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SOS - Shinjinrui on Sumo |
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Chris Gould
Wrapping up his look at increasing the popularity of sumo, Chris Gould caps a series the NSK would do well to refer to.
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Sumo Souvenirs |
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Mark Buckton
Souvenirs are a part of every sport and sumo is no different - or is
it? A look at collectibles and the downright trashy, the bona fide
versus the unproven.
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Rikishi of Old |
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Joe Kuroda
Joe Kuroda's latest look at times past focuses on former makunouchi man Dewagatake.
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Eric Evaluates |
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Eric Blair
Eric takes a no-nonsense look at the claims of fixed bouts in the Japanese media.
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Rikishi Diary |
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Mark Kent
Mark Kent - English pro-wrestler and amateur heavyweight sumotori -
takes us through the first month or so of his training and preparation
for the various European events lined up in in 2007.
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Heya Peek |
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Chris Gould
SFM's Chris Gould was in Japan for the Hatsu Basho and popped along to
the new Shikoroyama Beya to give SFM an online exclusive peek into
sumo's newest heya.
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SFM Interview |
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Mark Buckton
Mark interviews Mark - Buckton on Kent that is as Mark Kent, the UK's
only active heavyweight amateur answers a few questions on his own
recent entry into the sport.
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Photo Bonanzas |
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Sumo Forum stepped in to take the weight off the shoulders of SFM as
far as Hatsu went so we could sit back, relax, enjoy the sumo and take
a few more select pics you won't see anywhere else.
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Hatsu Basho Summary |
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Lon Howard
Lon wraps the Hatsu Basho and chucks in a few bits on the rush of henka
that threatens to sully the good name of at least one foreign ozeki.
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Sumo Menko |
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Ryan Laughton
Sumo cards of old brought to life by expert collector Ryan Laughton. None of your BBM here.
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Haru Ones To Watch |
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Carolyn Todd
Carolyn ponders and puts fingers to keys on the ones to watch come March and the Haru Basho.
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Kimarite Focus |
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Mikko Mattila
Mikko's latest look at sumo's kimarite offers unequalled analysis and in depth explanations.
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Amateur Angles |
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Howard Gilbert
Howard looks at the 'sumo factory' of lore - Nichidai.
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Kokugi Konnections |
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Todd Lambert
Click on Todd's bimonthly focus on three of the best the WWW has to offer.
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Fan Debate |
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Facilitator - Carolyn Todd
Moti Dichne comes back for more and takes on Bradley Sutton on the subject of 'Modernize the heya - yea or nay?'
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SFM Cartoons |
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Benny Loh & Stephen Thompson
In this issue's cartoon bonanza, sit back and sample Benny's artistic offerings.
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Sumo Odds & Ends |
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SFM's interactive elements - as always includes Henka Sightings, Elevator Rikishi and Eternal Banzuke!
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Let's Hear From You |
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What was it that made you a sumo fan? Ryan Laughton - sumo fan and menko expert reveals all.
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Readers' Letters |
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See what our readers had to say since we last hit your screens.
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Sumo Quiz |
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The Quizmaster
Answer the Qs and win yourself a genuine banzuke.
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didn’t
look very hard for an Upset of the Basho – and so be it – but it’s
gotta be Dejima’s blow-out of Asashoryu on Day 3. All the rest
were lacking in shock value and significance. This one induced at
least one “Holy Toledo” (mine), maintained a mathematical yusho race
for a while, and Asashoryu’s ensuing ‘un-bow’ to Dejima helped to fuel
the ‘un-praise’ from the Dai Y members.
Lest Kitanoumi Rijicho and the others be seen as Cromwellian
Protectorates at worst or tiresome curmudgeons at best for the cool
reception afforded Asashoryu on the occasion of his 20th yusho, it must
be said that the yokozuna, at this point in his career, does reflect
the aura of one who finds his charge to be amusingly easy. Taken
alone, this can’t be faulted, but his naturally evident hubris combined
with a diminished presence in his
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own personal
training and in setting examples at degeiko, finally punctuated by
withholding proper respect on the dohyo, effectively dumbs down sumo
ethos by conveying that champions are born, not made, and that respect
is a one-way street. The glare he directed at Dejima could have
come from one who had just lost a yusho by being henka’d. How can
one say, “How dare you?” after being vanquished, fair and square?
On that occasion, looking inward – not outward – is a core quality of
sumo.
Speaking just for me – when I first saw sumo, if the torikumi had been
served up without the shrill, ornate vocalizations and costumes of the
gyoji and yobidashi, along with garnishments such as chikara-mizu,
shikiri, dohyo-iri, etc., and all the hinkaku imagery fusing it
together, it would have never become more than a transient curiosity
for me –
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certainly
nothing to ever stir passion. If that’s my take, I can imagine
how these men must feel about it. Unlike most kokugi (national
sport), sumo not only exudes a culture, but also strives to confirm
it. When the yokozuna, through action and inaction, allowed this
quality to be visibly obscured – as the kokugi’s most conspicuous
stewards, they felt a public obligation to act with haste. There
are more than personal legacies at stake for these men – there is the
legacy of Ozumo itself – and so it wasn’t remarkable that they felt a
sense of urgency to respond as they did.
And so it’s on to Osaka, where hopefully someone may massage Hakuho’s toe and cleanse his mind…or is it the other way around??
Home
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