By Hank F. Miller Jr.
Rules? How do rikishi live? How do they start? How do I get tickets to see it? I tried to keep the question list basic, but the answers fairly complete. I also tried to limit the use of sumo jargon, so that the text would read like English, not Japanese. Though there is one exception; I used rikishi throughout because that is the term the men use who compete in and run professional sumo strongly prefer the
One that they feel best describes them (the Chinese characters used to write it literally mean \”strong warrior\”).
When I started watching sumo back in the 1970s the rikishi seemed to come and go mysteriously, like belted Loch Ness monsters; because sumo had no single season, I had trouble getting a temporal handle on it.
Rikishi, however, are creatures of habit, regulating their lives according to a crowded schedule that change little from year to year. First and foremost, they must appear in six annual fifteen-day tournaments or basho, one approximately every two months:
*The Hatsu Basho(First Tournament)in Tokyo, January
*The Osaka Basho in March
*The Natsu Basho(Summer Tournament) in Tokyo, May
*The Nagoya Basho in July
*The Aki Basho(Fall Tournament)in Tokyo, September
*The Kyushu Basho held here in Fukuoka in November
Tournaments are also called by the months in which they are held; for example, the January Tournament of Ichigatsu Basho. Rikishi would thus seem to have it easier than other sports professionals; Their annual schedules are only 90 days long. In the Edo Period, they even had it easier; they appeared in only two official tournaments, both usually lasting only ten days. Rikishi were known as fellows who only had to work twenty days per year.
But modern rikishi have little time off. In addition to daily practice and regular tournaments, they take part in provincial tours, or exhibition bouts and overseas trips.
In between, they make personal appearances, meet with supporters and attend sumo functions.
One reason why new ozeki (champions) and Yokosuka (grand champions)do so poorly in the first tournament after their promotion is that they are completely exhausted from the endless round of celebrations. No one, however, has yet to party himself out of an entire tournament.
To Be Continued:
Warm Regards From Kitakyushu City, Japan
more When East meets West
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