He wished to acknowledge his home district of Tokachi, but the kanji for Tokachi (十勝) literally mean 'ten wins' and it was felt that this might be bad luck, limiting his wins in any tournament to ten.
Nemuro Subprefecture | Tokachi | Tokachi Subprefecture | Sōya Subprefecture | Shiribeshi Subprefecture | Okhotsk Subprefecture | 1968 Tokachi earthquake |