Sumo Fan Magazine

Brothers in Sumo –
part one
Brian Lewin
Brothers no longer active on the dohyo come under the SFM microscope

NHK & the Ozumo
English Broadcast
Mark Buckton
A visit to NHK, years of watching the show and the opinions of our Ed-in-Chief

Hanging With the Rikishi
Barbara Ann Klein
Barbara Ann Klein recounts her experiences with the “boys” in a pictorial diary series

Rikishi of Old
Joe Kuroda
A look at a rikishi of yesteryear with Chiyonoyama – our man for December

Sumo Exhibit at the
Edo-Tokyo Museum
Barbara Ann Klein
SFM’s Editor takes in the exhibit celebrating 80 years of the Japan Sumo Association at this famous Tokyo museum

Heya Peek
John Gunning
John’s early morning trip to Hakkaku – a visit that almost didn’t happen

SFM Interview
Dave Wiggins sits down
with SFM’s Mark Buckton to discuss the broadcast scene – and maple syrup

Photo Bonanza
What a collection – All-Japan Sumo Tournament, Hakkaku-
beya visit and sumo exhibits at the Edo-Tokyo Museum

Kyushu Basho Review
Lon Howard
Lon gives us his Kyushu Basho summary, along with the henka sightings results, and his take on the year in brief

Lower Division Rikishi
Mikko Mattila
Mikko Mattila covers lower division ups and downs

Hatsu Basho Forecast
Pierre Wohlleben & Mark
Buckton
Pierre predicts the Hatsu Basho banzuke while Mark previews the ones to watch for in January

Sumo 101
Eric Blair
Eric explains all you need to know and then some about the Kokugikan building – the mecca of sumo

Kimarite Focus
Mikko Mattila
Mikko walks us through his chosen kimarite in expert fashion

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

Online Gaming
Eric Blair
For the lowdown on Guess the Kotomitsuki – baby of SFM’s John Gunning

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

Fan Debate
Intra heya bouts –
OK or not? See what our debaters had to say

SFM Cartoons
Stephen Thompson
In the second of our cartoon bonanzas, sit back and enjoy ST’s offerings

Let’s Hear From You
What was it that made you a sumo fan? American Todd Defoe 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.

Elevator Ride

by Lon Howard

that number, only Kyokushuzan and Tokitsuumi will possibly end up in the top 20 but Hokutoriki will probably make it if he gets to 30 basho (now at 21).

Right now I have only been able to study those who retired around 1992 and later. So going back just that far and looking at everyone who has appeared in makuuchi at least once, all in all, 53 rikishi have met the qualifications to be ranked. There are 32 active rikishi who are not yet qualified, and 33 retired men who did not meet the qualifications.

After the October data was published, another staff member and I remarked that Kyokushuzan would not be toppled from #1 in our lifetimes. Well, all we can say right now is, “How soon we forget!” When the study of ex-maegashira 1 Higonoumi showed him shattering Shoes-On’s CEI, both men’s numbers were recalculated to make sure they were correct. Soon, more and more retired rikishi moved him further down the list, and finally came Mainoumi, who imploded even Higonoumi’s mark. What makes his CEI so much higher is the fact that he changed direction on the banzuke 82% of the time compared to 71% for

Next Home

In October a study was introduced to look at each rikishi’s ‘elevator factor’, to see if there was a way to measure how rikishi compare with each other in terms of their propensity to go up and down the banzuke elevator. The factor, known as the Combined Elevator Index, is the result of combining the average number of banzuke spots per basho a rikishi moves over his career with the percentage of times he reverses direction on the banzuke (See the October issue for the complete explanation). A set of rules was established, and then a list of all the currently active rikishi who qualified to be studied in accordance with those rules was published. Among those active rikishi, it was seen that Kyokushuzan headed the list, followed by Hokutoriki. With that as an introduction, it was time to pursue my real interest – to publish a list of the top elevator men of all time.

So a study was begun of all the retired rikishi, starting with the most recently retired at the time (Kotoryu) and working backwards. After looking at more and more people, it

seemed some changes were in order. First, the idea of publishing a top 100 list was scrapped because it was felt fans would only care about those at or near the top, so for now we’re going with the top 20. Everyone’s data is still on file in case one would have a question about a particular rikishi, but only the top 20 will be published.

Secondly, the minimum number of consecutive qualifying (to be ranked) basho was increased from 15 to 30. After all, the factor that really has allure is not so much that a rikishi can go up and down the banzuke at dizzying speeds, but that he can do so while still maintaining a consistent standard of excellence for a meaningful length of time. Fifteen was much too low a number for that. The fact that some of the rikishi remained in the top division for over 50-60 basho with just one or no appearances in sanyaku was a factor in settling on at least 30 basho.

These rule changes mean that currently only 15 active rikishi qualify to be ranked, but more will qualify as time goes on. Of