Amateur Sumo – the sport as it should be
Mark Buckton
Sakai World Sumo Champs – not all about winning

Las Vegas Koen
Joe Kuroda
Our man reports from the fight capital of the world

Rikishi of Old
Joe Kuroda
A look at a rikishi of yesterday with Kotozakura – our man for October

Heya Peek
John Gunning
John’s early morning dash to Azumazeki-beya & report on TKOTU

SFM Interview
Katrina Watts sits down with SFM’s Mark Buckton to discuss amateur sumo

Photo Bonanza
SFM’s best yet – Aki Basho/ Las Vegas / Amateur World Champs / Azumazeki-beya visit – seen nowhere else

Aki Basho Review
Lon Howard
Lon gives us his Aki Basho summary, along with the henka sightings results, and his take on the tournament while ‘gem’ of the basho takes a break

Lower Division Rikishi
Mikko Mattila
Mikko Mattila returns to cover lower division ups and downs

Kyushu Basho Forecast
Pierre Wohlleben & Mark Buckton
Pierre predicts the Kyushu Basho banzuke while Mark previews the ones to watch next time out

Sumo 101
Barbara Ann Klein
Discovers and explains amasumo & ozumo variations

Kimarite Focus
Mikko Mattila
Mikko once again walks us through his chosen kimarite

Minusha
John McTague
John’s unique bimonthly view of news from outside the dohyo

Online Gaming
Zenjimoto of ‘game fame’ covers some of the very best sumo games around – his own!

Kokugi Connections
Todd Lambert
Todd’s focus on 3 of the most interesting online sumo sites today

Fan Debate
Is the limit on foreign rikishi fair? See what our debaters had to say

SFM Cartoons
Benny Loh
In the first of our cartoon bonanzas, sit back and chuckle at Benny Loh’s offerings

Let’s Hear From You
What was it that made you a sumo fan? Gernobono tells all

Readers’ Letters
See what SFM readers had to say since our last issue

Sumo Quiz
The Quizmaster
Answer the Qs and win yourself next basho’s banzuke.

  incorporation of hordes of invading ‘foreigners’.

LH: Let me again point to where we have agreement. As I stated in my Aki Basho Summary, neither the Japanese people in general nor the Kyokai in particular are racist (And how could one logically differentiate between the two?). Let’s just bury that garbage where it belongs – in the world’s deepest hole! You are right; the issue is too complex to cast in such crude terms. But I feel it is also too complex to refer to the foreign rikishi as invaders, hordes and the like. These men have had to learn a new language and lifestyle, and adapt to unfamiliar food and culture thousands of miles away from their homes and families – and have done so with dignity … those receiving ‘correction’ have eventually responded to it. Sumo has not been tarnished by their presence but it has been changed, in that the sumo has improved because of them. For whatever reason, the Japanese – whose lifestyle was for centuries perfectly suited for their national sport – now are less attracted and less adaptable to it than the rikishi from abroad. This cannot be denied – look at the dwindling attendance at jungyo and the fact that most of the prominent Japanese rikishi under age 30 were college rikishi who didn’t
have to pay their dues by coming up the ranks. Ex-sekiwake Tochinowaka once was quoted as saying that sumo is not only a harsh, but also a painful existence – he said it very simply: “Sumo hurts!” The rikishi from Mongolia and eastern Europe (for example) are at this time much more adapted to endure all of that than are the natives, and the reality is that if it were not for them, the quality of sumo today would be barren, indeed. Foreigners are not inherently stronger or better – they just look that way because right now, they’re more willing to do the gritty work that is sumo. With this rule limiting their selection, the difference in perceived strength will grow even more. Isn’t it clear that every heya boss has a list of the hottest foreign prospects? They know who all the blue-chippers are, and when their next turn to select one comes around, they’ll go right to the top of the list. This means that when these can’t-missers rocket up the banzuke, it will make the Japanese appear even weaker and make the marquee lights around this rule flash even brighter. Whatever the Kyokai’s motivation, the proper course is to inspire the next generation of Taka-Wakas to show their faces and join the battle. They can do it if they throw their energy in that direction instead of
building moats. If it was ever deemed necessary for sumo to preserve a Japanese face, ex-Yokozuna Tochinoumi should have never called Jesse’s number in the first place back in 1964. To change the rules after the fact and force-feed bad sumo to its fans looks very bad and I fear will extract a hefty toll.

ST: Lon, you have some good points, especially about the willingness of foreign imports to get stuck into the “nitty gritty” of heya life! ... but “sumo has improved because of them (the foreigners)” ? ... gasp! I wonder about that. The best, true sumo is still shown by the Japanese, for sure. Some new foreigner kids on the block, like Kotooshu, may show bravado and employ his long reach (despite tendencies to revert to shallow winning), and Asashoryu may show aggressive, dominating force, but for me, Japanese sumo historically had more style, more indefinable classy “essence”. So, has it all been diluted already? Are the fans seeing less than they should see? Something different? Something which will be marketed ‘Japanese’ but which has lost it? Or something marketed as changed but still the same? Like the guy selling fish where I live. Cod has gone, No more left to be supplied. But

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