Nagoya Nears
Eric Blair
As Nagoya nears, EB gets a head start on the pack by focussing on points of interest, past and present surrounding sumo's hottest basho

Rikishi of Old
Joe Kuroda
The 42nd yokozuna Kagamisato falls under the JK microscope

Heya Peek
Barbara Ann Klein
Kokonoe-beya and the Chiyo Boys

SFM Interview
Mark Buckton
SFM's Ed-in-Chief interviews Estonian up and comer Baruto

Sumo 101
Barbara Ann Klein
SFM's Editor looks at all the twists and turns involved in the tsunauchi-shiki and adds a photo bonanza to boot

Photo Bonanza
See the Natsu
Basho and Kokonoe-beya photo bonanzas

Natsu Basho Summary
Lon Howard
Lon gives us his Natsu Basho summary, along with the henka sightings results

Lower Division Rikishi
Mikko Mattila
Mikko Mattila lets you know what is going on down below the curtain

Nagoya Ones to Watch
Mark Buckton
MB's mixed bag of things to look out for in Nagoya

Kimarite Focus
Mikko Mattila
Our man Mikko takes us on a tour of several defensive oriented kimarite

Amateur Angles
Howard Gilbert
The first of our regular column pieces on the amateur sumo scene from a man who knows more than most

Sumo Game
Bruce Rae
For a look at his very own: PTYW (Pick The Yusho Winners)

Sumo in Print
Barbara Ann Klein
SFM's Editor reviews the newly published biography of Akebono, Gaijin Yokozuna – but sees it as more than just a biography

Kokugi Connections
Todd Lambert
Check out Todd's bimonthly focus on 3 of the WWW's best sumo sites around

Fan Debate
Facilitator – Lon Howard
Sumo author Mina Hall and long long time fan Jim Bitgood discuss how to make sumo more entertaining – if such a concept is even necessary

SFM Cartoons
Benny Loh & Stephen Thompson		  
Sit back and enjoy the offerings of sumo's premier artists

Let’s Hear From You
What was it that
made you a sumo fan? James Vath in rural Japan lets us in on his gateway to the sport

Readers’ Letters
See what our readers had to say since we last went out

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

  profit. I think it's admirable that sumo stays true to its roots and refuses to “sell out”. They know that what they represent is much more than just sport or entertainment. I love walking down the streets of Ryogoku with the smell of bintsuke in the air, passing small family-owned stores and restaurants and seeing rikishi with their chonmage (topknots) wearing yukata. Where else can you feel like you've taken a ride in a time machine and traveled back to an ancient world? It would be a massive blow to that environment to suddenly see corporate sponsorship, commercials, and huge vendor stands. The bottom line is, sumo is different. It can not be compared and should not change to resemble any other sport or organization in the world.
As far as rikishi showing emotion, it's simply not a trait associated with sumo. I do like to see individual personalities like Takamisakari and Mitioizumi. Their enthusiasm for the sport makes it easy to root for them. But I think their actions would be inappropriate if either of them reached yokozuna. That sacred rank requires the title holder to a much higher standard. Think back when Takanohana was active. There was an enormous aura that followed this man
wherever he went. He was so zen-like …stoic and impressive. He wouldn't have to say a word, yet one would gasp and tremble just watching him walk by. I think that aura brings more goose bumps than any salt throwing or fist pumping antics. He was incredibly strong in the ring, yet so soft spoken and humble out of it. There is a Japanese saying that the tallest strand of wheat always bends the lowest. Part of being a sumo wrestler is having dignity, in victory or defeat. I would hate to see sumo become like pro-
wrestling just so wrestlers could show more emotion or to sell more tickets. Pro-wrestling or WWE is full of wild characters, yet it is incredibly shallow with an enormous amount of arrogance. It's, basically, the complete opposite of sumo and not at all appealing to me.

JB: If someone like Takamisakari became yokozuna, he might have to change some of his actions on the dohyo – but then again, maybe not! Could someone have run out his dog and pony show while on the dohyo in the 1950s or 1960s and gotten away with it? Not on your life, they couldn't have. Why can he get away with it now, then? The reason is that no culture stays unchanged forever – all cultures evolve and
so has Japanese culture. Sumo is a part of that and so it has changed right along with everything else. We shouldn't be surprised when things start happening on and off the dohyo in the future that fans would be aghast at today. That's life.

In old issues of Sumo World from the late 1970s, you'll see that Chiyonofuji, still a brash maegashira piker, was chastised for his Katayama-like shiko during the shikiri. They said he should concentrate more on his sumo and less on his showmanship. Imagine that today!

Remember when all the mawashi were black or dark purple? In the 1950s, could you have imagined burnt orange or lime green? Sometime soon you'll probably see burnt orange and lime green on the same mawashi and people will say, that's cool! (Well, maybe not that combination, but then I'm color blind.) If people were to start calling sumo ‘cool’, would that be a bad thing or a good thing?

Have the changes that have occurred to sumo over the past 50 years harmed the ritual or tradition we still see today? I

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