Sumo!

I went to one of the six grand sumo tournaments held in Japan each year. I did as much research as I could to understand what was going on but there is still so much I have no idea about.

Mural Outside of the Ryogoku Kokugikan

Wrestler's banners & drum tower near the main entrance

There are 9ish rank classes in Sumo with the highest honor being Yokozuna. Only 62 wrestlers have attained this title in the last 300 years. They're treated like rock stars in Japan. Once a Yokozuna, always a Yokozuna. If he begins to lose people will throw the mat's they're sitting on onto the Dohyo (ring) and he's expected to retire. Each rank gains more privileges. For example, higher rank guys have more elaborate hair styles. Before each rank class begins their bouts, they're introduced onto stage like this.

Before each match the gyogi (referee) opens a fan & introduces the names of the rikishi (wrestlers) by singing in a super high voice. He's also subject to a rank structure. For example, low rank guys are barefoot on the dohyo while high rank guys wear sandals. He also belts out cheers of encouragement during the match.

The stage itself is very symbolic with the Tsuriyane suspended over the dohyo representing a Shinto shrine and 4 colored tassels hanging from each corner representing the four seasons. It's made of special clay and covered with a thin layer of sand.

A lot of the wrestlers have eczema & other skin irritations.

When the rikishi are called to the dohyo, they go to the toku-dawara on opposing sides and do some crazy stretches. Then they go to their respective corner & drink water from the mizu-oke to cleanse their bodies.

Next they grab a handful of salt from the shia-kaga and throw it on the dohyo for purification.

After this they will face off at the shikiri-sen and do some more stretching. Near the end of the night, they'll build up the anticipation of the crowd by facing off and then going back to the corner and repeating the process two or three times. It's like dribbling the ball 14 times during a free throw, getting ready to shoot and then going back to dribbling again.

Finally, at the wave of the gyogi's fan, two nearly naked, 350 pound men crash into each other. I feel bad for this poor guy.

The object is to make any part of your opponents body touch the ground, or shove them out of the ring. Some matches only last 3 seconds, some last longer.

The look on this woman's face is priceless. I'm pretty sure he flattened a judge.

Bigger bouts will be interrupted by advertisements.

The end. This one's for you, ladies.