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Writer's pictureKatie Johnson

Sumo Saturday: A Cheeky Escapade

Don't lie, the only reason you clicked on THIS blog post was for the lovely cover photo. Who would have known you would be into such an Olympic-level, culturally-enhanced sport as Japanese Sumo Wrestling?!


Well before I get to that, I'm forcing you to read about the start of our weekend first. Gotta keep you on your toes!


Friday, November 18, 2022:


As soon as I got out of school on Friday, Bryan and the pups picked me up and we headed to Isanoura Park for a 3-mile walk! With the leaves changing colors and the cooler temperatures, the pups were so excited to run free around the lake and Bryan was happy to get out and enjoy this fall weather! Since Isanoura Park is normally pretty empty this time of year, we let the pups off-leash! While we got in our 3-miles, I'm sure the pups ran more like four!



Once we got home, both pups got baths and Christmas collars to begin the Christmas season! Then they spent the rest of the night (and most of the next day like this:






Saturday, November 19: Fukuoka Sumo Tournament


Now what you came here for...


Saturday afternoon, we left the pups to recoup from their exciting adventure, and Bryan and I boarded a bus bound for Fukuoka! A few months back, I booked our tickets to see a legit Sumo wrestling tournament through ITT. As we neared the arena, Eriko san (our English-speaking guide) passed out our tickets and explained a little about the traditional sumo wrestling we were about to watch.



The first thing we learned is that sumo matches are called "bouts," not "fights." Eriko explained that we would get to see 15-20 bouts during our time at the tournament. Each bout begins with a short introduction of the two wrestlers and then the ceremonious circling of the opponents and the dramatic stomping (said to scare off demons.) Then the two sumo wrestlers step out of the dohyo (fighting ring), bow, wipe their foreheads (to cleanse the mind), and then toss a handful of salt into the circle (to purify the dohyo and to protect them from injury.)


As the two men enter the ring, they make eye contact, squat, and wait for the gyoji (referee) to begin the match. The gyoji wears a traditional kimono and hat that was popular over 600 years ago to symbolize their important role in each match.


What shocked us most was that each sumo bout lasts 3-20 seconds, and ends when any part of the opponent's body touches the ground or steps out of the dohyo. If you blink, you may miss the entire match!



As you flip through the photos below, pay attention to the wrestlers' slick-back hair buns and their belts. Eriko taught us that sumo tournaments hire special Tokoyamas to style the sumo wrestlers' hair. These hair stylists are specially-trained to comb and apply the special hair oil, called bintsuke-abura, to keep the wrestlers' hair in place during their intense, short bouts! These slick-back buns are a distinguishable symbol of sumo.


Now for what I know you all have been waiting for: the belts. The mawashi is the distinctive wrestler loincloth-like belt that is 2 feet wide and 10 meters long. Once properly folded, the mawashi wraps around the wrestler's waist 4-7 times and is secured with a tight knot. Yep, the only thing securing this fabric to these hefty bodies is a nice, Japanese knot (and some prayers.)


Eriko said it's been twenty years since a mawashi "fell off" during a sumo bout. It happened in 2000 at a lower-level match to a poor soul names Asanokiri. Eriko said for thousands of years, this was never a big deal because women weren't allowed to watch the matches, and only became a sporting penalty when European Christians arrived in Japan. Damn white people.


No worries, we didn't witness any mawashis falling off during our tournament. It wasn't that kind of sporting event!



Bryan and I enjoyed the three hours of bouts at the Fukuoka Sumo Tournament! With constant chu hais and bags of kettle corn in hand, we enjoyed some lighthearted "verbal betting" on the matches with some of the other Americans sitting with us!


While attending a sumo tournament was never on our list of must-dos, we knew we couldn't live in Japan for two years and NOT see this historic national sport!


What I could have lived without? All the cheeks. But we just pulled a Cindy Kimble and said "it's art!" (or in this instance, it's culture!)



I hope you enjoyed my "cheeky" humor!


Until next time,


--Katie

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