Sumo-Wrestlers primed to rock London in five-day tournament
LONDON :Japan's top sumo wrestlers will roll into London's Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday evening for the start of a five-day tournament to showcase their ancient sport heaving under the weight of tradition, ritual and huge, semi-naked men.
More than 40 elite rikishi (wrestlers) flew in at the weekend with a supporting cast of organisers, referees and sumo elders (managers) ahead of the Grand Sumo Tournament - the first event of its kind held outside Japan since one hosted at the same venue in 1991.
Eleven tons of clay and earth have been hauled into the centre of the hall to create a "dohyo" platform, with a ring marked out on it by bales of rice pounded into shape and into place with beer bottles.
The tournament has been more than a decade in the making, overseen by sumo elder Hakkaku, the chairman of the Japan Sumo Association, who won the 1991 event when he himself was a "Yokozuna" or Grand Champion, the highest rank in the sport.
Hakkaku has been keen to move the sumo world, with its near-monastic system of "stables" where wrestlers of all abilities live and train together full-time, on from a series of bullying, gambling and other scandals over the last few decades.
GRAND CHAMPION ONOSATO
He has been helped in this effort by the rapid ascent of the latest Grand Champion, the wildly popular Onosato, a gifted 25-year-old with power, balance and a squeaky-clean image, and Japan's first home-grown champion in almost a decade.
Many of the elite wrestlers, who go by their fighting names, are from Mongolia, while ticketholders in London will also have the chance to cheer on two Ukrainians - Aonishiki and Shishi.
After a ring-blessing ceremony on Wednesday afternoon, all the niceties will have been observed and the wrestling can begin.
Those in the costly cushion-only seats around the ring will need to brace themselves for more than just excitement, as 150-kg rikishi being hurled off and into the first few rows of the crowd are a near-daily occurrence at the full 15-day tournaments held every two months in Japan.
While the wrestlers in their long silk belts appear to spend huge amounts of time staring each other down and stamping their feet as they gear up to fight, the bouts themselves are often over in a flash.
TOURNAMENT WIDE OPEN
From the highly skilled Midorifuji - the lightest wrestler in London weighing a mere 114 kg (18 stone) - right the way up to Onosato, who tips the scales at 191 kg, it is anyone's guess who will win the tournament.
As each wrestler only fights once a day it is likely there will be a playoff on Sunday to decide the winner.
Late ticket hunters may be out of luck, though. A traditional banner thanking fans for filling every seat in the venue is already hanging on a wall at the Royal Albert Hall.
