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ln This Issue

SUMO WORLD . Now Celebrating Its 20th Year of PublicationSumo World

Editorial Staff:Andy Adams Editor and PublisherClyde Newton Associate EditorContributing Writers: Mark Schilling, David

Shapiro, Lora Sharnoff, Shinobu SuzukiPhotographers: Gerry Toff, C. NewtonTranslators: C.Newton, M.Schilling, S.SuzukiAil correspondence and subscriptionchecks should be mailed to:

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On the Coyer - Ozeki Takanohana) crushes outyokozuna Akebono on senshuraku of the Natsu Ba­sho to rack up the yusho--his third--and advance tothe brink of yokozuna promotion. Jun-yushowith 13wins in Nagoya should be enough .to put him overthetop. (Photo by ClydeNewton)On the Back Coyer - Takanohana holds the Emperor'sCup after winning the Natsu Basho tide, as his koenkaisupporters shout "banzai!" (Photo by GerryTotI)* ln This Issue,

Editor's Box 1

* Natsu Basho WrangleBy Ryo Hatano 2-3

* Three Danpatsu CeremoniesPhotos by Clyde Newton .4

* Natsu Basho Roundtable 5-6* Akebono Speaks Out: 2 7-8* San Jose, Hawaii Jungyo 9-10* Reviews of 2 Sumo Books Il* Technique Corner: Sukuinage

By David Shapiro 12* Off the Dohyo by Lora Sharnoff,

Juryo Roundup by Andy Adams 13* Then and Now: Tawara

By Doreen SimmonsForeign Rikishi Scores 14

* Natsu Basho Action Highlights 15-16* Oyakata/Heya Table 17-18* Reader's Page 19* Nagoya Basho Preview

By D. Shapiro 20* Nagoya Basho Banzuke

Makunouchi Division

Rankings and Profiles 21-27Juryo Division

Rankings and Profiles 28-29Makushita Division

Top 15 Ranks, East and West.. 22* Natsu Basho Hoshitorihyo 30

1 * Our thanks to "SUMO" of Baseball Magazine-sha for use of photos

(Clyde Newton Photo)

NATSU BASHO WRANGLEBy Ryo Hatano

The last bout on the last day of the Natsu Basho be­tween Akebono and Takanohana ended in victory forTakanohana. ln this latest battle between the Futago­

yama Beya "army" and the Hawaiian "gang" of Akebono,Konishiki and Musashimaru, the gyoji's gunbai turnedtoward Futagoyama.

ln addition to Takanohana's top-division yusho,Wakanohana took the Shukun-sho (Outstanding Perfor­mance Award), Takanonami, the Kanto-sho (FightingSpirit Prize) and Takatoriki, the Gino-sho (TechniquePrize)-a complete sweep of the top prizes by Futago­yama Beya and a great display of power by a great stable

. now at the peak ofits form. The last heya to monopolize

the yusho and sansho (three special prizes) was Dewano­umi Beya back in 1949-44 years ago.

During the Natsu Basho, Wakanohana's drive to be­come ozeki and stand with brother Takanohana as partof a fraternal ozeki duo was the focus of attention. Waka

fought the first half of the basho with enthusiastic fanswatching his every move. The mental pressure was toomuch to bear, however, and he finally cracked under il.

The battle between the Hawaiian trio, who occupy thetop three ranks of yokozuna, ozeki and sekiwake, andFutagoyama Beya, whose 10 Makunouchi rikishi domi­nate the top of the division, including the ranks of ozeki,sekiwake and komusubi, has been intensifying in recentbasho. Akebono beatMisugisato, Takanonami, Wakasho-

(Con't on next page)

2

Sashi-Chigai- Akebono appears ta be still airborne,while Wakashoyo's right [oot has already touchedout. The judges reversed the decision [avoring Waka.

explain their decision. ln that way, they can obtain theunderstanding of most of the people watching.

But if they let the gyoji' s cali stand without a mono-ii,many people will have a hard time understanding theirdecision or even be dissatisfied with it. The phones of theSumo Kyokai and major newspapers were ringing offthe hook with fans calling to express their opposition toand dissatisfaction with the outcome of the Konishiki­Wakanohana bout.

When there is doubt, ifs best to cali a mono-ii and

give an explanation that everyone can understand. Thebout between Konishiki and Wakanohana in the recent

Natsu Basho c1early showed the cost of not followingthis advice. 1 hope that the Sumo Kyokai will deal wiselyin similar situations in the future.

When Akebono was beaten by Takanohana, he re­turned to the shitaku-beya with red eyes and left theKokugikan without saying a word to anyone. The tworikishi were like night and day-and their bout againiIIustrated the cold-heartedness of competitive sports.Akebono will no doubt try ta rid himself of his frustra­tion over this defeat.

On the other hand, Takanohana will probably try topractice even harder so that he can again taste this kindofjoy. 1 hope that the violent clashes between Akebonoand Takanohana, the respective winner and loser whofinished the last basho at the op-posite ends of the pole asrespective winner and loser of the yusho, will set off morefireworks in basho to come.

Will Takanohana move up to yokozuna and Wa­kanohana ta ozeki during the next basho in Nagoya?Will the Hawaiian trio be able to stop them? The battlebetween the Futagoyama army and the Hawaiian gangwill generate even more heat come July. (Translated byMark Schilling)

yo and Takatoriki but lost to Wakanohana on the 13thday.

Then on senshuraku he was beaten by Takanohanaand the yusho slipped from his grasp. The Waka-Takabrothers caused his defeat. His oyakata, Azumazeki (for­mer sekiwake Takamiyama), said: "His rivais from nowon will be Takanohana and Wakanohana. Ifhe can beat

them, he can win the yusho." He is completely correct.Komusubi Musashimaru's record last taurnament

against the Futagoyama army was three wins and fourlosses. Futagoyama rikishi accounted for four of hisdefeats. Of Konishiki's eight defeats, four came at thehands of the Futagoyama army-a big blow to his kachi­koshi campaign.

During the senshuraku bout between Konishiki andWakanohana, the two rikishi traded armthrows at the

edge and went down at nearly the same time. When thegyoji pointed his gunbai at Konishiki, thejudges didn'tcali a mono-ii Uudge's conference), giving the win to theozeki. This bout was a major loss for Wakanohana-andcaused an uproar among the fans.

Just looking at the slow-motion video tape, it seemsc1ear that Konishiki's right hand touched down first. Af­ter the bout, Wakanohana said: "When 1 was doingsukuinage and faIling, my face hit (the dohyo)." It standsto reason that if he hit the dohyo that way, he must havebeen falling more slowly than his opponent. That's gen­erally what happens when two rikishi attempt counter­ing armthrows at the edge of the dohyo.

As he said, Wakanohana hit the side of his face. The

scrape must have been tremendously painful, but his fallto the dohyo was c1early slower than Konishiki's. Therewasno mono-ii and the win went to Konishiki. Afterwards,

chief judge Kagamiyama said, "Konishiki had the advan­tage. When they were both making last-ditch throws,Wakanohana's body was flying. Ifs not a question ofwhether his hand touched down."

ln short, the decision was based on Wakanohana be­

ing shinitai (a dead body, or falling in an irrecov­erable position). 1 wonder, though, whether ordi­nary fans can understand this explanation. Shinitailiterally means that a rikishi's body is "dead." lnother words, he cannot possibly return to a posi­tion that would enable him to continue the bout.

It was a questionable bout. Even the video tape thatrecorded it can 't be called completely accurate, giventhe position from which it was shot. But when the out­come of a bout is question able or when ail the peoplewatching at home think ••Ahh ....1 wonder who won?" thejudges should cali a mono-ii and carefully and c1early

1IIItll[llïl~13

End of a Career - Dewanomi Oyakata makes the final snip offormer komusubi Ryogoku's mage at the danpatsu-shiki ceremony

feting his retirement, May 31st. Ryogoku will remain in sumo asa coach at De-wanoumi Beya with the na me of Nakadachi

Oyakata, the previous name of Kasugano Oyakata.

(Warren Arbuckle Photo)AchievementHonored: Yokozuna Akebono smiles as he holds the

trophypresented to him l7y the Tokyo A merican Club on April 25th

as their 1993 Sportsman of the Year. He's the third sumo rikishi

honored l7y the club since the inception of the award in 1990. The

other twoareAzumazeki Oyakata (formersekiwake Takamiyama­

fesse) and ozeki Konishiki.

l ntai-Zumo Ceremony - finmaku Oyakata, former Kokonoe

Oyakata, makes thefinal eut of ex-komusubi Takanofuji' s mage,

May 29th. Taka has quit sumo.

3 Veterans Bow Out

With Danpatsu-shikiRites at Kokugikan

Photos by Clyde Newton

Sayonara, Wakasegawa - Isegahama Oyakata cuts off the

topknotof ex-No. 1maegashira Wakasegawa, May 30, at Waka'sdanpatsu-shiki rite. Waka has left sumo.

4

NagoyaBashoRoundtable

(The Natsu Basho roundtable was held on May 29th

at the home of Sumo World editor Andy Adams and included,

besidesAdams (AA), associate editor Clyde Newton (CN), Lora

ShamofJ (LS), author of "Grand Sumo" and SW contributor,

and Katrina Watt (KW), SW contributor.)

AA: We'll begin as we did last time with a few random

comments based on some notes 1 took during the NatsuBasho. ln Mainoumi's bout with Toyonoumi on

senshuraku, he used uchigake (inside leg trip) to block

Toyo's attempt to force him to the edge, then spilled his

huge opponent with sotogake (outside leg trip). When

Toyonoumi fell, it was like a giant tree crashing to the

ground. Mai should have yelled 'Timberl"LS: Mainoumi was near the bottom of Makunouchi and

he was very desperate to stay in the top division. He's

too small ta be way up in sanyaku, but when he sets hismind to it, he seems able to hold his own in Makuno­uchi.

KW: What l'm worried about is that his tac tics seem to be

catching because we're seeing more sumo where the

opponents stand back and look at each other instead of

going for the belt.

CN: Mainoumi went ail the way to the end and didn't

collapse, as he often does. This may be the best basho

of Mainoumi's career. 1 think he should have got the

Gino-sho (Technique Prize). 1 think both he and Tomo­

nohana will have short, interesting careers. But 1 don'tthink Wakanohana deserved a sansho. (He received the

Shukun-sho (Outstanding Performance Award).

AA: Picking up where 1 left off, Kirishima's uchigake

against Takanonami on the Il th day was a thing ofbeau­

ty. The excitinggive-and-take in Wakanohana's boutwith

Terao on the fifth day was one of the highlights of the

basho. Akebono made a surprising recovery of his bal­ance twice in his bout with Kushimaumi on the seventh

day, attesting to his hard training, his stability and his

ability in keeping his hips low.

LS: At the practice session befol-e the Yokozuna Shingi­iinkai (Promotion Council) before the basho, Akebono

didn't look very good.

AA: But he had a whole week to shape up before the ba­

sho got under way. If you really hit your peak a week

before the start, you might get stale by the time the

tournament opens.

5

(Clyde Newton Photo)His Third Yusho - Takanohana receivesthe cham-pionshipflag/romSadogatake Oyaka/a a/ter winning the Natsu Basho with anou/standing 14 record.

LS: But he went into the basho with a fever. He had a lot

of pro blems.

AA: Look at Wakanohana in the previous basho_ He lost

weight, he threw up and had ail kinds of problems.

KW: 1 was surprised to see Akebono having a few shaky

bouts. Kushimaumi wasn't in good shape at ail.

CN: The impression 1 got of Akebono this time was that

he's worthy of the rank ofyokozuna.AA: ln contrast to Takanohana, who didn't look like a

potential yokozuna at aIl.

KW: ln the majority of Akebono's bouts, he comes across

as very strong and in control.

AA: NextisAkebono's boutwith Wakashoyo, with the gyo­

ji giving the nod to Waka and the judges reversing his

decision. lfyou had seen the photo on the sports page

of the japan Times, you would have seen Wakashoyo's

right foot clearly touching the ground outside the dohyo

and Akebono's body still not touching down inside the

dohyo. 1 think it was a very good decision to reverse the

tate-gyoji's (chiefreferee) decision.

KW: 1 was surprised because it was so close. 1 thoughtthey would cali for tori-naoshi (rematch), but in Koni­

shiki's bout with Takanohana when they did cali for tori­

naoshi, the video replay showed c1early Konishiki's hand

touch-ing first.AA: But the controversial bout occurred on senshuraku

when Konishiki beat Wakanohana. The Sumo Kyokai

called in the judges and said they should speak up more

when a close bout occurs, implying that there should have

been a mono-ii Uudges' conference) in the Konishiki­

Waka bout. The chief judge, Kagamiyama, even submit­

ted his resignation, but, of course, it was not accepted. To

resume my comments from my notes, Wakanohana dià

not look very good in most of the five losses he suffered,

especially when Kotonowaka rolled him into the dirt on

the 14th day. And the way Oginohana hustled him out

on the eighth day and Kenko tossed him out on the lOth

day. They were fairly low-ranked maegashira. He certain­ly didn't look like a budding ozeki in those bouts. Sornesay Waka might have had an outside chance to be pro­moted to ozeki if he had won that bout, perhaps in arematch, and ended up with an 11-4record. But in viewofhis collapse in the second week, his inability in the pastto string together two performances with double-digit winsand his tendency to get injured, it would have been a badmistake to promote him-even with Il wins. Last year hewas sidelined for almost two complete basho.LS: Jinmaku Oyakata (ex-yokozuna Kitanofuji) had saidthat those losses to the maegashira didn't make a goodimpression and we're not in desperate need of anotherozeki right now. It would be better to wait.AA: Takanohana had several close calls and was lucky toemerge unscathed from ail of them: Kotonishiki on thethird day, Kotonowaka on the sixth day, Kotofuji on theeighth day and Daishoho on the 12th day. The only rea­son that Takanohana beat Daishoho was because Dai lost

his balance and fell as he was pushing Taka out.KW: It's easy to see that Takanohana and Wakanohana doa lot of keiko because they've very good at hanging on atthe edge just long enough for their opponents to go out ortouch down first.

AA:And then in his bout with Konishiki on the 13th day.The only day he looked Iike a true yokozuna was on thelast day when he beat Akebono, making a fast tachi-ai, get­ting a morozashi (both arms inside the opponent's de­fenses) and blocking Akebono's counterattack. Other­wise, he looked just Iike a routine sanyaku wrestler.KW: It made me think of the hare and the tortoise.

Everybody's looking at Wakanohana and he's going todo something wonderful. He tries hard and falls by thewayside. Takanohana is sort of plodding along, hangingon at the edge and in the end he lasts out to get the yusho.CN: 1 think that Akebono was as nervous as he's ever

been. Ijust sensed that. He really wanted to win.KW: 1 wonder why Akebono tried to do kubinage at theedge. Vou could see that his feet came together so thathe couldn't keep his balance.AA: Ali the way along, it appeared that Akebono was go­ing to win.KW: It wasn't a question ofwhether or not he was goingto win, but whether he would get zensho.AA: Tochinowaka seems to have lost much of his powerand it's now highly unlikely that he can ever regainsanyaku let alone make another drive for ozeki.CN: 1 think he'lI drop to Juryo within four or five basho.LS: Four of five? How about two or three?

CN: 1think Terao and Tochinowaka will fall soon to Ju­ryo, but Kirishima should be able to hang on as a lowmaegashira.AA: Kirishima's 8-7 record was his first kachi-koshi (ma­

jority ofwins) mark since lastJuly and showed his abilityto hang in there, at least until the end of the year.

Umenosato and MitoizumiAre 12th Sekitori Brothers

The promotion of Umenosato to Juryo marksthe 12th sekitori brother combo. The younger brother ofMakunouchi veteran Mitoizumi, Umenosato makes his

Juryo Division debut in the upcoming Nagoya Basho.Plagued by injuries and bad luck, Umenosato spent 13years and 80 basho c1imbing to Juryo-the fourth-slowestpace in sumo history.

At 29, Umenosato is one year younger than hisbrother, who is known by his nickname "Big Salt." Hestands 191 cm. (6-3) and weighs 175 kg. (386 Ibs.) andbears a strong physical resemblance to his more-famoussibling.They will become the third active pair of sekitori brothersafter Takanohana and Wakanohana, and Oginohana andOginishiki. Terao, the younger brother offormer sekiwakeSakahoko, is still competing in the top division.

CN: He still has good fighting spirit, but he has to winvery quickly. It's a pity that he doesn't use tsuru (lifting)anymore.AA: What about Musashimaru?

LS: For several basho he had double-digit wins and nowhe gets 9-6. The trouble is that he tries not to lose but hedoesn't try hard enough to win. Before this basho, hestarted doing de-geiko (training at an outside heya) again,going to the other Dewanoumi Ichimon heya (Dewano­umi, Kasugano, Musashigawa, Mihogaseki, Kitanoumiand Tamanoi stables). 1 thought it would be beneficialfor him, but apparently it wasn 't. But you can 't scoff atsorne one who has had 16 straight kachi-koshi.AA: Getting close to Akebono's record of 18 in a row.Musashi also has six straight basho as a sekiwake. But 1see we're out of time. Thanks for your contributions.

May Sansho JVtnners - From le/t to right: Seki-wake Wakanohana:Shukun-sho (Outstanding Per/or-mance A ward) , Takanonami:

Kanto-sho (Fighting Spirit-Prize) and Takatoriki: Gino-sko.

6

AI(EBONOSPEAI(S OUT:Z

(Newly promoted yokozuna Akebono appeared at the Foreign

Correspondent 's Club ofJapan onFeb. 16and thefollowing is the

second part of a transcription of the questions and his answers at

the Club's professionalluncheon.)

Q: Vou have such a gentle demeanor, but when you get inthe ring, you have this look that you get in your eyes. Iflooks could kill, 1would be dead. What is it that cornesover you when you enter the ring? What do you thinkabout prior to the bout?A: Vou have to have a fighting face and another facewhen you are in front of people. Vou have to have twosides ofyourself. 1like to listen to music before 1go to thetournament such as rock. 1 just think about how hardl've worked and why should 1 lose if there's nobody whosays 1 have to lose. It gets me fired up.Q: 1understand that foreigners are not being encourag­ed to join sumo at this point in time and there's sorne talkof limiting each stable to two foreigners. How do youfeel about that? Do you feel there should be restrictionson foreigners in sumo or in a stable in order to main tainthis as a Japanese sport and prevent the Japanese wrest­lers from being overwhelmed by bigger, more powerfulopponents? Or do you think sumo should stay open sothat anybody who wants to try can cornpete?A: First of ail, myjob is not to think but just to wrestle. 1just do my job in the ring and let the Sumo Associationthink about stuff like that.

Q: Have you been approached by any big Americancompanies about commercial endorsements, and if so,are you allowed to accept them?A: Not yet. l've been asked by sorne places, but the Su­mo Association is very strict about commercials.Q: May 1 ask who asked you?A: You'll have to ask my boss.Q: 1 understand that last night you were bowling withKonishiki and sorne ofyour colleagues-Bowling forBos­nia, 1 think it was called. Do you think Japanese sportsstars, and 1guess 1would have to include you since you'rea sumo star, should be doing more charity work and thatkind of high-profile work on behalf of larger issues?A: ln sumo, we do a lot of charity during the year. Also, asfor the tournaments (hana-zumo) you see thatare not realtourna-ments (hon-basho), most ofthat is for charity. 1think it's a good thing to work for charity. Just becauseyou've made it to the top doesn't mean that you shouldturn your back on people who are not as privileged as youare. Vou should always want to help people.Q: Azumazeki Oyakata is married ta aJapanese lady. So

7

(Akiko Miyake Photo)

do you want to get married to aJapanese lady?A: 1 don't know. When the times cornes, l'Il think aboutit.

Q: What is the best thing and the worst thing that hashappened to you in your life inJapan?A: There are a lot of good things that have happened tome in Japan. One of them is when 1made yokozuna. Butthe happiest moment in life was when 1 won my firsttournament (May 1992). When 1won that last bout, 1justblacked out and didn't know what happened. The worstthing that happened to me inJapan came two basho be­fore that Uanuary 1992)when 1lost to Takanohana byonebout. Hewas 14-1andlwas 13-2. Hewas 14-1,butlwastheonly one who beat him. Ijust couldn't han die that.Q: ln answer to the question about dignity, you sound ve­ry Japanese. Do you consider yourself, perhaps becauseyou've immersed yourselfin this ancient tradition, a littlemore attuned to Japan and little more Japanese thanAmerican?

A: Sumo is a sport in which you live the sport. It's notlike baseball where you go to the stadium and practice andplay a game, then go home and become a regular personagain. Vou live sumo 24 hours a day. Vou practice in themorning. When you finish, you have to take care of theboss or the ranking wrestlers in the stable. Being in thissport for five years, 1 don't feel like l've changed, butwhen people look at me they say l'm more Japanese than1am American. You're forced to change. Vou can 't stop it,it's natural.

Q: Using our president Clayton Jones as Takahanada,cou Id you demonstrate once again the decisive last fightyou had when you won the tournament?A: She'll (question el') have to referee. 1joined sumo fiveyears ago and my oyakata taught me that pushing is thefastest way to win and the fastest way to move up in theranks. No matter how good sorne body is on the belt, ifyou can hit them hard enough and keep them off you,you can push them right out of the ring. The first thing 1

try to do is get them off me.Q: Obviously, one of the things you have to do to get thisfar is to learn japanese. Do you feel comfortable in thelanguage, do you recommend signing up at a sumo stableas a way of learning the language quickly? Did you haveany trouble, any culture shock?A: For the first half a year when 1 came from Hawaii, 1cried almost every night. 1 wanted to quit. 1wanted togo home. 1 was 18. 1 thought 1was a man, but when 1came here, 1found out 1 was still a baby. But what keptme from going back home was that if! went back home,people would laugh at my mom and dad, and say thatyour son has a big body, but he can't do anything. So 1stuck it out. 1got up every morning, told myselfthat to­day l'm going to learn one new japanese word, one newtechnique in practice. 1 got up every morning wantingto lean). Sumo is not Iike base bail. If you come fromAmerica, they have an interpreter-they have every­thing. ln sumo, you get thrown in a big room. Vou sur­vive, you die or you go home. Vou have to learn almosteverything there is. Vou are forced to.Q: The whole set of arguments about the promotion ofa foreigner began when a member of the Yokozuna Pro­motion Council wrote an article suggesting that foreign­ers didn 't have the hinkaku that was necessary. Arter thatcame out, how did it affect your spirit and the spirit ofthe other Hawaiian wrestlers to know that at least one

member of the council had expressed his feelings. Did itmake you fight harder, did it discourage you? What wasyour reaction?A: Ijust didn't pay attention to it. Youjust do what youhave to do and when you wrestle, if you do what you'resupposed to do, you're going to make it someday.Q: We didn't grow up watching sumo, but now that wewatch it, we know that the ratio between the preparationfor the match and the actual match itself is so short.

Would you talk about the going back and forth in thedohyo and the niramiai. Does this make a difference inyour wins?A: Actually, they don't encourage staring at your oppo­nent in sumo. But once you get up on that dohyo, youchange into a different person. So if somebody stares atyou, you stare back at them. That's ail part of the mentalgame. If you lose that fight, you've probably lost thewhole bout. So you have to win the mental game as weilas the physical part.Q: Have you ever received any telephone calls or lettersattacking you or threatening you?A: When Takahanada won his first tournament with 14-1

and 1was 13-2, before 1lost my second bout 1was gettingletters telling me to go home. But when you get ail thisstuff, you just look at it and say 'These people have toomuch free time. They don't have anything else better todo."

Q: Would you like to see sumo as an Olympie sport

someday?A: As 1said earlier, sumo is notjust a sport, it's a way oflife. But ifyou take it outside ofjapan, 1don't think it'IIwork.

Q: Out of the Makunouchi rikishi, there's not one rikishiwho's able to win consistently against you or even veryoften. Who is your toughest opponent?A: 1 have a lot of trouble with smail wrestlers Iike Akino­

shima and Kotonishiki. They're probably my two tough­est opponents right now. Since 1made yokozuna, one ofthe biggest things 1have in mind is practicing with an eyeon how 1 can strengthen thafarea.Q: Because of the recent merger of Fujishima and Futa­goyama stables, Takanohana won't face nine of the toprikishi. Do you consider this to be an unfair advantage?A: It's not unfair or fair. It's something that happens. 1just have to put up and shut up and wrestle everybodyand beat them.

Q: Vou are one of the tallest and most dignified-Iookingsumo wrestlers. But at the opposite end ofyour type arevery small quick wrestlers. For example, Mainoumi.Could you give your assessment ofthis type ofwrestler ingeneral and particularly the acrobatie wrestling of Mai­noumi?

A: For somebody that small to get up on the dohyo andwrestle opponents as big as us, it takes a lot ofheart. Peo­ple say he's acrobatie, but that's what he has to do to stayup there.Q: Vouwere recently in sorne exhibition in Hong Kong. Isthis going to be a kind of sumo cultural diplomacy bysending you to the United States, Ids say. Do you thinkthere's a trend toward this? Is it a good thing for sumo todo these kinds of exhibitions or should they stay hereinjapan and just fight and do nothing?A: What was his question? Oh, yeso 1 think it's a goodthing for sumo to go around the world. As 1 said earlier,sumo is not something you can explain by talking aboutit. Vou have to take it there to show the people how wepractice and fight. There's a language barrier, so weshould just let them see what we try to do everyday. Itmight not be as real as what we do back injapan, but it'sa good thing for people to look at and learn what sumois about and not just think it's two guys running intoeach other and the guy who runs the fastest, wins.Q: Do you have invitations to speak to business groups,especially now that you're yokozuna? Ifyou do, do theyask you more questions about sumo or about your lifestyle and discipline and how that applies to the businessworld?

A: l've never been asked by any business groups, but we goto a lot of parties and just stand there and look pretty.

(To be continued)

Answer to Then and Now: Two concentric circles oftawara were common until April 1931, when the innerring was removed, enlarging the ring about 60 cm.

8

AI<ebono Wins San Jose MeetBy Doug Larnn

ln a c1imatic finish to the San JoseTourney, Akebono defeated fellow-Hawaiian Konishiki toc1aimthe top prize in the first-ever "officiaI" sumo tourneyto take place in the United States. The two-daytourney onJune 6-7 drew capacity crowds of nearly 6,000 each days tothe San Jose University Event Center in San Jose, Califor­nia.

Thirty-eight of the top rikishi arrived June 4th inunusual rainy weather and were warmly greeted in SanJose's 'Japan Town" by a large crowd of both sumo fansand interested newcomers. The tired-Iooking rikishi satdown to an outside dinner with the unfortunate feeling ofhaving many bystanders stare in awe at every bite they took.On Friday, sorne of the rikishi spent time enjoying apopular local amusement par'k, a San Francisco Ciantsbaseball game and supposedly a golf course as weIl.

The tourney opened the next day as spectatorswarmly greeted the rikishi and were entertained asKonishiki and Wakanohana battled against local children.On the first day, Akebono overpowered ail his opponentsand c1aimed the first day's title by defeating Takanohanasin the final for his fifth victory of the day. Perhaps themost exciting match of the two-<laytour-ney was Takanohana's semifinal against his older brother,Wakanohana. With the crowd yelling on, the two brothersbattled for nearly 40 seconds before Taka finally lifted outWakanohana. ln the other semifinal, Akebono defeatedTakanonami.

On the second day, Akebono continued to im­press the audience with victories over Takatoriki,Kotonishiki and Wakanohana. This set up a semifinalagainst Konishiki. ln a battle of giants, Konishiki andAkebono grabbed each other's belts and in a greatdemonstration of strength, Konishiki was able to slowlyforce Akebono out of the ring. Konishiki won the second­clay title by defeating Musashimaru and advanced to theplayoff for the tourney title against Akebono, his semifinalopponent only 15 minutes earlier and the first-<lay'scham­pion.

With the crowd excited at an all-Hawaiian

rematch, Akebono was able to avoid Konishiki's initial

attack and soon pushed him out of the ring for the overailchampionship.

Crowd favorite Mainoumi walked away with theCino-sho (Technique Prize), while Takanohana won theKanto-sho (Fighting Spirit Prize) and Wakanohana wonthe Shukun-sho (Outstanding Performance Award). Thetourney proved a great success: proceeds went towards anew U .S.:Japan Culture Center and sumo gained a newcontingent of supporters.

9

(AP Photo)Hanada Brothers Clash- Ozeki Takanohana hoistsout his brother, sekiwake Wakanohana, in a semifinalbout on the first day of the San Jose Tourney.

(Compiled from the wire services)The biggest upset of the first night came in the se­

cond round when Konishiki was pushed out by No. 13maegashira Naminohana. Musashimaru went out in thefirst round. The sekiwake lunged at his opponent, Taka­to-riki, who sidestepped him and sent him facedown inthe middle of the dohyo.

Organizers converted the basketball gym into a sumoarena by bringing the proper type of clay to build thedohyo and hung a canopy over it with huge, symbolictassels. During the opening ceremonies, all 38 rikishiparaded onto the dohyo wearing kesho-mawashi andstood stoically during the playing of the Japanese andU.S. national anthems.

Before the actual bouts began, about 20 boys tookturns taking on Konishiki and Wakanohana, trying with­out success to pushing them around. Usually, the boysended up by getting picked up and tossed around likedolls, as the crowd roared with laughter. The p.a. systemannounced: "Please remember that the dohyo is sacred.Please don't touch it or get too close." It was the firsttourney in the U.S. since 1985. The tourney was held atthe Event Center located on the San Jose State U. campus.Ringside tickets, costing $200 (\'21,000), were sold out.At the c10sing ceremony, the audience gave a standingovation to the 38 Makunouchi rikishi.

MusashimaruWins in Hawaii

By Patrick Winston

The favorites looked good in the beginning match­es of the Hawaii Jungyo Tourney and when Mainoumidefeated Daishoyama in the second match, the dohyoaction was great. Kirishima reeeived a good applause,but wasn't up to the task, as he lost to Kenko in a well­fought bout. One of my favorites, Mitoizumi, was strongagainst Oginohana and won, and in the next match,utiJizing a quickjump and sidestep move that resembledMainoumi. Then Mitoizumi won over Wakanohana and

then Takanohana, and finally faeed Musashimaru, whoeasily beat him.

The second night lived up to my prediction that theHanada brothers would avenge their 0-2 earlier record,and they performed as ail had expected. The crowd waslarger, noisier and the techniques and moves improvedover those on the first night. Numerous matches Jastedlong lengths of time and it became better as the nightwent on.

Naminohana was very aggressive and effective anddefeated the first-night champion, Musashimaru, in thethird round, but he Jost to Taka, who had just defeatedKirishima. ln the final, it was the match we ail had hopedfor with Takanohana against Akebono. With Akebono'smom sitting a few feet away, it was interesting hearingher root for her son, "Come on, boy...Jet's go, Chad!" Shemust have been very proud, as we ail were, of his accom­plishments and everyone was at the edge of their seats.When Akebono lifted Taka out of the ring, it was theheight of the night.

Many people left not knowing that there would be aplayoff match between the first night's champion,Musashimaru, and the the second night's champion,Akebono. Mter the traditional stare-down and the tachi­

ai, Akebono and Musashimaru were in the yotsu positionfor about 20 seconds before Musashi won by sukuinage(beltless armthrow) for the overall championship.

Before the tourney, excitement and anticipation werein the air when it was announced that NGN would be

carrying the January Basho live with EngJish commen-

Sumo Alltime Record Book

Tallest - Smallest - Oldest - Youngest

Heaviest - Lightest - First - Last

ONLY $15 - Y2,OOO(Postage incl.)

And Adams and CI de Newton

(Sankei Sports Photo)Sumo, Hawaiian-Style - Enjoying a relaxing strol1

along Waikiki Beach are (left to right) Takanohana,Wakanohana and Kyokudozan during the June jun­gyo in Hawaii.

tary. Later, news of the June exhibition sent the local su­mo fans into ecstasy, although the high ticket prieesmight have led to a slightly less than capacity crowd(8,300) on opening night.

Many local dignitaries, including the mayor, cur­rent and past governors, were on hand to assistin the opening ceremonies.

SJ Fan Meets KirishimaCynthia Shambaugh Ishimatsu

Mydream of attending a sumo tournament has finallycome true. The San Jose Tourney has humanized thepageantry and personalized the rikishi, the oyakata, thegyoji and the yobidashi for me. On the night before thetourney, we attending the black-tie gala. While it seemedthat many who attended were unaware of the greatness ofthe sumotori seated around them, 1 was thrilled to meet

several of the rikishi. At first, we had been relegated to a

(Can't. an next page)

10

table in the rear of the huge tent. Then we noticed thatKirishima-zeki had been assigned a table whose otheroccupants had not arrived. Changing our seats, we spentdinner with this gentle and kind man, who radiated innerstrength and dignity.

After having watched almost every basho for the past13 years (faithfully videotaped by my parents-in-Iaw inTokyo), 1 could hardly believe my good fortune. While 1do not speak japanese weil, my husband, HisayukiIshimatsu, translated and engaged Kirishima in an hon­est and personal conversation about our families andabout sumo. 1 finally understand the trhill of a true fanwhen meeting an idol.

We later found Konishiki sitting along outside thenoisyconfusion of the ,banquet. Again, we talked ofmanythings, including his regret at the events oflast year whichhad misrepresented his true feelings about sumo. For me,Konishiki embodies what is so truly great about this sport-the uniqueness of each and every rikishi. 1 only wish 1had time to meet and talk with more of them.

Akebono, Mainoumi, Kyokudozan, Wakanohana, Ta­kanohana, Musashimaru and many others ... Of course, 1could do little more than smile and say "thank you" tothem, but 1 do hope they understood my sincerity. 1feelmost honored to have spoken with Takamiyama, Azumazeki Oyakata, and truly meant my words when 1said how 1respected him for all he has done in the sport.

1 can understand now why the rikishi are thought tobe living gods-their clear, vibrant skin and their innerstrength are so impressive. 1 never imagined how muchthey are a step above us all.

On the first day of the tourney, we sat in the third rowon the south side and were thrilled with many of thebouts, including those between Mainoumi and Kotoni­shiki, Takatoriki and Takamisugi, Misugisato andKyokudozan, and finally Takanohana and Wakanohana.Watching Akebono made me realize his power and skillat thrusting more than seeing him on TV had ever done.His stature is huge, but more impressive to me is hiscontained and centered presence. He is, indeed, yokozuna.

Many of your readers, l'm sure, have had theopportunity to attend tournaments, and so my wordsmust appear naive. Nevertheless, 1wanted to tell you ofmy impressions. The reality of my dream is so muchgreater than 1had ever imagined. 1hope that the SanjoseTourney has brought the excitement of sumo closer toAmericans.

Photographs ofYour FavoritesAnyone interested in obtaining photos or color slides of

their favorite rikishi should write in care of Sumo World.Slides are $5.00 each, 5x7 color photos are $10.00 each and8xlO color photos are $15.00 each. Priees include airmailpostage. Be sure to make aU checks payable to SumoWorld/Andy Adams.

11

2 New Books on Sumo

ln Japanese PublishedOzumo Grafitti by Kageyama Tadahiro (Yl,600)

Kageyama Tadahiro, 48, has developed a sumo-relatedcollection that is probably second only to that of the Su­mo Museum. A former career hotel manager, now oper­ating his own computer hardware/software business,Kageyama has collected anything related to sumo fornearly 40 years, since he was an elementary schoolboy.

This is the fourth book that Kageyama has publish­ed about the items in his collection, and covers con tempo­rary sumo from the beginning of the Showa Era in late1926 to the present Ake-Taka Era. Ozumo Grafitti islavishly illustrated, and covers just about every possibleitem that could be collected, including posters, records,books, magazines, banzuke, menko, kesho-mawashi andakeni. The thousands of items reproduced in SumoGraffiti are only a small part of Kageyama-san' s collec­tion, which goes back to the Edo Era. rvl,ost of the pagesare in full color, and since there is relatively little text,this book should be of interest even to sumo fans who

have no knowledge of written japanese.Sumo Graffiti, published earlier this year, is available

at most larger bookstores throughoutjapan, or directly(injapanese) from the publisher: KK Catalog House­4-54-11 Chuo, Nakano-ku, Tokyo.

Ozumo Omoshiro Banashi by Niiyama Zenichi(Maruzen Library)

Niiyama Zenichi, born in 1927, is a noted sumojournal­ist who retired from the frontlines of reporting severalyears ago. He now contributes to sumo magazines as asenior commentator. This inexpensive paperback(\'580) is based on the author's long career as a reporterand is replete with anecdotes about the rikishi he hasknown in over 40 years as ajournalist.

The book covers sumo from the early postwar per­iod, when the author was beginning his career as the su­mo correspondent, to the present. The book is easily readby anyone with a basic (newspa-per level) grasp of kanji.Published byMaruzen Library, and available at most largerbookstores injapan.

Technique Corner (Con't.)wake slammed into him, getting a right-hand-inside gripand driving Terao up and back to the edge. Waka thentook a deep step with his left foot and pulled Terao to hisright while forcing him backward. As Terao fought backtoward Wakanohana's left, he used Terao's own motion to

unleash a stunning right-handed sukuinage, throwingthe popular Izutsu Beya rikishi clear off his feet and outof the dohyo.

The TechniqueCorner

By David Shapiro

(This is the 22nd in our series of the 70 winning techniques

recognized 1Yy the Nihon Sumo Kyokai.)

ln recent issues we've been discussing sorne of sumo'smore esoteric techniques. ln this issue, we go back to thebasics to take a look at one of sumo's more common

winning techniques and one of the most popular throwsin the sport: sukuinage, or beltless armthrow.

As in al! techniques in this category, the "nage" of su­kuinage literally means "to throw." "Sukui" cornes fromthe verb "suku"-"to scoop." The motion of the throw issuch that the attacking rikishi heaves or literally "scoops"his opponent up and over his own center of gravity. We'llbe looking at this technique from a right-handed attack.

Sukuinage becomes possible when the two rikishi havecome to grips. There are basically two situations when itcan be applied: the first involves the attacking rikishiforcing his opponent forward, and, when his opponentfights back, executing the technique. ln the other situa­tion, the rikishi to be thrown will be moving forward,forcing his opponent backwards. The rikishi usingsukuinage will then tum away from his opponent, usingthe opponent's forward momentum as part of the throw­ing motion.

ln either case, there are certain corn mon elements to

the throw. The first is timing. The attacker wants hisopponent to move forward. At the instant that forwardmotion begins, he will release his left-hand-outside gripand turn away from his opponent in a counter-c1ockwisemotion toward his righl. This is howhe winds up in theposition seen in our illustration.

The second important point is the placement of thethrowing arm. As you can see, the attacker's arm is locat­ed near the center of his opponent's back. That insidearm should not be in any deeper than the elbow. A verydeep inside grip invites a counterthrow like kotenage(arm-lock throw) or uwatenage (over-armthrow; see SWMay '91). At the stan of the throw, the right hand shouldbe placed palm down, facing the defender's back.

However, to achieve that "scoop" as the throwing mo­tion is begun, the right elbow should be flared up andout. This twisting motion of the arm causes the righthand to tum inward with the back of the hand almost

touching the opponent's back. This motion adds the"pop" to the throw that forces the defending rikishi'ships up. It's this motion that often causes him to bethrown c1ear over onto his back.

The attacking rikishi can use his left hand to controlhis opponent's right arm, blocking any escape attempts.

SUKUINAGE

He can also have a left-hand grip on the front of hisopponent's mawashi. Another possible use for the left isto throw it out and away from his own body, using it toadd further momentum to the technique. Unlike throwson the belt, which can be applied gradually, this tech­nique, because of the importance of timing, is often donewith a great degree of speed, adding to the spectacularnature of the finish. The legendary yokozuna Taiho(now Taiho Oyakata) often used sukuinage from a left­hand-inside grip.

A superb example of this technique was seen on thefifth day of this past Natsu Basho in a match between twocrowd favorites: west sekiwake Wakanohana and east

No. 5 maegashira Terao.At the charge, Terao tried to open with his standard

slapping attack, not wanting to fight the more versatileWakanohana on the bell. Waka was determined to stayclose, leaning into Terao while pushing him up and back,working to get his head onto Terao's chesl. Terao, see­ing that he couldn't get his slapping attack going, shift­ed to a two-handed thrusting attack on Waka's throat.

Waka instantly broke up the attack by circling awayto the right and grabbing Terao's left arm, pulling itforward. Terao pulled that arm free and circled back in­to Wakanohana, once again attempting a slapping attack.Waka responded by pushing Terao upright and thenbearing down on him, dropping his hips, staying closeand working for a belt grip.

Terao jumped to the left and tried to slap Waka down.The sekiwake kept his balance and responded with hisown two-handed attack on Terao's throal. Terao foughtback to the middle and both rikishi leaned into each

other, head to head, fighting for a grip.

Waka then shifted Ieft pulling Terao slightly sideways.AsTerao tumed back into the Futagoyama star, the seki-

(Con't. on pg. 11)

12

Off the DohyoBy Lora Sharnoff

Born as Tadashige Kamakiri in Kobe, Takatoriki wassuch a fan of ex-ozeki Takanohana 1that after finishinggrammar school, he ventured to Tokyo, where he Iivedwith the Hanada family for a while. The Hanadas even­tually convinced the boy to return to Kobe for juniorhigh, where he practiced judo. He was allowed to jointhe old Fujishima Beya (now Futagoyama Beya) official­Iy only after graduation. Noriko Hanada, the stable'sokamisan, gave Takatoriki his shikona, and she recentlycommented in a magazine interview that ail rikishi withnames conceived by her (including Akinoshima, forexample) have become prominent.

Takatoriki is the only rikishi ever to have a koenkai(support club) headed by a foreigner: Tony IIIsley, for­merly president ofPepsicojapan (now in Hongkong).IlIsley was succeeded as head of Pepsico japan by EarlShirley, who also took over as koenkai-cho. Before heleft japan, IIIsley said the spunky, sometime-sekiwakewas well-suited to the company's image of a challenger

taking on larger opponents.Off the dohyo, Takatoriki Iikes to mimic japanese

show business personalities, both in private and public.Moreover, he never hesitates to display his fine singingvoice at various retirement ceremonies and charityevents. He has also been known as quite a gambler andis particularly fond of going to horse races withAkinoshima. During the London koen in October1991, he is said to have visited a casino every night.

Yet Takatpriki gave up gambling recently, apparent­Iy in preparation for becoming a mode! husband forMieko Naya, the youngest daughter of Taiho Oyakata.The couple originally met two years ago when Takato­riki wasgoing out to eat with sorne rikishi friends fromTaiho Beya, and they have been dating ever since. Apress conference was held two days after the Natsu Ba­sho to announce their engagement. Theyare scheduledto marry after the Aki Basho and will live first in anapartment near Futagoyama Beya.

However, Takatoriki has agreed to become Taiho'smukoyoshi (adopted son-in-Iaw) and will assume theNaya fami1yname. Taiho and his wife Yoshiko had longbeen hoping to leave the stable to the husband of one oftheir daughters, but the two eider girls had expressed astrong lack of interest in sumo. Since Taiho is an ichi­dai toshiyori (one-generation eider name) that can 't bepassed on to another, Takatoriki is expected to takeover the Otake toshiyori meiseki owned by Taiho (nowrented by ex-sekiwake Ozutsu) and change the stable'sname to Otake Beya upon Taiho's retirement or death.

13

Juryo Resultsjuryo No. 8 Minatofuji captured the juryo Division yu­

sho in the Natsu Basho with a strong 12-3 record. The 24­year-old sekitori from Minato Beya will gain promotion tothe top ofjuryo in his highest rank ever, placing himselfin position for a final boost to Makunouchi in September.The secret behind his sudden spurt in May was his deci­sion to do de-geiko (practice at outside stables) at FujishimaBeya. He stayed at a ryokan Oapanese inn) near the heyaand did keiko there every day for more than a week.

Popularjuryo No. 1Tomonohana, the amateur sumotoriwho entered the pro ranks at the rather late age of 27,narrowly made a kachi-koshi (majority ofwins) record of8-7 and was promoted to Makunouchi for the Nagoya Ba­sho. Although the Tatsunami Beya rikishi got off to astrong start in the first week, the c1ever technician falteredbadly in the second week and bare!y squeezed out thenecessary eight wins for promotion. He stands only 174cm. (5-81/4) and weighs 112 kg. (247 Ibs.)

Other juryo rikishi who will be returning to the topdivision include No. 2 Aogiyama of Tokitsukaze Beya, whomade his Makunouchi debut in March as a No. 13 maega­shira. He fell short with a 6-9 record, however, and drop­ped back to juryo No. 2 in May, but his 9-6 record in theNatsu Basho will give him a second chance to make good inMakunouchi. juryo No. 3 Wakanoyama of MusashigawaBeya will also be returning to Makunouchi after compilinga 9-6 record in the Natsu Basho. Heavy set at 178 cm. (5­10) and 151 kg. (333Ibs.), Waka made his top-division de­but in May oflast year as a No. 12 maegashira and he!d onfor the rest of the year, rising to No. 9 maegashira. Hedropped back to juryo lastjanuary with a 5-10 record asNo. 15 maegashira.

Argentine rikishi Hoshiandesu of Michinoku Beya suf­fered make-koshi (losing record) asjuryo No. 7, ending upwith 6-9 or the reverse of his March record. This means he

willfall toward the bottom ofjuryo and must come throughwith a winning record in july to keep from falling backdown to Makushita. Musoyama, the highly touted ex­collegian of Musashigawa Beya, sllffered his first loss inprofessional sumo on the opening day as jllryo No. 9 afterrising throllgh the Makllshita Division with two perfectrecords of 7-0. The 21-year-old hopeful emerged with a 9-6winning record, however, and will advance to the upperranks ofjllryo injuly. The strong, 182-cm. (5-11 1/2),151­kg. (333 lbs.) rikishi is regarded as the most promising ofthe young crop of wrestlers be!ow the top division.

Among the former Makunouchi Division rikishi nowinjuryo, No. 1 Kototsubaki was 5-10, No. 3 Tamakairiki 9-6,No. 4 Enazakura 9-6 and Kyokugozan 8-7, No. 5 Asahizato8-7, No. 6 Kirinishiki 7-8 and Hananokllni 8-7, No. 7

Tatsuhikari 8-7 and No. 8 Kotogallme 8-7. Ex-No. 15maegashira Tachihikari scored 5-2 as Makushita 1 and willreturn to juryo in the Nagoya Basho. (A.A.)

Foreign Rikishi Scores

(Doreen Simmons Photo)Ring Boundary: A youngrikishi catches his breath during keikolJy bracing hirnseif against the tawara of the practice doyyo in hisheya's kei/lOba.

-And Now

The earliest representation, painted on a large boardin the possession of the Sumo Museum and thought todate from around 1670, shows Il full-sized baIes laid end­

to-end in a eircle. A painted sereen ofa deeade or so latershows a variation: 16 baIes plaeed in a square, with a redpost at each corner and a strip of cloth around the topsof the posts.

But rice baIes are large, unwieldly things, awkward tostep across and downright dangerous to fall over. First,they tried moving one baIe on each side a Iittle furtherout so as to leave a gap for the men to step through (toallow rainwater to drain out, sorne authorities suggest,though since the original tawara were no put together ina watertight formation, and since sumo would not go onin a thunderstorm .anyway, ifs hard to see the sense inthis).

So they made smaller straw bags. Soon the custom­made tawara were half-sunk into the dirt and fitted to­

gether so closely that they resembled a straw rope. Thering became even more recognizable in the mid-19thCentury, when it was raised on a clay mound to make itmore visible to the vast crowds of spectators. ln thosedays, and even into this century, both the ring and itsmound really were circular (unlike the boxing "ring,"which has always been square).

Ali the tawara for hon-basho-66 baIes, six times a

year-have been made since November 1961 byYoshinosuke Miyazaki, who lives in Saitama Prefecturenear Tokyo. He was born on January 10, 1909,just fivemonths before the first Kokugikan was opened. Sincehe is now 84, the Kyokai is scouting for a successor,though at present Mr. Miyazaki's craftsmanship -andhealth-seem as good as ever.

Question: Can you spot one other difference in the oldcircle? Answer on page 8.

Here are the records of the foreign rikishi in the NatsuBasho:

Makunouchi: Yokozuna Akebono-l3-2 (runner-up),ozeki Konishiki-7-8 and sekiwake Musashimaru-9-6

(ail Hawaii).

Juryo:Juryo NO.Il Hoshiandesu (Argentina)-6-9.Makushita: No. 13 Ikemori (Brazil)-5-2, No. 15

Hoshitango (Argentina)-5-2, No. 16 Ozora (Hawaii)-3­4, No. 23 Sentoryu (Missouri, USA)-4-3, No. 26 Waka­chikara (Hawaii)-2-5, No. 35 Kuniazuma (Brazil)-5-2,No. 39 Sunahama (Hawaii)-5-2, No. 41 Takamio (Ha­waii)- 3-4, No. 48 Yamato (Hawaii) 2-5, No. 54 Nanpu(Hawaii)-2-5 and Tatsunohana (Taiwan)-4-3.

Sandanme: No. 26 Koto-o (China) 4-3, No. 34 Kita­azuma (Brazil) 5-2, No. 41 Kyokushuzan (Mongolia) 5-2,No. 52 Wakataisei (Hawaii) 5-2 and No. 66 Kanzan(Korea)- 4-3.

Jonidan: No. 1 Kyokuranzan (Mongolia) 1-6, No. 4Maetaiko (Taiwan)-3-4, NO.8 Kyokutenho (Mongolia)5-2, No. 28 Asahidaka (Mongolia)-l-6, No. 42Wakahiga­shi (Brazil) 5-2, No. 45 Azumakaze (Brazil) 2-5, No. 51

Koryu (Hawaii)-5-2, No. 52 Ryuo-(China)-5-2 and No.106 Koto-Osaka (Brazil) 2-5.

Then: Tawara

.-' $ 1t

The straw baIes used to mark off the dohyo have a

history as long as the dohyo itself. And for good reason:the word "dohyo" itself means earth ("do") and strawbaIe ("hyo").

The earliest reference to rings being drawn on theground is 1576, when Oda Nobunaga, shogun in ail butname, summoned 1,500 wrestlers from ail over the coun­

try to take part in a great tourney. Until then, sumo hadbeen unbounded and untimed. The great number of con­testants, however, made sorne kiild of limitation necessa­

ry, so circles were marked in the dirt.Unfortunately, the record doesn 't tell us how the rings

were marked on that occasion. Soon, however, a readilyavailable object was used: tawara (or hyo in the Chinesereading), the bags ofwoven straw used for carrying rice.Filled with din, a few empty ones were rolled into place tokeep the contestants clear of the spectators.

14

Takanohana Upset - Kirishima stuns Takano­han a on the second day of the Natsu Basho bydefeating the ozeki with an under-shoulderswing-down (katasukashi), leaving lhe lWOrivaIswith 1-1 tourney records. Af'ter II bouts, Taka isonly one-up on the No. 2 maegashira. Theformer ozeki went on to squeeze out a kachi­koshi record of 8-7.

Classic Armthrow - Takanohana sweeps Koto­nishiki off his feet, swings him through the air andslams him down onto the dohyo with a powerfuluwatenage over-armthrow on the third day of action.It marked the ozeki's IOth win in 15 bouts with Koto,who suffered his third straight loss. The No. 3 mae­gashira was able to salvage an 8-7 record by senshu­raku, however.

Waka's First Loss - After eisuffers his first loss on the'nament as No. 10 maegashyorikiri in a brief, one-sidawin in five bouts with the se9-6 record. It was a disappgoing allout to make ozeki iformance in March.

Yusho: Takanohana14-1Jun-Yusho:

Akebono13-2Shukun-sho:

Wakanohana10-5Kanto-sho:

Naminohana10-5Gino-sho:

Takatoriki11-4

NATSU BASH(J

Akebono's First Defeat - Wakanohana f1attens Akebonoby hatakikomi (pull-down) shortly after the tachi-ai (initialcharge) on the 13th day, allowing ozeki Takanohana to tiethe yokozuna for the tourney lead with a 12-1 record. It wasthe sekiwake's 10th win against three losses and kept himon track for possible ozeki promotion. Mer 13 bouts, theyokozuna is only one-up on Wakanohana.

15

Taka Wins Again - Takanohana marches outMusashimaru on the 14th day by yorikiri for his13th victory against one loss to set up a show­down collision for the yusho on the final daywith Akebono, who also racked up his 13th winagainst a single setback. Taka is now 2 to 1against Musashimaru, having won six of theirnine bouts. The sekiwake was 9-5 at that pointand seemed headed for another lWo-digit mark,but finished with a disappointing 9-6 mark.

Akebono ~er Korupowerful uwatenage 1

Hawaiian Konishiki (for first place with 0four-up in 12 bouts 1

aged to even his tounlast day. Sally ended ~ity oflosses), howeverable to demotion almeans that he must 1

onsecutivewins, Wakanohanath day of the Summer Tour­

Oginohana drives him out byut. It was Oginohana's secondke,as he ended up with a fine'ng defeat for Waka, who wase wake of his 14-1 yusho per-

Taka Squeaks By - Takanohana had one of his closest callson the 12th day as Daishoho collapses at the edge of thedohyo a second or two before the ozeki steps out Taka'slast-ditch hatakikomi (pull-down) technique as weil as hisnimbleness at the edge prevented him from suffering hissecond setback and kept him one step behind unbeatenyokozuna Akebono with an 11-1 record. The two rivais areeven after four bouts. Standing 7-5 at that point, No. 9maegashira Daishoho eventually wound up with an 8-7record.

Hawaiians Clash- Musashimaru picks upone of his rare wins over Konishiki, as hemuscles out the 260-kg.(573) ozeki by yorikirion the 12th day. It gave the sekiwake kachi­koshi (majority ofwins) with an 8-4 record. Itwas only the second time Musashimaru de­feated Konishiki, who was 6-6 on the 12thday.

Action Highlighls(Ail photos by "Sumo" of BaseballMagazine-sha except as indicated)

. - The yokozuna uses aarrnthrowto down fellow­e 14th day to remain tiedTakanohana at 13-1. StillAkebono, Konishiki man­ccordat 7-7 going into the-8 for make-koshi (major­akehim kadoban (vulner­ne losing record), whichwinsor better in July.

Timber!! - Little 95-kg. (209) Mainoumi trips up 203-kg.(448) Toyonoumi with a sotogake outside leg trip on thefinal day to end up with 10-5 - the first double-digit winrecord in the No. 15 maegashira's Makunouchi career. No. 3Toyonoumi collapsed to a 5-10 record. Mainoumi is nowone-up Toyonoumi in nine bouts.

Taka's 3rd Yusho - Takanohana sends Akebonocrashing over backwards by yoritaoshi on sen­shuraku to c1inch t.he championship of the NatsuBasho with a near-perfect 14-1 record. It was the"ozeki's best effort of the tournament, as he madea fast tachi-ai, got a morozashi (both arms insidethe opponent's defenses, immediately drove himto the edge, blocked his desperate head-throwcounter and crushed him out of the ring. Theyokozuna had to be content with his second run­nerup performance and is still looking for hisfirst yusho as a yokozuna. The victory pushedTaka to the edge of yokozuna promotion and a13-2 mark in July should be enough.

16

LIST OF OYAKATA AND HEYA (As of July 4, 1993)eIchimon

e DEWANOUMI BEYADewanoumi

(Yokozuna Sadanoyama)551938/2/18Sekinoto

(Sekiwake Fukunohana)531940/7/1Takenawa

(Maegashira Yoshinotani)441949/4/23Takasaki

(Sekiwake Oginohana)571935/11/29Sakaigawa

(Sekiwake Washuyama)441949/4/2Inagawa

(Maegashira Yoshinohana)491943/9/4Dekiyama

(Sekiwake Dewanohana)42195115/13Yamashina

(Komusubi Onishiki)391953/9/11Tagonoura

(Komusubi Sadanoumi)361956/7/19Nakadachi

(Komusubi Ryogoku)301962/7/30KASUGANO BEYA Kasugano

(Yokozuna Tochinoumi)551938/3/13Iwatomo

(Maegashira Tochiisami)451947/10/2Sendagawa

(Maegashira Wakanaruto)541939/2/7Chiganoura

(Sekiwake Masudayama)421951/4/10IRUMAGAWA BEYA Irumagawa

(Sekiwake Tochitsukasa)351958/4/25KITANOUMI BEYA Kitanoumi

(Yokozuna Kitanoumi)401953/5/16Onogawa

(Maegashira Hachiya)421950/11/16TAMANOI BEYA Tamanoi

(Sekiwake Tochiazuma)481944/9/3Yamawake

(Maegashira Tochifuji)~.71946/6/8MUSASHIGAWA BEYA Musashigawa

(Yokozuna Mienoumi)451948/2/4MIHOGASEKI BEY A Mihogaseki

(Ozeki Masuiyama II)441948/11/16Kiyomigata

(Maegashira Dairyugawa)471946/1/21Hatachiyama

(Ozeki Hokutenyu)321960/8/8Matsuchiyama

(Komusubi Banryuyama)421951/5/4e TATSUNAMI BEYA Tatsunami

(Sekiwake Haguroyama)591934/2/23Tamagaki

(Komusubi Wakanami)521941/311Ikazuchi

(Komusubi Haguroiwa)471946/6/30Oitekaze

(Maegashira Oiteyama)551938/6/16Takekuma

(Sekiwake Kurohimeyama)441948/11/12OSHIMA BEYA Oshima

(Ozeki Asahikuni)461947/4/25AJIGAWA BEYA Ajigawa

(Yokozuna Asahifuji)321960/7/6TOMOZUNA BEYA Tomozuna

(Sekiwake Kaiki)411952/6/12KUMAGATANI BEYA Kumagatani

(Maegashira Yoshinomine)611931/7/7TAKASHIMA BEYA Takashima

(Sekiwake Koboyama)351957/8/15MIYAGINO BEYA Miyagino

(Maegashira Chikubayama)351957/8/21elSEGAHAMA BEYA Isegahama

(Ozeki Kiyokuni)511941/11/20Urakaze

(Maegashira Teruzakura)451947/12/5Tateyama

(Ozeki Daiju)431950/3/19Wakafuji

(Maegashira Kazuhikari)501942/8/9Kiriyama

(Komllsubi Kurosegawa)421951/5/13ASAHIYAMA BEYA Asahiyama

(Komllsubi Wakafutase)511942/2/20Nakagawa

(Maegashira Fukunoumi)631930/4/28ONARUTO BEYA Onaruto

(Sekiwake Kotetsuyama)501942/7/9KISE BEYA Kise

(Maegashira Kiyonomori)581935/4/8Asakayama

(Komllsubi Aobayama)431950/4/3eTOKITSUKAZE BEYA Tokitsukaze

(Ozeki Yutakayama)551937/8/18Tatsutayama

(Maegashira Amanoyama)391954/1/1Edagawa

(Ozeki Kitabayama)581935/5/17Nishikijima

(Komusubi Futatsuryu)431950/2/28Kumegawa

(Maegashira Futatsuryu)631930/3/3Arashio

(Komllsubi Oyutaka)381955/3/29Fujigane

(Maegashira Tokibayama)491944/5/5KAGAMIYAMA BEYA Kagamiyama

(Yokozuna Kashiwado)541938/11/29Tatekawa

(Maegashira Zaonishiki)401952/9/3Katsunoura

(Sekiwake Tagaryu)351958/2/15

17

IZUTSU SEYAIzutsu

(Sekiwake Tsurugamine)641929/4/26Kasugayama

(Sekiwake Sakahoko)321961/6/18Shikoroyama

(Maegashira Sashunada)361957/6/7ISENOUMI SEYA Isenoumi

(Sekiwake Fujinokawa)461946/9/26KASUTOYAMA SEYA Kabutoyama

(Maegashira Daiyu)531940/5/27MINATO SEYA Minato

(Komusubi Yutakayama)451947/10/22TATSUTAGAWA SEYA Tatsutagawa

(Sekiwake Aonosato)571935/11/13SHIKIHIDE SEYA Shikihide

(Komusubi Oshio)451948/1/4MICHINOKU SEYA Michinoku

(Maegashira Hoshiiwato)371955/7/25eTAIHO SEYA Taiho

(Yokozuna Taiho)531940/5/291

Nishiiwa(Maegashira Daimonji)531940/2/26

1

Onomatsu(Sekiwake Masurao)321961/6/27Sanoyama

(Maegashira Onohana)351958/6/23Il

Odake(Sekiwake Ozutsu)371956/4/18'h

SADOGATAKE SEYASaclogatake

(Yokozuna Kotozakura)521940/11/26Hiclenoyama

(Sekiwake Hasegawa)481944/7/20Shiratama

(Maegashira Kotogatake)401952/9/24FUTAGOYAMA SEYA Futagoyama

(Ozeki Takanohana 1)431950/2/19Fujishima

(Komusubi Wakajishi)451948/6/4Onoue

(Maegashira Hidanohana)391953/12/13ARAISO SEYA Araiso

(Komusubi Futagodake)491943/11/15HANAREGOMA SEYA Hanaregoma

(Ozeki Kaiketsu)451948/2/16Tokiwayama

(Sekiwake Wakachichibu)541939/3/16Shibatayama

(Yokozuna Onokuni)301962/10/9Otowayama

(Komusubi Wakanoumi)621931/2/2OSHIOGAWA SEYA Oshiogawa

(Ozeki Daikirin)511942/6/20Shiranui

(Sekiwake Aobajo)441948/11/14ishonoseki

(Sekiwake Kongo)441948/11/18Hamakaze

(Maegashira Miyabashira)571936/1/22Kitajin

(Sekiwake Kirinji)401953/3/9Minatogawa

(Komusubi Daitetsu)361956/10/29KATAONAMI SEYA Kataonami

(Sekiwake Tamanofuji)431949/11/24MINEZAKI SEYA Minezaki

(Maegashira Misugiiso)371956/5/11MAGAKI SEYA Magaki

(Yokozuna Wakanohana II)401953/4/3NARUTO SEYA Naruto

(Yokozuna Takanosato)401952/9/29OGURUMA SEYA Oguruma

(Ozeki Kotokaze)361957/4/26MATSUGANE SEYA Matsugane

(Ozeki Wakashimazu)361957/1/12HANAKAGO SEYA Hanakago

(Sekiwake Daijuyama)341959/4/8

1

eTAKASAGO SEYA

Takasago(Komusubi Fujinishiki)561937/3/18

Oyama(Maegashira Daihi)401952/10/16

Hakaku(Maegashira Shimanishiki)641928/9/26

Furiwake(Maegashira Asaarashi)491943/7/8

TAKADAGAWA SEYA Takadagawa(Ozeki Maenoyama)481945/3/9

Yamahibiki(Komusubi Maenoshin)321961/4/17

NAKAMURA SEYA Nakamura(Sekiwake Fujizakura)451948/2/9

AZUMAZEKI SEYA Azumazeki(Sekiwake Takamiyama)491944/6/16

WAKAMATSU SEY A Wakamatsu(Ozeki Asashio)381955/12/9

KOKONOE SEYA Kokonoe(Yokozuna Chiyonofuji)381955/6/1

Jinmaku(Yokozuna Kitanofuji)511942/3/28

Kimigahama(Sekiwake Kitaseumi)451948/7/2

Tanigawa(Maegashira Shiratayama)491943/12/25

Hoklltoumi(Yokozuna Hokutoumi)301963/6/22

Nishikiclo(Maegashira Flijinoshin)321960/11/6

18

Greetings,The good news is that l've been able to view and

record the English-Ianguage version of NHK's sumotelecasts, starting with the january and March basho. l'mplanning eventually to announce via computer bulletinboards the availability of the tapes on a lending-librarybasis to whomever might be interested. But on the basisof the two basho l've viewed, l've decided to hold off myproject for the time being. And here's why:

It came as a bit of a surprise to me that NHK hadpassed over the expertise Sumo World's experiencedstaffwould have brought to the telecasts and instead hadinstalled as regulars on its program three people 1 hadnever heard of in the 16 years l've followed sumo closelyand who on the basis of their performances 1would ven­ture to sayare newcomers to sumo, albeit wise enough todefer to the occasional Sumo World staffmember par­ticipant when matters requiring real knowledge of sumoturn up. A trivial example would be "Akebono's yushodebut," which a regular started to discuss, but which aSumoWorldstaffmember tactfully turnedinto a discussionof "Akebono's yokozuna debut." Not until the panelistson the program are real sumo mavens delivering first­classquality comments, and not trustme-types learningas they go, will 1 want to make my tapes available ta mylending library circle. Incidentally, 1 am able to recordboth English and japanese signais on my tapes so that 1have access ta both the comments of NHK's experienc­edjapanese sumo reporters and their oyakata guestsand those ofour commentators on the regular English­version panel and can compare the two on a bout-by­bout basis at will.

1 was also appalled by the unprofessional indiffer­ence exhibited by the present panelists to the quality oftheir pronounciation of shikona and sumo terms. Amatch's kimarite is announced over the auditorium PA

system by a yobidashi who is selected for his ability toproject his voice and to enunciate clearly and forcefully,but our panelists' tin ears immediately parody the yobi­dashi's announcement with a fractured version of it, of­

ten enough making it sound like something quite differ­ent froni the officially announced one. 1remem ber oncebeing puzzled by a Culture Corner discussion of whatsounded like tohkoo EEnagay and having to rerun mytape several times before 1 realized that what was beingdiscussed was tokuinage. DaveyJones used to exaggeratehis Pan Am hyoshojo reading because he was playing upto his audience, which over the years responded withdelight and affection to his hilarious American-accentedjapanese. But the regulars on our panel are supposed tobe perfonning as professional telecasters and not as

19

clowns mangling the japanese language for laughs.Hinkaku is a word that's been used of foreign rikishisince they began to dominate the top ranks of sumo, and1 think ifs a word our regular panelists should look into.They might look into shokunin konjo (craftsman'spride), too. Ifs hard to believe, but it does seem to methat the English-Ianguage sumo program is being telecastby people just barely able ta get by in japanese and be­ing overseen by an NHK superviSOl"whose command ofEnglish probably leaves much to be desired. When weneed our panel to do is not to describe in excruciating,and frequently enough mistaken, detail what th~ vieweris seeing for himself right there on the screen, but toprovide us with select insights into japan 's kokugi, whichwill introduce us to the full splendor of the universe ofsumo and its action as weil as its ceremonies and rituals,

its history, its organization and the men and women whopeople it, its place in the life and spirit of japan and the

japanese. A tall order, but a reasonable one to expect ofprofessionals.

George FuriyaBrooklyn, NY

Dear Mr. Adams,

1look forward to receiving Sumo World, which assistsme in identifying new names as 1 listened to Radio japan

live broadcasts. ,By the way, earlier this month (Febru­ary) the Australian Broadcasting Corp. televised two hoursofhighlights ofa two-day tournament held in Nagoya lastyear. This was the first time sumo had been shown onAustralian TV in any form other than as a curiosity or achance for some cheap jokes about sumo wrestlers andtheir weight. Unfortunately, the Australian presenter whointroduced the show knew little about sumo. We were

told that the tournament was "the search for yokozuna"and that as a result ofwinning on Day 2, Kirishima wonthe coveted yokozuna title. Sumo fans in Australia can on­Iy dream about the prospect of sumo being presented ona regular basis by informed commentators, as in U.K. onChannel 4.

Chris Robertson

North Melbourne, AustraliaDeal' MI'.Adams,

My friends and 1 really enjoy Sumo World and lookforward to NHK's coverage of each on Sumo Digest. Keepup the good work and please consider writing and faxinga sumo column for the sports section of the HonoluluAdvertiser and the Herald Tribune on the Big Island. Wewould love to have the coverage.

Arlene Buklarewicz

Volcano,HawaiiDeal' Ms. Buklarewicz,

Sumo Digest is presented by TV Asahi-not NHK, butNHK is now competing with Sumo Digest by offering thesumo basho in Hawaii by satellite casts with no time lag.

Editor

Nagoya Basho Preview

Takanohana Favored to Win Yusho, Promotionto Yokozuna; Akebono, Waka to Vie for Second

Akebono vs. Futagoyama Beya: We saw the start ofwhat promises to be a pattern last tourney with Akebonoalmost beating what is beginning to be referred to as''The Futagoyama Meat Crinder.» The Nagoya Bashopromises to be no different, with ozeki Takanohana­making his first attempt at yokozuna promotion-havinga slight lead over Akebono in the race for the yusho. Wa­kanohana, taking his second shot at ozeki, has got to bea dark horse along with his rival in the race for the No. 2rank, Musashimaru.

Coing into the May Basho, Akebono had a slight leadover Takanohana due to his rank. This time around, their

positions are reversed. This reversaI comes about as adirect result of their performances in that basho-Iessfor what they did and more for what they didn't.

For much ofthat tournament, Takanohana didn't playhis brand of sumo. His tachi-ai (initial charge) was offand his sumo lacked the dynamic, powerful feel thatwe've come to expect from sumo's "Crown Prince." Oneof the basic tenets of championship sumo is that youplay the game on your opponent's side of the dohyo.Taka spent more than his share of matches fightingatthe edge on his side. Yet won-and won big.

What this tells us is that he's developed the kind of

ring sense that allows him to win even when he's off hisgame. When he's on, he's capable of doing to anyoneexactly what he did to Akebono in that 15th-day boutthat decided the outcome. There'lI be the added pressureof his first try at yokozuna promotion, but he's provenagain and again that he can rise to the occasion. Look for13 to 14 wins and his setting the last "youth» record leftto him-the youngest yokozuna promotion in history.

From Day One in May, Akebono was awesome. ln hissecond basho as a yokozuna, he set a personal best forconsecutive wins in a single tourney. Everyone thoughthe had it locked up and yet he lost badly to Wakanoha­na on the 13th day and didn't look any better on sen­shuraku either.

When he does his brand of sumo: keeping a closeeye on his opponent while moving forward hard andfast, both feet weil balanced beneath him, he's almost

unbeatable. When he gets a little tense or his charge isjust slightly off, he loses fast and big.

Unlike his ozeki rival, Akebono doesn't have a very

good build for sumo. His legs are too long and his hipsare too high. He knows this better than anyone and heknows exactly what he's got to do to cover these handi­caps. The problem is that this, coupled with his moredifficult draw in any given basho now, makes it even

harder for him to win the yusho consistently. However,

he's got a fighting spirit second to none, so look forHawaii's favorite son to stay in the race till the end. If hecan keep the level ofhis sumo high enough and do to theHanada brothers what he's done in the past, the NagoyaBasho will see his first yusho as a yokozuna. But more Iike­Iyhe 'II end up with the jun-yusho (second place) with 12­13 wins.

Wakanohana came up two wins short of ozeki promo­tion last time out, but his sumo du ring the first week gavefurther evidence that he's added plenty of power to thatalready impressive technique. A mental lapse cost himpromotion more than anything else in the Natsu Basho.

Waka's got an ozeki's skill, an ozeki's strength. Whathe's got to develop now is an ozeki's mental toughness.Like his younger brother, he's got the advantage of theFutagoyama "draw" working for him, so if the yokozunaand ozeki falter, he cou Id wind up with his second top­division title. If he doesn't go that far, Il impressive winsand four close losses-and he's an ozeki.

A lot of the comments you hear about Musashimaruthese days are pretty negative, but they are always pre­fixed bya great respect for his accomplishments. Theyare also an indication of just how much everyone is ex­pecting him to achieve. His inability to win in doublefigures last time out makes his chances for ozeki promo­tion in July very slim. Still, because of his size, strength,speed and developing technical versatility, we've got toput him one basho away from sumo's second-highestrank. His biggest handicap now is his inability to playthe game on the grand scale his physical tools say he'scapable of. That's a mental problem and overcoming it,in his case, isjust one basho away. The question is: Whichone?

Expect ozeki Konishiki and komusubi Kirishima tostruggle, with Sally making eight to protect his rank andKirishima not. Looking around for rikishi guaranteed tomaking it interesting, we can stop that search with theFutagoyama Beya trio ofTakanonami, Takatoriki and Wa­kashoyo.

Ali three of them are performing great sumo, withTakanonami showing the kind of aggressive, big-scalesumo that you'd expect from a rikishi his size. Takatorikiis back in the upper ranks after that nagging shoulderinjury finally healed. His recent engagement has alsohelped to get his fighting spirit firing on ail cylindersagain. Wakashoyo has the physical tools and great mentalattitude, so ifs a pretty safe bet that we'lI be seeing himback in sanyaku a lot sooner than later. (D. Shapiro.)

o -KonishikiS - Musashimaru

K - WakashoyoM 1- KotonishikiM 2 - KotonowakaM 3 - KyokudozanM 4 - KitakachidokiM 5 - MitoizumiM 6 - MainoumiM 7 - KushimaumiM 8 - Kotoinazuma

M 9 - KotofujiMIO- OginishikiMil - HigonoumiMl2 - KiraihoMl3 - TochinowakaMl4 - KasugafujiMl5 - AogiyamaMl6 - Hitachiryu

UllOOlllllllllllltlilU.Illiftm~J.lltmllJ!ll

It~~!~~fll~'l~ihl~f~1 \11 AAü ~. ~i~h

llll!~~i!ll~1kIlrh~

Makushita Division RankingsEast WestOhidake (6-1) 1 Asahiyutaka (5-2)Kiyonofuji (6-1) 2 Dairyu (6-9)*Wakatosho (4-3) 3 Godoriki (4-3)Kanesaku (4-3) 4 Ikemori (5-2)Ouchi (7-0) 5 Genkai (5-2)Haguroumi (6-1) 6 Mineyama (4-3)Kanechika (4-3) 7 Hoshitango (5-2)Asanonami (4-5-6)* 8 Daikiyama (4-3)Shigenoumi (5-2) 9 Kirinowaka (3-4)Shikishima (3-12)* 10 Owakamatsu (5-2)Mutsuhokkai (6-1) 11 Takanonada (3-4)Toyozakura (7-0)** 12 Asasoyo (2-7-6)*Kumao (3-4) 13 Goto (5-2)Hidenoumi (3-4) 14 Kurimoto (4-3)Yamanakayama (2-5) 15 Goken (4-3)

* DernotedfrornJuryo Div.** Promotedfrom Sandanme Div.

AKEBONOYokozuna-ES-AzumazekiH: 204cm. (6-8%) A: 24W: 212kg.(467)0-4; F-2 Top Rank: YTitles-3 Runnerup-2 K*-4

c~ May Record: 13-2(Y-R)Name: Chad RowanCareer Mark: 167- 88Marital Status: Single

* KinboshiProspects: Now competing in his third basho since promo­tion to yokozuna, Akebono must be more eager than ever towin the yusho. He will probably be the only rikishi capable ofderailing Takanohana's bid for yokozuna promotion atNagoya. 14 wins and the yusho. (C.N.)

TAKANOHANA 1. ~Ozeki-E , -tG5 - FutagoyamaH: 185cm. (6-%) A: 20W: 134 kg.(295)0-4; F-2; T-3 Top Rank: 0Titles-3 Runnerup-2 K-1May Record: 14-1 (O-C)Name: Koji HanadaCareer Mark: 160- 95Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Takanohana will probably be promoted toyokozuna if he can get 13 or more wins at Nagoya and avoidlosses to maegashira. Having won his third yusho in May,Taka only needs a strong jun-yusho performance. 13 or 14wins and promotion to yokozuna.

KONISHIKIOzeki-W5- TakasagoH: 185cm. (6-%) A: 29W: 260 kg.(573)0-4; F-5; T-1 Top Rank: 0Tilles - 3 Runnerup - 8 K- 2May Record: 7 - 8 (0)Name: Salevaa AtisanoeCareer Mark: 481-259Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Konishiki is kadoban again this lime. Nearing30, the veteran ozeki's chronically weak knees are continu­ing to deteriorate. He will be lucky to still be ranked at ozekiat the end of this year. However, his odds of survival this timeare bet!er than even. He should be able to get 8 or 9 wins.

1

WAKANOHANA IE., ~Sekiwake-E1 ..-tG5 - FutagoyamaH: 179cm. (5-10%) A: 22W: 118kg. (260)0-3; T-5 Top Rank: STitles -1 Runnerup -1 K - 2May Record: 10- 5 (S-O)Name: Masaru HanadaCareer MarK: 139 -1 09Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Wakanohana slipped to a 10-5 record in May,with three losses to maegashira. He is still too light at 118 kg.to achieve stability at ozeki, even if he is promoted. There isspeculation that he will be promoted in July if he wins 12 ormore bouts. But he is likely to fall short with 9 or 10 wins.

TAKANONAMI I.aSekiwake-E2 , III5 - FutagoyamaH: 195.5cm. (6-4%) A: 21W: 150kg.(331)F-1; Top Rank: STitles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 10- 5(K-F)Name: Sadahiro NamiokaCareer Mark: 83 - 67MaritalStatus: Single

Prospects: Takanonami's impressive 10-5 record in hissanyaku debut in May has boosted him to sekiwake. Takahas great potential and is finally beginning to develop asharper tachi-ai. Although his only sanyaku opponents willbe the Hawaiians, Taka may have a slight letdown. 8 wins.

MUSASHIMARU ~.a.Sekiwake-W1 •• AS- MusashigawaH: 191cm. (6-3%) A: 22W: 182kg.(401)F-1; T-1 Top Rank: STilles - 0 Runnerup -1 K- 0May Record: 9-6(S)Name: Fiamalu PenitaniCareer Mark: 96 - 54Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Musashimaru is back to Square One in hisquest for ozeki promotion, following a 9-6 record in May. Hehas achieved stability but at a level that is not adequate forpromotion to ozeki. He should do bet!er this time, with 11 or12 wins and one of the sansho awards.

No. of Wrestlers by Division

Makunouchi 40

Juryo

26

Makushita

120

Sandanme

200

Jonidan

390

Jonokuchi

144

Total

920

* AIl banzuke photos by Clyde Newton and Gerry Tofl22

•••

••

TAKATORIKI ._ ..•Komusubi-E •• ~S - FutagoyamaH: 180cm. (5-10%) A: 25W: 145kg.(320)0-1; F-3; T-1 Top Rank: STitles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 2May Record: 11- 4 (M6- TlName: Tadashige KamakariCareer Mark: 136-120Marital Status: Engaged

Prospects: Takatoriki made a dramatic comeback in Maywith an 11-4 record, coinciding with his engagement toTaiho Oyakata's youngest daughter. His chronic shoulderinjury seems to have healed and his self-confidence hasreturned. However, he's unlikely to win more than 7-8 bouts.

KIRISHIMAMaegashira 1-ES-IzutsuH: 187cm.(6-1Y2) A: 34W: 136kg.(300)0-3; F-1; T-4 Top Rank: 0Titles-1 Runnerup-7 K-2May Record: 8-7 (M2)Name: Kazumi YoshinagaCareer Mark: 408 - 362Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Old warrior Kirishima broke out of his down­ward spiral in May with an 8-7 record that included upsetsover both ozeki. At 34, his once-awesome tsuri is ail butgone and he can no longer resist a determined tsuppariassault. However, the former ozeki should be able to win 8.

MISUGISATO "_•• '-4tlGMaegashira 2-E 'U~5 - FutagoyamaH: 185cm. (6-%) A: 30W: 151kg. (333)F-1 Top Rank: KTilles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 4May Record: 7- 8 (M1)Name: Koji OkamotoCareer Mark: 227 - 238Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Though he has the advantage of having to faceonly three sanyaku opponents, Misugisato's performancehas not improved since the inauguration of the new Futago­yama Beya. At 30, he is one of the oldest rikishi in Makuno­uchi, and unable to go beyond komusubi. 6-7 wins.

OGINOHANA .~,ltk.l~Maegashira 3-E -r~ ~5 - DewanoumiH: 188cm.(6-1%) A: 25W: 142kg. (313)Prizes-O Top Rank: M2Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 9-6(M10)Name: Akikazu KoiwaiCareer Mark: 117-133Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Oginohana's performance in May was perhapsthe best of his career. He only won 9 bouts, but he defeatedWakanohana and put up a superb, though losing effort,against Takanohana. Perhaps his brother's strong debut inMakunouchi has spurred him to train harder. 4 or 5 wins.

23

WAKASHOYOKomusubi-W5 - FutagoyamaH: 181cm.(5-11'14) A: 27W: 161 kg.(355)F-2 Top Rank: STitles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 7 - 8 (S)Name: Yoichi BabaguchiCareer Mark: 59 - 61Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Wakashoyo looked like a future ozeki in Marchwith a 10-5 record in his first basho at sekiwake. He was farless impressive in May with 7-8, but nevertheless the poten­tial remains. He may upset one of the Hawaiians, and he hasa good chance to achieve kachi-koshi. 9 or 10 wins .

KOTONISHIKI ~ A6Maegashira 1-W 'IfS- ••5 - SadogatakeH: 176.5cm. (5-9'14) A: 25W: 131kg.(289)0-4; F-3; T-3 Top Rank: STitles-1 Runnerup-3 K-2May Record: 8 - 7 (M3)Name: Hideyuki MatsuzawaCareer Mark: 212 -163Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Koto was supposed to be in top shape in May,but he only narrowly achieved kachi-koshi. As he is increas­ingly unstable, the odds that he will live up to his early pro­mise and reach ozeki have dimmed. The darkest of darkhorses, but he should be able to win 10 bouts.

KOTONOWAKA ~dtltMaegashira 2-W '!iFS - SadogatakeH: 191.5cm. (6-3'14) A: 25W: 164 kg.(362)Prizes-O Top Rank: M2Tilles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 8 - 7(M7)Name: Mitsuya KonnoCareer Mark: 113-112Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kotonowaka is still very much of a questionmark. With more dedication to keiko and a sharper tachi-ai,Koto could be a formidable ozeki candidate. Though he didnot display much improvement in May, he put up a goodeffort, showing fighting spirit. Maybe 6 or 7 wins this time.

KYOKUDOZAN 111.•••Maegashira 3-WS-OshimaH: 182cm.(5-11V2) A: 28W: 103kg.(227)0-2; F-2 Top Rank: KTilles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K-1May Record: 4 -11 (K)Name: Kazuyasu HataCareer Mark: 194- 211Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kyokudozan slipped with a 4-11 record atkomusubi in May. As he weighs only just over 100kg., hemust rely on superior speed and technique. At 28, he is at hispeak and will undoubtedly return to sanyaku again. 8 winsand one or two major upsets in his bouts with top rankers.

TOKITSUNADA JI" IiMaegashira 4-E II'S- TokitsukazeH: 188cm.(6-1%) A: 23W: 180kg. (397)Prizes-O Top Rank: M4Titles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 10- 5 (M13)Name: Hironori YoshiokaCareer Mark: 44 - 46Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Tokitsunada has the potential to be a sanyakurikishi. However, he will be competing against the joi-jin forthe first time in July. He has a fairly well-balanced physique,but lacks the technique to upset the sanyaku. He should beable to get only 3 or 4 wins this time.

KITAKACHIDOKI QIIMaegashira 4-WS-IsenoumiH: 183cm. (6-0) A: 27W: 148kg. (326)Prizes-O Top Rank: M4Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: Ab. (M4)Name: Hayato KugaCareer Mark: 125-145Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kitakachidoki was absent in May, but has re­tained his rank as he was injured on the dohyo in May. He isa fairly solid mid-maegashira, but lacks the strength to holdhis own with the sanyaku. He may still not be fully recoveredfrom the injury he sustained in March. Only 5 wins.

Prospects: Daishoho has gone as far as komusubi, but isconsistently strong only in the lower maegashira ranks. Hehas a good de-ashi and speed, but can also be clumsy. Hemay achieve one or two upsets of the komusubi or sekiwake,but won't threaten the yokozuna and ozeki. 5 or 6 wins.

MITOIZUMI •••.••Maegashira 5-W ~S- TakasagoH: 193.5cm. (6-4) A: 30W: 180kg.(397)0-1; F-6 Top Rank: STitles-1 Runnerup-2 K-OMay Record: 10- 5 (M14)Name: Masahito KoizumiCareer Mark: 297- 277Marital Status: Single

Prospects: It is exactly one year since Mitoizumi won theyusho at Nagoya in 1992. ln the period since, his knees haveweakened, and as a result, his tachi-ai is far less sharp thanit was in July 1992.Though on the brink of demotion to Juryoearlier this year, he rallied with 10 wins in May. 8 wins.

K-O

DAISHOHOMaegashira 5-ES- TatsunamiH: 187cm.(6-1V2) A: 26W: 145kg. (320)F-1 Top Rank: KTitles - 0 Runnerup-1May Record: 8- 7 (M9)Name: Masami MurataCareer Mark: 89 - 91Marital Status: Single

DAISHOYAMA ~.~Maegashira 6-ES- TatsunamiH: 181.5cm.(5-11%) A: 27W: 181kg. (399)F-1 Top Rank: M2Titles - 0 Runnerup -1 K-1May Record: 9-6(M12)Name: Naoki YamazakiCareer Mark: 122 - 133Marital Status: Married

Prospects: With a chronic lower-back problem, Daisho­yama has trouble maintaining a strong de-ashi. He has goodbalance for a rikishi of his weight, but he is too slow toconsistently pose a threat to the sanyaku. He can easilyachieve kachi-koshi as a low maegashira. 6 or 7 wins.

MAINOUMI _.I!!!Maegashira 6-W JIIJ •S - DewanoumiH: 171cm. (5-7%) A: 25W: 95 kg. (209)T-2 Top Rank: M6Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 10-5(M15)Name: Shuhei Nagao

, Career Mark: 79 - 86Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Mainoumi achieved his first double-digit kachi­koshi in May with a 10-5 record. He will likely be at hishighest rank to date in July and is certain to have a muchmore difficult time than in May. At 95 kg., he must rely totallyon his impressive range of techniques. 4 or 5 wins.

TAKAMISUGIMaegashira 7-ES- FutagoyamaH: 179cm. (5-10%) A: 32W: 145kg. (320)

" Prizes-O Top Rank: KTitles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K-1May Record: 5 -1 0 (M2)Name: Takashi KaneoCareer Mark: 382 - 447Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Takamisugi is the oldest rikishi in the newFutagoyama Beya at 32, but is not showing any signs ofdecline. It will not be surprising if he eventually becomes theoldest rikishi in sumo. Despite an injured hand in May, hemanaged to win five bouts. 8 or 9 wins if his hand is OK.

KUSHIMAUMI ~ f!lL~Maegashira 7-W ~P.!fS-DewanoumiH: 187cm. (6-1V2) A: 27W: 191kg.(421)F-1 Top Rank: M1Titles-O Runnerup-O K-2May Record: 6 - 9 (M4)Name: Keita KushimaCareer Mark: 167 -176Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Kushimaumi has long had the potential toreach sanyaku, but injuries and bad luck have plagued himthis year. At nearly 28, he must make an ali-out effort nowrather than risk never going beyond No. 1 maegashira. Hehas good balance for a rikishi of his size. 8 wins.

24

TOMOEFUJI f!a~Maegashira 8-ES-KokonoeH: 188.5cm. (6-2) A: 22W: 147kg.(324)F-1 Top Rank: KTitles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 3-12(M1)Name: Toshihide KurosawaCareer Mark: 103- 96Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Tomoefuji's bad knee appeared to have deteri­orated in May, as he collapsed with a 3-12 record despitehaving achieved kachi-koshi in much the same condition inMarch. Tomoefuji does not do enough keiko, largely as theresult of his knee injury, and it shows. 8 to 10 wins.

KOTOINAZUMA .~.aMaegashira 8-W T 1tq«S- SadogatakeH: 181cm. (5-11%) A: 31W: 130 kg.(287)Prizes-O Top Rank: M3Titles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 8-7(M12)Name: Shoji TamuraCareer Mark: 192- 213Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kotoinazuma is 31, but like Takamisugi heshows no signs of slowing down. Despite very limited tech­nique, he has excellent lighting spirit and trains exception­ally hard for a rikishi 01 his age. Il will be more difficult lorKoto to achieve kachi-koshi this time. 6 or 7 wins.

Prospects: Toyonoumi is the heaviest Japanese sekitori at203kg., but he tends to be too sluggish, with a lacklustertachi-ai.

TOYONOUMIMaegashira 9-ES- FutagoyamaH: 189cm. (6-2%) A: 27W: 203kg. (448)Prizes-O Top Rank: M1Titles-O Runnerup-OMay Record: 5 -1 0 (M3)Name: Shinji HamadaCareer Mark: 175- 200Marital Status: Single

K-O

KOTOFUJI • e~Maegashira 9-W ~ •.•S- SadogatakeH: 191cm. (6-3) A: 28W: 141kg.(311)F-2 Top Rank: STilles-1 Runnerup-O K-2May Record: '7 - 8 (M7)Name: Takaya KobayashiCareer Mark: 206- 229Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Kotofuji put up a line effort against the Hanadabrothers in May, but could still manage only a 7-8 record atNo. 7 maegashira. He is unlikely to ever again show thestrength and determination of his yusho performance in July1991, but may survive a more years. 7 or 8 wins.

AKINOSHIMA ••••Maegashira 10-E lit••.•S- FutagoyamaH: 176cm. (5-9%) A: 26W: 144 kg. (318)0-5; F-5; T-1 Top Rank: STitles - 0 Runnerup -1 K-14May Record: Ab. (M10)Name: Katsumi YamanakaCareer Mark: 230- 207Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Akinoshima, having missed the Natsu Basho,will be competing at his lowest rank since 1988. He has atendency to lose to lower-ranked maegashira and under­went surgery lor an arm injury just two months ago. How­ever, he should have a breeze at this low level. 11 or 12 wins.

TERAO ~ ilMaegashira 11-ES-IzutsuH: 185.5cm. (6-3;4) A: 30W: 114kg.(251)0-1; F-2; T-1 Top Rank: STitles-O Runnerup-O K-5May Record: 5-10(M5)Name: Yoshilumi FukuzonoCareer Mark: 346 - 389Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Terao is still as popular as ever, and his lightingspirit is still impressive, but at 30 the power in his tsupparihas faded markedly in the last year, as has his stamina. Hemay have a difficult time surviving in Makunouchi to the end01 this year. At this level, he can still get an 8-7 record.

25

OGINISHIKI "JIMAMaegashira 10-W .•••S- DewanoumiH: 185cm. (6-3;4) A: 22W: 134 kg.(295)Prizes-O Top Rank: M10Tilles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 9-6(M16)Name: Yasutoshi KoiwaiCareer Mark: 9 - 6Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Oginishiki made a very impressive Makunouchidebut, winning 9 bouts and almost taking one 01 the sansho.He may have more promise than his brother Oginohana, buthe is still only a greenhorn in Makunouchi. With improvingtechnique and lighting spirit, he will win 6 or 7 bouts.

HIGONOUMI -.,.Maegashira 11-W ••S- MihogasekiH: 183cm. (6-0) A: 23W: 133kg.(293)Prizes-O Top Rank: M9Titles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 7 - 8 (M9)Name: Naoto SakamotoCareer Mark: 16-14

~ Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Higonoumi is still something 01 an enigma,quielly but steadily rising on the banzuke with little ado. Hehad the first make-koshi of his career in May, with a respect­able 7-8 record, not surprising given how far he has come inthe last year. May make sekiwake in the future. 8 wins..

KOTOBEPPU \I.aMaegashira 12-E5 - SadogatakeH: 178cm.(5-10) A: 27W: 168kg. (370)F-1 Top Rank: M5Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 5 -10 (M5)Name: Yohei MiuraCareer Mark: 23 - 21Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Il was not surprising that Kotobeppu collapsedwith a 5-10 record at No. 5 maegashira, his highest rank todate, in May. As a typical tsuki-oshi rikishi, a leg injuryweakens his tachi-ai and makes him almost a pushover lorsanyaku rikishi. However, his injury has healed. 9 wins.

KENKO 4d IlMaegashira 13-E ••• JI:5 - TakadagawaH: 189cm. (6-2'14) A: 26W: 135kg. (298)Prizes-O Top Rank: M6Titles - 0 Runnerup - 0 K- 0May Record: 5-10(M6)Name: Satoshi HoshimuraCareer Mark: 18- 27Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kenko had a poor 5-10 record in May, lollow­ing a 10-5 mark as a low maegashira in March. At this stage,it is still too early to determine whether or not he has long­term staying power in Makunouchi. As he is not likely to lacethe sanyaku this time, he a chance to win 7 or 8 bouts.

DAIZENMaegashira 14-E5 - NishonosekiH: 189cm. (6-2'14) A: 28W: 145kg.(320)Prizes - 0 Top Rank: M4Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 7- 8 (M11)Name: Norio TakahashiCareer Mark: 65 - 70Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Daizen is an under-achiever. Basically a strongrikishi, he wou Id be able to hold his own in the upper Maku­nouchi ranks with a consistently strong de-ashi. Unlortu­nately, he largely relies on delensive sumo and cannot holdhis own above this level. 7 or 8 wins.

MINATOFUJI *~~Maegashira 15-E - ••••5- MinatoH: 186cm.(6-1) A: 25W: 152kg.(335)Prizes-O Top Rank: M15Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 12- 3(J8-C)**Name: Takayuki MiuraCareer Mark: 0 - 0Marital Status: Single

Prospects: The pre-basho keiko at the new FutagoyamaBeya obviously paid off lor Minatoluji since he has linallymade it to the top division alter a long struggle in Juryo.But getting kachi-koshi in Makunouchi may be even moredifficult. 6-7 wins.

** Promoted from luryo Div.

KIRAIHO 1••Maegashira 12-W5- TakadagawaH: 188cm.(6-1%) A: 27W: 151 kg.(333)Prizes-O Top Rank: M4Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 8 - 7(M14)Name: Ryozo UchimaCareer Mark: 73 - 77Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kiraiho has been in a slump in recent basho,having lallen to the low maegashira ranks, where he hasonly barely broken even. He has the power and potential togo higher than his Takadagawa Beya stablemate Kenko. Ilhis tachi-ai is sharper, he should win 8 bouts again.

TOCHINOWAKA ..­Maegashira 13-W5- KasuganoH: 191cm. (6-3'14) A: 31W: 156 kg.(344)0-2; F- 3; T-1 Top Rank: STitles-O Runnerup-1 K-3May Record: 6 - 9 (M8)Name: Kiyotaka KasedaCareer Mark: 292-274Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Tochinowaka looked washed up in May, thelirst time in recent memory that he has lailed to achievekachi-koshi as low as No. 8 maegashira. With his hopes 01achieving ozeki gone and starting to age at 31, he may soonbe struggling to survive. He can still be expected to win 10.

KASUGAFUJ 1 --e-­Maegashira 14-W ~S-AjigawaH: 176cm. (5-9'14) A: 27W: 138 kg.(304)F-1 Top Rank: M1Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 5-1 0 (M8)Name: Shoki IwanagaCareer Mark: 163- 197Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Kasugaluji has lerocious tsuki-oshi, but he ishampered by his lack 01 height and olten poor balance. He isjust barely surviving in Makunouchi and is unlikely to golurther than he has already been. However, he is still quiteyoung at 27 and should be able to win 7 or 8 bouts.

AOGIYAMA X ••••Maegashira 15-W &5 - TokitsukazeH: 181cm.(5-11) A: 23W: 144kg.(318)Prizes-O Top Rank: M13Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 9- 6 (J2)**Name: Hideki TerakiCareer Mark: 6 - 9

~ Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Aogiyama appears to be too strong lor Juryoand too green lor Makunouchi. One 01 the more promisingrikishi in Tokitsukaze Beya, he may eventually go as lar asTokitsunada. At this stage, he will have a difficult time stayingin Makunouchi. 6 wins and demotion back to Juryo.

26

TOMONOHANA • , ••Maegashira 16-Es-TatsunamiH: 174cm.(5-8%) A: 29W: 112kg.(247)Prizes-O Top Rank: M16Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: 8- 7 (J1)**Name: Nobuya NarimatsuCareer Mark: 0- 0Marital Status: Married

Prospects: Tomonohana is only one of two shin-nyumakuthis basho. Little more than a year has passed since hisdebut in 1992, but he is already 29. He will probably have arelatively short, but exciting Makunouchi career. He haslairly good technique, tenacity and lighting spirit. 8 wins.

HITACHIRYU Ba.Maegashira 16-WS- OshiogawaH: 179cm. (5-10%) A: 23W: 133kg. (293)Prizes-O Top Rank: M14Titles-O Runnerup-O K-OMay Record: Ab.(M16)Name: Eiichi WakisakaCareer Mark: 7- 8Marital Status: Single

Prospects: Hitachiryu was sidelined in the Natsu Bashowith injuries to both knees sustained when he was momen­tarily knocked unconscious on senshuraku in the HaruBasho. He may still be in sub-par condition in July and willthus have a difficult time achieving kachi-koshi. 5-6 wins.

Basho Schedule for 1994

Basho Sehedule1993

Nagoya Basho: July 4-18,

Aki Basho: Sept. 12 - 26,

Kyushu Basho: Nov. 7 - 21,

Nagoya

Tokyo

Fukuoka

Hatsu Basho (Tokyo)Ticket Sale: Dec. 4, '93Banzuke: Dec. 24, '93Basho: Jan. 9 - 23

Natsu Basho (Tokyo)Ticket Sale: April 9Banzuke: April 25Basho: May 8 - 22

Aki Basho (Tokyo)Ticket Sale: 'Aug. 20Banzuke: Aug. 29Basho: Sept. 11 - 25

Haru Basho (Osa ka)Ticket Sale: Feb. 6Banzuke: Feb. 28Basho: March 13 - 27

Nagoya BashoTicket Sale: March 17Banzuke: June 20

Basho: July 3 -17

Kyushu BashoTicket Sale: Qct. 1Banzuke: Qct. 24Basho: Nov. 6 - 20

Study Session for JudgesThe Sumo Kyokai held an extraordinary study session lor

judges after the Natsu Basho in which they were urged tochallenge the gyoji's decision in close bouts to avoid mis­judgements. The session came in the wake of a bout onsenshuraku between ozeki Konishiki and sekiwake Wakano­hana where the five judges didn't question the gyoji's calithat Konishiki won by kotenage. A vedeotape replay showedKonishiki's right hand seemed to have touched down aninstant before he hurled Waka down at the edge of thedohyo. The Kyokai received hundreds of telephone callsarguing that Wakanohana should have been declared thewinner. With the loss, Waka dropped to a 10-5 tourneyrecord and sumo observers said that Waka would have hada slim chance of promotion to ozeki if he had won 11 bouts.Chief judge Kagamiyama (ex-yokozuna Kashiwado) offeredhis resignation to Dewanoumi Rijicho (ex-yokozuna Sada­noyama) over the incident, but it was refused.

Fukunosato as Wakamono-gashiraFukunosato of Takasago Beya, who spent one basho in

Juryo in 1989 and suffered a losing record of 2-5 atMakushita 3 in the Natsu Basho, is retiring to become awakamono-gashira. The 32-year-old rikishi will receive adanpatsu-shiki retirement ceremony in the basement 01 theKokugikan on July 24th.

Another ex-Juryo rikishi, 65-year-old Tsugaru-umi ofKasugano Beya, is retiring as a wakamono-gashira, but willstay in sumo since Kasugano Oyakata has hired him tobecome the stable manager. He has been a wakamono­gashira for the past 36 years and some say that he is thebest one ever to hold that position in the Sumo Kyokai.Wakamono-gashira are sumo's handymen and are respon­sible for taking care of young rikishi.

Jonidan 26 Kamiyama, the oldest active rikishi-38 in July,is also retiring. The Dewanoumi Beya veteran entered sumoin January 1971 and climbed as high as Makushita 17.

27

San Jose JungyoCommenting on the San Jose jungyo, the San Jose

Mercury-News hinted that the two-day tourney mighthave been rigged to guarantee a crowd-pleasing show­down between two American rikishi. Reporter JodyMeachem noted: "It was a match made in Shinto heaven,perhaps the Japanese Foreign Ministry, or at least theP.R. Department of the Sumo Association."

The article quoted Asahi Shimbun sumo reporter EijiYoshioka: "1 don't think there were any arrangements, butthe Sumo Kyokai and the rikishi were conscious of put­ting on a good show." But another Japanese journalistwas more outspoken, claiming that the matches hadbeen arranged to maximize the odds that Akebono andKonishiki would face each other in the grand finale. Hesaid: "To the rikishi, this is just a circus. Wait till theirbasho in Hawaii. 1 bet Konishiki will get to win that one."

Prince Sumihito, the second son 01 Emperor Akihito, andPrincess Kiko watch the sumo action during the Natsu BashoIrom the imperial box. DewanoumiRijicho is seated behind theimperial couple readyta answer anyquestionsthey mighthave.

** Promoted from luryo Div.

Juryo Division RankingsEAST

WAKANOYAMA lo ~J3 JJJuryo No. 1S- Musashigawa P- WakayamaH: 178cm. (5-10) W: 149kg.(329)May Record: 9 - 6 (J3)Name: Hiroshi Nishizaki A: 21Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/88Top Rank: M9

HAMANOSHIMA ;11 .J ~~

Juryo No. 2S-Mihogaseki P-KumamotoH: 179cm. (5-10%) W: 126kg.(278)May Record: 8 - 7(J2)Name: Keishi Hamasu A: 23Techniques: Yorikiri, tsukiotoshiSumo Entry -1/92Top Rank: J2

TOCHINOFUJI ~ J3 MJuryo No. 3S- Kasugano P- FukuokaH: 179cm.(5-10%) W: 188kg.(415)May Record: 4-11 (M11)*Name: Tatsuyuki Kusano A: 23Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry-3/85Top Rank: M11

ASAHIZATO -JI!! 1r.Juryo No. 4S- Oshima P - OsakaH: 188cm. (6-2) W: 129kg.(284)May Record: 8 - 7 (J5)Name: Kenji Masuda A: 27Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry-3/81Top Rank: M14

NAMINOHANA ;lt.J n;Juryo No. 5S- Futagoyama P- AomoriH: 178cm. (5-10) W: 131kg. (289)May Record: 4-11 (M13)*Name: Kazuhiko Kudo A: 24Techniques: Tsuki,oshiSumo Entry - 5/84Top Rank: M7

TATSUHIKARIJuryo No. 6S - Tatsunami P- HokkaidoH: 192cm. (6-3Y2) W: 184kg.(406)May Record: 8 - 7(J7)Name: Yoshimitsu Ishibashi A: 23Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry-3/85Top Rank: M6

WEST

TAMAKAIRIKI .f:;Ji IJ

Juryo No. 1S-Kataonami P- TokyoH: 183cm.(6-0) W: 141kg.(311)May Record: 9 - 6 (J3)Name: Yukio Kawabe A: 27Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/82Top Rank: M8

ENAZAKURA ,~. Jj~ .wJuryo No. 2S- Oshiogawa P- GifuH: 180cm. (5-10%) W: 136 kg.(300)May Record: 9 - 6 (J4)Name: Toru Hayakawa A: 33Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3177Top Rank: M1

KYOKUGOZAN -JI!! ~ a.L

Juryo No. 3S-Oshima P-ChibaH: 180cm.(5-10%) W: 171kg.(377)May Record: 8- 7 (J4)Name: Taizan Kimura A: 24Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/84Top Rank: M9

HANANOKUNI n;.J 00

Juryo No. 4S- Hanaregoma P- OsakaH: 184.3cm. (6-Y2) W: 145kg.(320)May Record: 8- 7 (J6)Name: Akihiro Noguchi A: 33Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry-3175Top Rank: M1

MUSOYAMA ~ * a.L

Juryo No. 5S- Musashigawa P-IbarakiH: 183cm. (6-0) W: 151kg. (333)May Record: 9- 6 (J9)Name: Takehito Oso A: 21Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry -1/93Top Rank: J5

KAIOJuryo No. 6S- Tomozuna P-FukuokaH: 185cm. (6-%) W: 145kg.(320)May Record: 4-11 (M15)*Name: Hiroyuki Koga A: 20Techniques: Nage, yoriSumo Entry - 3/88Top Rank: M15

* Demoted from Makunouchi Div.28

29

EAST

KOTOGAUME ~ 7 ~Juryo No. 7S-Sadogatake P- ToyamaH: 180cm.(5-10%) W: 175kg.(386)May Record: 8- 7(J8)Name: Satoru Kitayama A: 29Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3179Top Rank: S

TOCHITENKO ~ J;. ~Juryo No. 8S- Kasugano P- GunmaH: 180cm.(5-103A) w: 143kg.(315)May Record: 9-6(J11)Name: Mamoru Shimakata A: 26Techniques: Uwatedashinage, yoriSumo Entry-3/82Top Rank: J8

ASANOWAKA ~ ~ ~Juryo No. 9S- Wakamatsu P- Osaka

\ H: 175.5cm. (5-9Y2) W: 134kg.(295)May Record: 9-6(J12)Name: Takehiko Adachi A: 23Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/92Top Rank: J4

ZENSHINYAMA ft.ï 1! J.J

Juryo No. 10S- Takadagawa P- YokohamaH: 181cm. (5-11%) W: 130kg.(287)May Record: 8 - 7(J11)Name: Ryota Akimoto A: 27Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry -11 182Top Rank: J2

YUTAKAFUJI J! ~ ±Juryo No. 11S- Tokitsukaze P- NiigataH: 186cm. (6-1%) W: 179.5kg.(396)May Record: 5-10(J5)Name: Osamu Suzuki A: 23Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/86Top Rank: J5

RIKIO h ~Juryo No. 12S- Naruto P- NaraH: 189cm. (6-2Y2) W: 137kg. (302)May Record: 5 - 2(Mak. 3)**Name: Takeshi Inoue A: 20Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry - 3/88Top Rank: J12

DAISHI Â f.Juryo No. 13S- Oshiogawa P-IbarakiH: 182cm. (5-11Y2) W: 150kg.(331)May Record: 6-9(J10)Name: Nobuyuki Takano A: 24Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry - 3/84Top Rank: J10

WEST

KOTOTSUBAKI ~ ~!Juryo No. 7S - Sadogatake P- OkinawaH: 188.3cm. (6-2) W: 142kg. (313)May Record: 5-10(J1)Name: Katsuyuki Togashi A: 32Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-9176Top Rank: M3

KIRINISHIKI ~ tlJ $*Juryo No. 8S - Kagamiyama P- GunmaH: 188cm. (6-2) W: 170kg.(375)May Record: 7 - 8 (J6)Name: Toshiro Yamada A: 30Techniques: Yori, tsuriSumo Entry-3178Top Rank: M2

KOMAFUDO ~ ~ ti

Juryo No. 9S - Hanaregoma P- ToyamaH: 182cm.(5-11Y2) W: 147kg.(324)May Record: 8 - 7 (J10)Name: Kazuto Araki A: 27Techniques: Yori, tsuriSumo Entry-1/84Top Rank: M13

HOSHIANDESU ï.~ ttl JtJuryo No. 10S - Michinoku P- ArgentinaH: 192cm. (6-3Y2) W: 167kg. (368)May Record: 6-9(J7)Name: Jose Flores A: 25Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-5/88Top Rank: J7

TACHIHIKARI Â 7J j\:;

Juryo No. 11S- Tomozuna P-ChibaH: 195cm. (6-4Y2) W: 147kg. (324)May Record: 5-2(Mak.1)**Name: Osamu Kawahara A: 29Techniques: Yori, nage

j Sumo Entry-7/82Top Rank: M15

CHOKAIRYU .~ :4i nJuryo No. 12S - Kagamiyama P- YamagataH: 181cm. (5-11%) W: 171kg. (377)May Record: 5 - 2 (Mak. 4)**Name: Hidetoshi Sato A: 28Techniques: Tsuki, oshiSumo Entry-3/81Top Rank: J12

UMENOSATO ~ <J) ~

Juryo No. 13S - Takasago P-IbarakiH: 190.6cm. (6-3) W: 172kg. (379)May Record: 5 - 2 (Mak.5)**Name: Shoji Koizumi A: 29Techniques: Yori, nageSumo Entry-3/80Top Rank: J13

** Promoted from Makushita Div.

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WRESTLER

Akenono (R)

Takanohana (C)Konishiki

Musashimaru

Wakanohana (0)

Wakashoyo

Takanonami (F)

Kyokudozan

Misugisato

TomoefujiKirishima

TakamisugiKotonishiki

ToyonoumiKushimaumi

Kitakachidoki

Terao

KotobeppuKenko

Takatoriki (T)

KotofujiKotonowaka

Tochinowaka

KasugafujiDaishoho

HigonoumiAkinoshima

Oginohana

Tochinofuji *1

Daizen

DaishoyamaKotoinazumaTokitsunada

Naminohana *2

Mitoizumi

Kiraiho *3

Mainoumi

Kaio *.Oginishiki *5

Hitachiryu

RANK

Yokozuna

Ozeki

Ozeki

Sekiwake

Sekiwake

Sekiwake

Komusubi

Komusubi

Mae #1

Mae #1

Mae #2

Mae #2

Mae #3

Mae #3

Mae #4

Mae #4

Mae #5

Mae #5

Mae #6

Mae #6

Mae #7

Mae #7

Mae #8

Mae #8

Mae #9Mae #9

Mae #10Mae #10Mae #11Mae #11Mae #12Mae #12Mae #13Mae #13Mae #14Mae #14Mae #15Mae #15Mae #16Mae #16Juryo

Results of

1993 TokyoNatsu Basho

*1 œ Aogiyama*2 ® Kototsubaki

• Aogiyama• Hamanoshima

*3 @ Hamanoshima*4 CD Kototsubaki

o Aogiyamao Hamanoshimao Tamakairiki• Wakanoyama

*5 0· Kototsubaki

"HOSHITORI­

HYO"

Wrestlers are listed bothvertically and horizon­tally, the latter listingserving as referenceto the opponents ofeach horizontally-listedwrestler.A 0 means a win and• a loss. The numberrefers to the tournamentday in which the boutwas fought.

o=win}• = loss horizontally

• = win} verticallyO=loss