[6] He was scouted at the age of 15 by Kokonoe stable's head Chiyonoyama, who had served as the 41st yokozuna and was from the same Fukushima town.

[1] His shikona (ring name) surname of Chiyonofuji (千代の富士) was formed from those of the two previous yokozuna from his stable, Chiyonoyama and Kitanofuji.

[8] However, he lasted only one tournament before being demoted again, and recurring shoulder dislocation injuries led to him falling back to the unsalaried ranks.

Encouraged by his stablemaster, he began to rely not only on throwing techniques, which increased the risk of re-injuring his shoulders, but also on gaining ground quickly and forcing out his opponents.

[11] Showing much more consistency, he earned three kinboshi by defeating yokozuna in the March and July 1980 tournaments, where he also got technique prizes.

[5] Chiyonofuji had to pull out of his first tournament as a yokozuna with an injury, but he returned to win the championship in November, defeating Asashio in a playoff.

[1] In 1988, he went on a winning streak of 53 bouts,[5] the third longest in sumo history, second to yokozuna Hakuhō's 63, and Futabayama's all-time record of 69.

In July 1989 he took his 28th championship in a playoff from his stablemate Hokutoumi, marking the first time ever that two yokozuna from the same stable had met in competition.

[13] In September 1989 Chiyonofuji surpassed Ōshio's record of 964 career wins[5] and became the first sumo wrestler to receive the People's Honour Award from the Japanese Prime Minister.

[12][1] In the opening tournament of 1991, Chiyonofuji surpassed Kitanoumi's record of 804 top division wins but injured himself on the second day and had to withdraw.

He returned in May, but he lost on the opening day of the tournament to the 18-year-old rising star and future yokozuna Takanohana Kōji (then known as Takahanada).

After losing another match with Takatōriki on the third day,[5] Chiyonofuji announced his own retirement, a few weeks short of his 36th birthday.

[1] Under his leadership, the stable produced several top wrestlers including former ōzeki Chiyotaikai, former komusubi Chiyotenzan and former maegashira Chiyohakuhō.

[23] He returned in the January 2012 elections as the Operations director (the second most senior position in the Association's hierarchy), but was unseated two years later.

[26] Chiyonofuji had surgery for pancreatic cancer in July 2015, and was noticeably weak when speaking to reporters at the Aki basho in September of that year.

[27] Having reportedly told associates that the cancer had spread to his heart and lungs, he had been hospitalized since the fourth day of the Nagoya tournament in 2016.

[28] On August 2 the Sumo Association announced that a farewell ceremony for Chiyonofuji would be held at the entrance of the Ryōgoku Kokugikan on October 1.

[33] Chiyonofuji's muscular physique, athleticism and dramatic throws made him the most successful and one of the most popular wrestlers of his day.

[8] Sanshō key: F=Fighting spirit; O=Outstanding performance; T=Technique     Also shown: ★=Kinboshi; P=Playoff(s) Divisions: Makuuchi — Jūryō — Makushita — Sandanme — Jonidan — Jonokuchi