Haring, Conveys Message for Peace

By Masato Kawai / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:44 JST, November 26, 2025

Aonishiki, the Ukrainian sumo wrestler who won the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament, has a one-of-a-kind ceremonial sumo apron, with its design featuring an artwork by Kieth Haring, the renowned street artist in the 1980s in the United States.

The apron, which advocates world peace, embodies Aonishiki’s feelings for his war-torn motherland.

The piece was gifted by Kazuo Nakamura, a head of the supporters association of the Ajigawa stable, to which Aonishiki belongs.

Haring (1958-1990) became a pioneer of street art in the1980s, with his unique style of graffiti in places like New York City subway stations. He also visited Hiroshima, as he created numerous woks themed around peace.

The design for the apron is based on a work created in 1985 during the Cold War. It depicts two people, drawn in outlines, standing as if they are supporting the earth, expressing the importance of peace transcending differences such as nationality and race.

Nakamura, who is also the director of the Nakamura Keith Haring Collection in Hokuto, Yamanashi Prefecture, first got the idea of creating the apron. He felt Haring’s simple style, imbued with a message of peace, suited the image of Aonishiki, who stands in the dohyo ring in Japan while carrying strong feelings for his homeland.

In 2024, Nakamura began negotiations with The Keith Haring Foundation, which manages all the copyrights of Haring’s works. After explaining to the foundation about Aonishiki’s background and the sumo culture, Nakamura was granted a special permission last November.

The apron was then commissioned to the craftsmen who specialize in making sumo aprons.

According to Nakamura, Aonishiki expressed gratitude and wears it as “he would work hard for my family and friends in Ukraine and fans in Japan supporting me.”

Nakamura said he wanted to “make a special apron worthy of Aonishiki, who keeps fighting in Japan for the sake of Ukraine, even as the war affects his life and his country.”

“I hope he will keep going toward yokozuna, giving strength to Ukraine and Japan as well,” he added.