Sumo Fan Magazine

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.	Photo by John Gunning		stands of the Ohama Sumo Arena and the sumo itself could, at times, have been seen as playing second fiddle to the very act of uniting those participating countries but didn’t – quite – until perhaps the very end of the day. When the event started, following a brief opening ceremony speech by Mr. Isao Sato of the ISF, Japan drew first blood by defeating Thailand in the women’s lightweight competition. Meanwhile, around the stadium, athletes were warming up, attempting to steady butterflies and awaiting their call to the battle. Watching through the various weight divisions, individual and team competitions, men VS men and women VS women, very rarely did a rikishi or coach take away from the atmosphere by expressing open displeasure or confusion at having lost, although without a doubt, several of the Asian and central or eastern European nations, were out solely to win and went all out to achieve this goal. Yet, as much of the morning was taken up with the preliminary bouts, knockouts of individual competitors and clarifying Next Home
	Kakizoe, Kotomitsuki and Dejima (Kotomitsuki and Dejima being former Emperor’s Cup winners) – just 3 of the domestically bred stars of today’s makunouchi division – and sekiwake Kotooshu perhaps the most famous of the foreign contingent to have started off on the ama dohyo. Not all is about going on to fame and relative fortune in Japan’s national sport, however. The vast majority of male competitors will, because of age or personal concerns, never even contemplate entering ozumo. For the women, the issue is a non-starter of course. Irrespective, with the world governing body of sumo opening	the recent world championships in central Japan by including mention of a desire to see friendships form and international cooperation enhanced, such ideals will no doubt see the amateur game move further onto the world stage in the years to come, and should Tokyo or even Fukuoka secure the 2016 Olympic Games, as is their intended goal, the world would, as they say, be their oyster. Back to the present, though: as around 30 nations came together in competition on Sunday October 16th, lands as far apart as South Africa and Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand, became one in the