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I remember the old jungyos where we fans lucky enough to watch were so taken aback by the mere fact that we were in the presence of the guys that none of us gave a rat's ass if it was staged or not. There is a big difference between a sumo fan and a first time "let's see them fat asses " fan. I thought that the whole thing was actually about bringing sumo to people who never saw it and never would if it wasn't brought to other parts of the world and wouldn't know or care if this was staged.. As a PR event, this was huge. Anyone watching sumo for a while should know that there is no way this is for real or expect it to be real, just like any jungyo isn't for real. Nobody needs to get hurt because somebody wants to see blood. Maybe back in the nineties there was real blood etc., but these days, nobody in the Kyokai in his right mind will do anything to endanger their assets. Just watching Oonosato saying goodbye in English got me more excited than any Tochinoshin tsuridashi. https://youtu.be/l1EiAg2RgVs?t=11920

Here are some pictures from various danpatsu-shiki following the Aki basho. Asadoji was the youngest active rikishi when he joined Takasago-beya just over a decade ago. Along with stablemate Asahabataki, he became a high school graduate in June after studying with Seisa International High School, a correspondence school in Kashiwa, Chiba prefecture. Chiyotenfu joined one basho later than Asadoji and was the second-youngest rikishi. In Nagoya last year he suffered a knee injury which required ACL reconstruction surgery, so he dropped down to the Jonokuchi division where he won the yusho in March this year. I've read he has a job in the construction industry lined up for the future. Tsubakifuji was the oldest active Heisei-born rikishi and spent over 21 years on the dohyo, joining what was then Ajigawa-beya under former Yokozuna Asahifuji. Kyokutaizan was out of action for over a year due to a serious neck injury. He has fully recovered physically and was able to return to the keikoba recently to work up a sweat, but couldn't overcome his worries and so decided to move on to a second path. And finally to Isenoumi-beya for Hakuyo's danpatsu-shiki.

Commenting on sumo is not easy as a lot of things happen in a very short space of time. A typical Tigerboy commentary would go something like this: "Go on... get him... Oh sh*t... aaaaargh... buggerit"

The 'Easy' Yokozuna?

Haha sorry about this! Argh. It was just me and another person from the office running everything. It was really manic. I made a mistake too, writing "kensho-mawashi". Today we have more people helping, so it should be better and more stuff should go in. I'm in the process of sharing the list of kimarite and other stuff with other BBC colleagues. It really feels surreal!

Great stuff! The event will be live streamed entirely by the BBC in the UK, and on Pluto TV elsewhere. Hiro Morita and English sports commentator James Richardson will do the live commentary. I (!) will be involved in the online coverage and will do my best to make all BBC stuff as accurate and less banal as I can. Other than Kotozakura, also Kusano, Meisei and Tomokaze won't be there. Oshoumi and Kotoeiho will replace them.

I've seen a whole bingo card of his favourite bits somewhere on the internet. Something like this:

Beware- the bouts are fixed!

There's indeed quite a few in the audience who haven't gotten the intro from the previous day. Also, there's exactly one kensho envelope for the whole tournament. The rikishi are hanging it back to the yobidashi and then it gets handed out again for the next fight (unless the yobidashi forgets to hand it to the gyoji like happened yesterday) Also the Hello Kitty kensho banner is a lot higher quality than the rest

This was quite the surreal experience for me, considering that I also got to work on it, and it was all a bit last minute and manic. I was one of the few journalists invited to attend the ring-blessing ceremony, and that felt quite special somehow. I have to say that for me it was really great. I interviewed many fans outside and the atmosphere of anticipation was fantastic. The rikishi seem to really have fun. [Shodai and Churanoumi were outside enjoying a cheeky cigarette together (LOL), so I was quite amused when I saw that throw]. The event overall was well presented, and Hiro was probably the person enjoying it more than anyone. Yes, many of the bouts felt very much like an exhibition, especially in the first half. But I think that's somewhat inevitable, until an event like this is actually declared a honbasho with banzuke consequences. Otherwise, I don't see how any tournament can be just like a "real" one. If anyone had the impression that this event was just a glorified show for clueless spectators, I think they'd be mistaken, at least on the second point! Maybe the cushions and VIP / corporate seats were filled with people just there for a laugh, but up in the circle (I paid for my own ticket) I was surrounded by thousands of real sumo fans (including many Japanese explats). People had banners and towels; they shouted and celebrated, brought their sumo stuff there etc. You could clearly hear the support for Ura, Takayasu, Aonishiki, etc. So - was it just like a real basho? Not quite. But I can't wait to go back tomorrow!

I spoke to the yokozuna and Hakkaku yesterday and Hoshoryu mentioned Harry Potter too! I wrote a very basic sumo explainer for the BBC - some bits have been added (like the chanko record I didn't even know about), but at least I managed to avoid 'reinforced toilets' and stuff like that. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/cn51z7627gvo The rikishi seem genuinely hyped to be here, and the venue looks great. The "only second time ever a tournament is held outside Japan" line continues to creep up here and there, as the organisers insist that this is not an exhibition... I'll spare you the ridiculous picture of me between the yokozuna! Unfortunately it wasn't "my own" interview, so I didn't get to ask much of what would be interesting for us here. Hakkaku said that he doesn't know whether they'll have international tour more often, as their schedule is quite strict and (as you know) they cancelled the Autumn tour. I mentioned the growth of podcasts, Discord channels, fantasy leagues etc. to the yokozuna - they seemed surprised and amused. Unfortunately I didn't get to boast about my (almost) top 10 ranking on the Super Banzuke. More sparse info: They'll interview all rikishi after every bout throughout the tournament, but at the moment there's no immediate English translation. Only Japanese media. The next day bouts should be released before midnight UK time each day. I'm working with the BBC graphic designers and making them add head to head records (thank you sumo DB!)

Projected movements between the lower divisions: Promotions from sandanme 7-0 x1 Sd26e 6-1 x4 Sd8w, Sd14w, Sd20e, Sd23e 5-2 x7 Sd2e, Sd9e, Sd9w, Sd13w, Sd17w, Sd18e, Sd23w 4-3 x6 Sd1e, Sd1w, Sd4w, Sd5w, Sd7w, Sd8e -------- x18 (summary) Likely demotions from makushita intai x2 J12e, Ms7w 0-0-7 x1 Ms25w 0-7 x2 Ms39w, Ms29e 1-6 x4 Ms60w, Ms53w, Ms43w, Ms41w 2-5 x4 Ms56w, Ms52w, Ms49w, Ms49e, (Ms42e) 3-4 x5 Ms58w, Ms58e, Ms57w, Ms57e, Ms54w, (Ms51e) -------- x18 A promotion count that's on the low side plus the sizable number of intai and demotable zero-win scores mean that there are no harsh drops this time. Clear cutoffs as well; I don't think there's any other way they can split the 18 demotion slots across the various makekoshi records. Shin-makushita for Kyushu Kazeeidai (Sd14w 6-1) Kyokumizuno (Sd23e 6-1) After the Aki update that I didn't get to post would have featured no less than five debutants we're back down to just these two for Kyushu. Both are only 21 years old and thus well in at least the extended prospect range for the next few years. Promotions from jonidan 7-0 x2 Jd44w, Jd99w 6-1 x7 Jd4w, Jd22w, Jd24w, Jd35e, Jd44e, Jd52e, Jd65e 5-2 x13 Jd1w, Jd6w, Jd13e, Jd13w, Jd14w, Jd19e, Jd20e, Jd20w, Jd29e, Jd29w, Jd30e, Jd36e, Jd37e 4-3 x11 Jd1e, Jd4e, Jd7e, Jd7w, Jd8w, Jd9w, Jd10w, Jd15e, Jd16e, Jd17w, Jd19w -------- x33 (summary) Likely demotions from sandanme intai x4 J12e, Ms7w, Sd2w, Sd3w 0-0-7 x6 Sd63w, Sd33w, Sd30w, Sd28w, Sd22w, Sd21w 0-7 x1 Sd77w, (Sd29e) 1-6 x3 Sd75w, Sd59w, Sd56w, (Sd44w) 2-5 x9 Sd79e, Sd73e, Sd72w, Sd67e, Sd66w, Sd65w, Sd60e, Sd59e, Sd58w, (Sd53e, Sd51e) 3-4 x10 Sd80e, Sd78w, Sd77e, Sd76e, Sd75e, Sd71e, Sd70w, Sd69e, Sd64w, Sd64e, (Sd62w, Sd60w) -------- x33 Conversely, a very high number of promotions from jonidan to sandanme here, but the huge list of 0-0-7's (the highest ones just barely in range with the usual 60-rank drop) means that the other demotions aren't out of the ordinary. Two demotion spots are uncertain, those of the 3-4's at Sd64; they could instead be filled by either Sd44w 1-6 or Sd53e 2-5, or by both. The 2-5 ought to be just barely too high, though - normally they seem to treat around a 10-rank difference as equivalent to a win for this - and while the 1-6 is in range, I'm making the bet that they've just dumped the two same-rank 3-4's for a cleaner solution. Shin-sandanme for Kyushu Koseiryu (Jd24w 6-1) Jokoki (Jd35e 6-1) Tsukioka (Jd37e 5-2) Yabugasaki (Jd44e 6-1) Kaki (Jd44w 7-0 Y) Three fresh faces who only turned professional this year, plus the more somewhat more veteran duo of Jokoki (19 years old, debut in 2022) and Tsukioka (20 years old, debut in 2020). Intai Takarafuji (J12e 5-10) Mitoryu (Ms7w 0-0-3) Fujitoshi (Sd2w 0-0-7) Mishima (Sd3w 2-5) Chiyotenfu (Jd22e 1-3-3) Tamatensho (Jd28w 2-2-3) Asadoji (Jd51w 3-4) Tsubakifuji (Jd65w 4-3) Takatsukasa (Jd66e 4-3) Hakuyo (Jd91e 3-4) Amanofuji (Jk1w 0-0-7) Kogomaru (Jk5w 3-4) Tanino (Jk16w 0-0-7) Tenkoyama (Jk18e 2-5) Wakasei (Jd22w 0-0-7) Kyokutaizan (Bg) New banzuke-gai Daikinryu (Jk7w 0-0-7) Jd/Jk split 210 Jd 51 Jk - 15 intai - 1 >Bg + 3 Mz ---- 248 = 124 ranks Likely to be in Jk Mz x3 Jk 0-7 x2 Jk25w, Jk24w Jk 1-6 x4 Jk12w, Jk9w, Jk8e, Jk4e Jk 2-5 x7 Jk25e, Jk21e, Jk18w, Jk16e, Jk9e, Jk8w, Jk1e Jk 3-4 x11 Jk20w, Jk19w, Jk15e, Jk13w, Jk13e, Jk12e, Jk11w, Jk10w, Jk3w, Jk3e, Jk2w Jd 0-0-7 x6 Jd103e, Jd92w, Jd88w, Jd84w, Jd63e, Jd43e Jd 0-7 x2 Jd78w, Jd76e, (Jd42e, Jd39w) Jd 1-6 x2 Jd99e, Jd96e, (Jd81w, Jd74e) Jd 2-5 x3 Jd105e, Jd102e, Jd96w, (Jd94e, Jd89e, Jd87e) Jd 3-4 x0 (Jd100e, Jd98e, Jd97e, Jd95e) ----------- x40 => 104 Jd, 20 Jk In both the preview for Nagoya as well as the unposted one for Aki, I expected two more ranks on the jonidan side than they actually decided to have, so chances are that my projected 104 is also too high again. They do have less scope for putting guys in jonokuchi this time because the total number of ranked rikishi is going down by a whopping 13 and I strongly assume they're going to keep jonidan at 100+ if at all possible. I think we're not going to see less than 102, however, if only because that's exactly where the Jd42e 0-1-6 should be going and it would be equally silly to send him to jonokuchi or to make jonidan shorter with a more lenient drop to keep him in anyway.

K and O: "We get to go to this awesome event, and you want us to get picked up like trash in front of the world?" NSK: "Well, you are replacements, and we've got Mita and Fujiseiun on speed-dial." K and O: "We haven't done this before; do you just hop up on the guy so he can pick you up like trash?"

And an 8-7 from M2E doesn't warrant Hakuhou a place in sanyaku in place of a 7-8 Komusubi E Takayasu.. Weak record. A 9-6 from M2E probably, but 8-7? Weak. An 8-7 from M1 East? Probably. but from M2E? Weak. I read all that on Weak-ipedia.

The London Koen What’s with the tsuridashis?? Asking for a friend

It will take me some time to properly recover from the crazy week. I shared some thoughts in a few lines here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/cy7egpe5jg1o I was there every night and interviewed a lot of people, from travelling super-fans who read this forum to showbiz VIPs who were just learning what sumo was. There were hundreds and hundreds of Japanese people every night. Thousands of sumo fans. I obviously have no idea about actual proportions, but I certainly had the impression that the majority of people in the auditorium had seen sumo before (in some form). I might be wrong, of course. All sumo fans / people with prior knowledge I spoke to (and I spoke to a lot of them) recognised the obvious difference with a 'real' basho. I appreciate that seeing it on TV would have been a completely different experience for sumo experts. But it was certainly a great experience for people there, and for the mostly completely new viewers at home. Hearing the yobidashi calling the 'London basho' on the first day, the final bow with all rikishi around the dohyo, Takayasu's tsuppari and Aonishiki's flip, and a million of other goose bumps moments were way more memorable to me than having too many tsuridashi. It's not my role to "defend" the event or the Kyokai, or wonder whether matches were scripted or not - just expressing what I imagine being the view of the majority of sumo fans who were there. If anything, they were more annoyed by the usual talk about rikishi's size as a comical thing, quantity of rice, reinforced toilets, etc. P.S. telling Hiro that I was about to do this was quite a moment too LOL https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/live/c62lp6835p1t?post=asset%3A05290e9c-a7d5-4069-8938-6027b2bf1007#post

Regardless of the quality of the bouts, it's amazing that Sumo sold 27,000 tickets in London. Maybe this will finally force the Kyokai to take notice of the potential of the international market.

Yumitori-shiki included in that list. They're giving everyone a chance to soak in the spotlight, it seems. Day 1: Hananoumi Day 2: Kototsubasa (despite Kotozakura's absence) Day 3: Kamito They are announced in Japanese, but sadly the English version skips the performer's shikona.

For anyone curious, Nikkan has released the complete list of Kyokai personnel who have travelled to London, a total of 112 people. Slightly annotated by me: Board of directors (1-7): Hakkaku, Kasugano, Dewanoumi, Isenoumi, Sadogatake, Katsunoura, Takadagawa (not there: Sakaigawa, Shibatayama, Asakayama) Deputy directors (8-10): Fujishima, Wakamatsu, Kumegawa Yakuin taigu (11-12): Kokonoe, Nakadachi (not there: Nishikido, Shiratama) Sanyo (13): Hanakago Rikishi (14-53): we already know that, everyone from makuuchi except Kotozakura, Kusano, Meisei and Tomokaze, with Oshoumi and Kotoeiho filling in from juryo Tsukebito (54-81): List Gyoji (82-94): tate: Kimura Shonosuke, Shikimori Inosuke sanyaku: Kimura Konosuke, Kimura Hisanosuke (not there: Shikimori Kandayu) makuuchi: Kimura Motoki, Kimura Akijiro, Shikimori Kindayu, Shikimori Kiichiro, Kimura Asanosuke, Kimura Shozaburo (not there: Kimura Yonosuke) juryo: Kimura Kozaburo makushita: Shikimori Kinosuke, Kimura Kintaro Yobidashi (95-102): fukutate: Katsuyuki sanyaku: Shigeo (out of 3 total) makuuchi: Akira, Daikichi, Rikinojo, Mitsuaki (out of 10 total) juryo: Fujio, Keisuke (out of 12 total) Tokoyama (103-110): special class: none out of 2 first class: Tokotsuka (Tamanoi-beya), Tokotakeshi (Fujishima-beya) (out of 19 total) second class: Tokoami (Isegahama-beya) (out of 5 total) third class: Tokoharu (Isenoumi-beya), Tokonao (Otake-beya), Tokomichi (Hakkaku-beya), Tokosen (Tokiwayama-beya), Tokoyu (Onomatsu-beya) (out of 11 total) Wakaimonogashira (111): Tochinofuji Sewanin (112): Ohidake

I am choosing to believe the matches aren't fixed. Especially Ura's.

The 1991 basho was much more like a real one. I wonder if the rikishi were also misled about the banzuke consequences back then, not just the British public, because they fought; there were injuries and blood in bouts that only ended after real effort. They also did the full shebang before the bouts, gunbai held in all three positions, stare downs, etc. There were way more kensho, and on most of the bouts, which must also have provided some incentive (indeed, when the kensho appeared in the 2nd half last night there was a bit of a step up). So, yeah, for someone like me, who was lucky enough to be there 34 years ago, last night fell flat. That said, as jungyo-style exhibition sumo of the kind that the regions of Japan get to see between honbasho, this was a high quality production in a wonderful venue. We didn't get the rope-tying demo in 1991, but we did get the taiko drumming us in and out every night. I expect we might see other demos, like hair styling and maybe shokkiri. The genuine opportunity to not only see the rikishi, but get to meet and talk to them is fantastic, too. And we got to see Ura's legs for the first time in years!

First and foremost, before anything else, they should allow foreign fans free access to a live broadcast. Any live broadcast. Ironically, the　Kyokai used to do it thirty years ago..　I know, you can't get free and legal live broadcasts of the MLB and NBA　either, but in our case Abema is broadcasting live anyway - allow foreigners access as well without forcing us to be wily VPN users. Lately the Kyokai themselves are posting highlights of select bouts on their youtube channel minutes after the bouts are over, which means the Kyokai has the means in place-they just need to do it. And the app, when working.. Give us a link so we can watch the whole broadcast. (Yeah, I know, NHK won't allow it etc.. etc.. yawn). You know what? Charge a reasonable fee- we'll pay for high quality broadcasts. In short - they can, but they don't. Let's start with THAT.

A new page has been added to the Special Categories section: Ozeki of the modern era

Sadanoumi - Asakoryu was great, and Tamawashi breaking out the nodowa in an exhibition was rather unexpected. Humouring this event with a "results" post for historical posterity and because of the meta angle of seeing how they do the scheduling for subsequent days... Day 1 Shimpan (clockwise from shomen): Dewanoumi, Sadogatake, Wakamatsu, Takadagawa J2e Kotoeiho (1-0) tsuridashi J1w Oshoumi (0-1) M18e Shishi (1-0) tsuridashi M17w Hitoshi (0-1) M17e Ryuden (1-0) uwatenage M16w Nishikigi (0-1) M15e Tobizaru (1-0) shitatenage M15w Shonannoumi (0-1) M14e Sadanoumi (1-0) yorikiri M14w Asakoryu (0-1) M13w Tokihayate (0-1) uwatenage M12w Mitakeumi (1-0) M12e Takerufuji (0-1) shitatehineri M11w Roga (1-0) M11e Shodai (0-1) uwatenage M10w Churanoumi (1-0) M10e Daieisho (1-0) tsukiotoshi M9w Fujinokawa (0-1) M9e Midorifuji (0-1) tsuridashi M8w Kinbozan (1-0) Shimpan: Kasugano, Isenoumi, Katsunoura, Fujishima M7e Takanosho (0-1) uwatenage M7w Oshoma (1-0) M6e Onokatsu (1-0) uwatenage M5w Ichiyamamoto (0-1) M5e Kotoshoho (0-1) sukuinage M4w Wakamotoharu (1-0) M4e Hiradoumi (0-1) yorikiri M3w Gonoyama (1-0) M3e Atamifuji (0-1) uchimuso Kw Aonishiki (1-0) Ke Takayasu (1-0) tsukiotoshi M1w Abi (0-1) M2w Oho (0-1) yorikiri Sw Kirishima (1-0) Se Wakatakakage (0-1) oshidashi M1e Tamawashi (1-0) M2e Hakuoho (0-1) uwatenage Yw Hoshoryu (1-0) Ye Onosato (1-0) uwatenage M8e Ura (0-1) Yumitori-shiki: Hananoumi

Day 6 04.8s M18e Shishi (4-2) yorikiri M17e Ryuden (4-2) 06.4s J4w Mita (6-0) oshidashi M15w Shonannoumi (3-3) 05.8s M17w Hitoshi (2-4) hatakikomi M14e Sadanoumi (3-3) 38.2s M14w Asakoryu (2-4) sukuinage M16w Nishikigi (0-6) 27.3s M16e Tomokaze (5-1) hatakikomi M13e Meisei (2-4) 21.7s M15e Tobizaru (4-2) uwatenage M13w Tokihayate (2-4) 86.9s M12w Mitakeumi (3-3) oshitaoshi M10e Daieisho (1-5) 06.1s M10w Churanoumi (5-1) yoritaoshi M9e Midorifuji (2-4) 03.6s M11e Shodai (5-1) hikiotoshi M9w Fujinokawa (2-4) 12.3s M11w Roga (4-2) uwatenage M8w Kinbozan (1-5) 07.7s M8e Ura (5-1) sukuinage M6e Onokatsu (3-3) 02.2s M7e Takanosho (5-1) oshitaoshi M5e Kotoshoho (2-4) 03.9s M7w Oshoma (3-3) hatakikomi M5w Ichiyamamoto (2-4) 04.1s M4w Wakamotoharu (5-1) yoritaoshi M6w Kusano (2-4) 02.2s M2e Hakuoho (3-3) yorikiri M1w Abi (0-6) 11.0s K1w Aonishiki (4-2) yorikiri K1e Takayasu (0-6) 01.6s S1e Wakatakakage (4-2) tsukiotoshi M3w Gonoyama (0-6) 04.9s M1e Tamawashi (3-3) tsukidashi S1w Kirishima (4-2) 10.4s O1e Kotozakura (5-1) kotenage M4e Hiradoumi (4-2) 05.0s Y1e Onosato (5-1) yorikiri M3e Atamifuji (1-5) 04.6s Y1wYO Hoshoryu (6-0) shitatenage M2w Oho (2-4)