Sergey Sokolovsky recently took the new recruit exam and, when he makes his competitive debut in March, the 22-year-old will become the first-ever Ukrainian in professional sumo.
He won't be the first rikishi with a connection to the eastern European nation, however.
The father of yokozuna Taiho, one of the greatest wresters of all time, and the man who held the record for most titles for over half a century, was an ethnic Ukrainian.