Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium

Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium (大阪府立体育会館, Ōsaka furitsu taiikukaikan) is an indoor sporting arena located in Namba, Osaka, Japan. It first opened in 1952 and the current building was constructed in 1987. It is the venue of a professional sumo tournament (honbasho) held in March every year. The capacity of the arena is 8,000 people. Its total revenue for the 2006 fiscal year was 260 million yen, of which sumo provided 80 million.

Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium

Full name	Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Location	Naniwa-ku, Osaka, Japan
Owner	Osaka Prefecture
Operator	Nankai Building Service
Capacity	8,000
Construction
Opened	January 31, 1987
Construction cost
Website
http://www.furitutaiikukaikan.jp/

Sumo wrestling in 2010

In April 2008 the Japan Sumo Association made clear its surprise at plans by the prefectural government to demolish the gymnasium and sell the vacant lot.[1]

In March 2012, the arena was renamed Bodymaker Colosseum (ボディメーカー コロシアム, Bodimēkā koroshiamu) after the naming rights were sold to sports apparel company BB Sports for the next three years.[2] The name was changed back in April 2015, when BB Sports did not renew their deal.[3] In June 2015, the Edion Corporation signed a three-year deal for the arena's naming rights, renaming it Edion Arena Osaka (エディオンアリーナ大阪, Edion Arīna Ōsaka).[4]

It has hosted several professional wrestling shows, including Osaka Hurricane from 2005 to 2012, NJPW Dominion from 2009 to 2014, NJPW Power Struggle since 2011, and The New Beginning in Osaka since 2012.

The venue hosted the Rizin 19 mixed martial arts fight on October 12, 2019.

Cultural references

• The Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium is featured in the manga/anime series Fighting Spirit (Hajime no Ippo) as one of the venues the boxers fight at. It is also included in the video game adaptation of the series, Victorious Boxers.

Access

Satellite view

• Namba Station - Nankai Electric Railway (250m from South Exit), Osaka Metro (350m from Exit 5)
• Ōsaka Namba Station - Kintetsu Namba Line, Hanshin Namba Line (600m)
• JR Namba Station - West Japan Railway Company (JR West) Kansai Main Line (Yamatoji Line) (800m)

References

1. "Sumo world puzzled by plan to close Osaka Pref. gymnasium". Daily Yomiuri online. 2008-04-15. Retrieved 2008-04-29.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-10-20. Retrieved 2013-10-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
3. Meltzer, Dave (April 13, 2015). "April 13, 2015 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: SmackDown to USA Network, AJ Lee retires, UFC drug czar, death of Steve Rickard, and much more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California: 30. ISSN 1083-9593.
4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-06-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)