Declassifying Sumo in Ryogoku
Think of sumo and most people picture two overweight men squaring up on an elevated ring, a few seconds off pushing and shoving, crowds cheering and then applause as one of the men is pushed out of the ring or floored. This is the norm at tournaments, but the art of sumo, deeply enshrined in tradition and ShintoThe traditional animistic belief system of Japan. It was the official state religion of Japan until the postwar period. ritual, needs to be understood to be appreciated. Training and preparation for tournaments are vital for any aspiring wrestler, yet few no much about what this entails.
On arrival at the stable at Ryogoku we were greeted by gasps, groans and thuds as the training wrestlers went about their training routines. The stable comprises an elevated wooden viewing area for visitors, trainers or fellow wrestlers. The training area is a round sand floor with several upright wooden beams. The wooden beams act as a type of ‘punch bag;’ some of the wrestlers were hurling themselves against them. There is also a kitchen – first prize for guessing how much food they serve to maintain the bulk of their prodigies.
In the ring, several red faced wrestlers practiced various charges, throws and grips. Most of the practice bouts were over quickly, usually with one of the wrestlers shoved against the wall or being upended and thrown on the sand. Though this was a training session it seemed a very light hearted affair and more like a Sunday morning get together. The wrestlers chatted and joked constantly, despite the practice matches involving some vigorous physical exchanges.
Despite the casual nature of the training session, a strict hierarchy exists in and outside of the stable. The stable is run by an oyakata, a retired wrestler. Oyakata are the only people allowed to train wrestlers. The younger and lower ranking wrestlers or rikishi are expected to perform chores at the stable, such as assisting with cooking preparing the bath for the higher ranking wrestlers or sekitori. Rikishi are expected to start training at 5:00am compared with a 7:00am start time of the sekitori. The ranking hierarchy is maintained in order of precedence for bath times and meals. After the morning training, only sekitori are allowed to eat breakfast; rikishi eat their first meal at lunch. Rikishi are not allowed to go out in the evening unless they do so to accompany a sekitori as his servant. Rank also determines sleeping arrangements; rikishi sleep in communal dormitories while sekitori have their own rooms at the stable. Life for new rikishi is difficult and is typically devoted to chores and serving the senior sekitori. Not all recruits succeed and many rikishi drop out at the early stages of their training.
There are currently around 50 stables for the roughly 700 wrestlers in the Japan. The world of the bizarre, so common in Japan, extends to sumo as well. The sumo association banned senior wrestlers from driving their own cars, following an accident involving a rikishi.
On the web:
Nihon Sumo Kyokai Official Grand Sumo Home Page, http://www.sumo.or.jp/eng/
Sources for article
http://www.jref.com/glossary/sumo.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumo
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