mikawa

Comments It seems that three years is a long time in sumo. I was expecting a Narita-Uchida rematch in at least one of the middle school tournaments this year, but today's final was Morita Akihiko (who?) vs Niishima Ibuki. At least I've heard of one of them...... When I wrote the featured club article about Amami Oshima's Sumiyo Sumo Club, I concentrated on the friendship and rivalry of Sakae, Hamada and Nishika, three very good sumo wrestlers who happen to be in the same year group. Also appearing in the documentary about the club is someone a year younger than the trio - Niishima Ibuki. Ibuki is someone who has always been close to winning a national tournament, but there were two mountains in his year group who were so so difficult to overcome. Not any more. By overcoming the Mongolian viper Sosorufu in the semi-finals, Ibuki has proven that he fully deserves the title of Middle School Yokozuna, even though his celebrations at the end attracted quite some attention from the gyoji. The biggest take-away though from this tournament is just how good the second years are. So many of them were able to make it to the knock-out stages, and one of them, Osaka's Tasaki Masami, even made it all the way to the semi-finals. This bodes very well for next year's middle school tournaments, which look very exciting already. Just an aside, Tasaki Masami's quarter-final opponent was Kumamoto's Honda Kotaro, who lost that bout because he tried to henka Masami, but it just didn't work. He's someone who always gets your hopes up during a tournament, only to dash them during the latter stages (mental weakness perhaps?). Come on Kotaro, you're so much better than that! If the individual tournament was difficult to predict, the team tournament was even more so. In fact, out of the 12 wrestlers who made it to the team semi-finals, I've only heard of one of them, and even that was because he (Takeuchi Fumu) was part of a trio of siblings who achieved good results during their Wanpaku days. However, there were still take-aways from the team tournament. One of the take-aways is that former Hakuho Cup winner Nishijima Yura has moved to Saitama (from Chiba). The same thing happened last year with Chris Gould's favourite sumo kid, Tebakari Taiki, and that can only mean one thing - Yura has his sights set on Saitama Sakae High School. The other take-away is Team Wakayama, who reached the round of 16 today. That team is worth mentioning because at least two of its three members are first-years. Club-mates Nishide Daiki and Nakanishi Kaishin have always competed with each other for that one spot at the Wanpaku Tournament, but now they have joined forces to put Wakayama on the map. They already look like the team to beat in two years' time. Also led by two first-years are Team Nagano, who owe their results to the Hayashi twins, Rei and Ryu. They are inspired to work hard by their club senpai, Mitakeumi, so it would be really cool to see them do well. Team Tochigi were the winners today, beating Team Ishikawa in the final.

Poor gyoji, he had to yell "Hakkeyoi!" 11 times in that second semi-final to get the bout rolling again. The other semi-finalist is Ochiai Yudai (落合 優大) from Kanazawa Technical High School.

Normally this tournament takes place inside the Kokugikan Stadium, but due to renovation works in preparation for next year's Tokyo Olympics, they have moved this event to Yasukuni Shrine. The date has also been moved forward by a week. Best Team on Paper? Team Tottori were definitely the strongest going into last year's tournament, even though 2 of their 3 members were still in their sophomore year. One year on, with "the Mountain of Aomori" Narita Rikido and "the Viper from Mongolian" Sosorufu leading the charge, Tottori have a great chance of defending their title. However, they are not the favourites. Team Shizuoka are. Shizuoka will likely have on their team a national semi-finalist in Mochizuki Masaya, a national finalist in Sugahara Haruka (that cheeky sumo kid), and multiple national champion Uchida Kyota. Furthermore, Narita Rikido vs Uchida Kyota has been a superb rivalry to watch, they are the Naruto & Sasuke of amateur sumo. You can read about their story here: Rivalries in Amateur Sumo #3 - Narita Rikido & Uchida Kyota This will be our first chance in three years to see those two square off against each other again. Three years since that EPIC final, where matta was called THREE times. But it was well worth the wait, as they served up an absolute classic. Three years on, will they get a chance to lock horns once again? All eyes on Sunday!

Results - Grade 5 Winner - Toyoda Rinnosuke (豊田 倫之亮), Kagoshima Runner-Up - Tamiya Aiki (田宮 愛喜), Aichi Semi-Finals - Takeuchi Hinata (竹内 日向), Nagasaki Semi-Finals - Okamoto Sentaro (岡本 千太朗), Aichi Quarter-Finals - Otawa Yu (大和田 優), Ibaraki Quarter-Finals - Sonoda Hiroto (園田 大登), Osaka Quarter-Finals - Takezawa Hikaru (竹澤 光), Saitama Quarter-Finals - Hoshi Yuito (星 結仁), Niigata

Tournament Report - Grade 5 If You Conquer Amami Oshima, You Control Wanpaku I adapted this quote from National Geographic's in relation to Yuki the Genius, because it perfectly describes the relationship between Shigemura Shonosuke and Toyoda Rinnosuke. These 2 huge rivals are both from Amami Oshima down south in Kagoshima Prefecture, and as such, only one of them can qualify for the Wanpaku Tournament each year. As it so happens, Shigemura qualified last year, and he went on to win the whole thing; Toyoda qualified this year, and he also went on to become Yokozuna. Toyoda Rinnosuke (豊田 倫之亮) is very strong (as you'd expect), but his biggest strength is his ability to improvise. This was most apparent in the grand final, when he got himself into a bad position, but quickly thought of an ingenious way to turn the tables on his opponent. Toyoda is on the left. Coming Out Party For The Next Naya Konosuke Back in the summer of 2009, Naya Konosuke, the son of former Takatoriki and grandson of former Taiho, powered his way through the field to finish second at the Wanpaku Tournament. Exactly 10 years on, Tamiya Aiki (田宮 愛喜), the son of former Kotomitsuki, matched Naya's performance to also finish runner-up. Compared to the Hakuho Cup half a year ago, Aiki's sumo has matured tremendously. He keeps things simple as much as possible (winning by yorikiri or oshidashi most of the time), and mixing in other strategies from time to time. Shizuoka's Aoki Kanta has been Aiki's bane for a year now, but this time, when Aiki faced Kanta in the round of 32, Aiki knew to use his height and superior reach to his advantage and kept Kanta away from his belt the entire bout. This is his best ever result in a national tournament. Oh, he (on the right) even pulled this move out of the bag: Attack Points Aren't Everything There are those who can push their opponents out of the ring like it's nothing. Then there are those who have to resort to other talents to impress on the dohyo. This year, in Grade 5, the stand-out rikishi is most definitely quarter-finalist Takezawa Hikaru (竹澤 光) from Saitama. His has very good instincts whilst in the ring, and adapts his sumo depending on the opponent. Sometimes he might go for a Kotoshogiku-esque gappuri-attack, other times he might use slap downs, with some throws sprinkled in. This is him (on the right) in action. Gambarize / Try Your Best! There's a Filipino YouTuber called Marlinda Saikusa who shares her life in Shodoshima, Kagawa, Japan. She occasionally posts videos about her son's sumo adventures. Her son, who is called Saikusa Masayasu (三枝 正恭) did very well in the tournament, reaching the round of 32. Masayasu's second match was one of the most exciting bouts in Grade 5. Both he (on the left) and his opponent gave it everything they've got, neither of them wanting to leave with any regrets.

Results - Grade 4 Winner - Tsubaki Rui (椿 留一), Niigata Runner-Up - Nakamura Hayato (中村 颯斗), Shizuoka Semi-Finals - Uno Kosei (宇野 恭晟), Ishikawa Semi-Finals - Suekawa Atsuki (末川 敦喜), Tokyo Quarter-Finals - Odaira Masaki (大平 真輝), Niigata Quarter-Finals - Kai Yota (甲斐 陽太), Miyazaki Quarter-Finals - Nagai Haruto (永井 陽翔), Yamagata Quarter-Finals - Sato Iroha (佐藤 珀呂汎), Kumamoto

Tournament Report - Grade 4 There Was Once A Mighty Samurai Named Tsubaki As the title character from Hikaru no Go found out the hard way during the preliminaries of his Pro Exam, people named Tsubaki are not to be messed with. As 109 sumo kids found out on Sunday, the same can be said about Niigata's Tsubaki Rui (椿 留一), who powered his way to the Grade 4 title. From the tachi-ai, Rui likes to first attack his opponent's shoulders, and then quickly get a hand on their mawashi. This was usually enough to get him an easy yorikiri win, though there were a couple of times when his opponent was very nearly able to throw him to the ground before getting pushed out. A deserved winner, but luck was definitely on his side, especially in that final bout. Size Isn't Everything Suekawa Atsuki (末川 敦喜) might not have won the tournament, but he is definitely the stand-out competitor amongst the Grade 4s. Although not as big as most of his opponents, Atsuki is strong as heck, and is able to defend very very well. Just look at the way he stayed in this bout against his strong Mongolian foe. Slippiotoshi was eventually to be his downfall, as has happened to so many wrestlers in the past. Oh, and I just found out that he belongs to Komatsuryu Dojo, John Gunning's club. When God Opens A Door, He Closes A Window Yes, you read that right. Kumamoto is a hotbed of sumo wrestlers, and so it takes a great deal to qualify from that area. In reaching the Wanpaku finals, Toda Hayato (戸田 勇翔) has already proven himself to be strong with a great sumo sense. However, despite these gifts for sumo, his lack of height really limits what he is able to do in a bout, like in this second round match. He would go on to lose in the round of 32, as a lack of height also means a lack of reach. A Good Start, But It Was Kinda Inevitable I was happy to see that Kozawa Kaito (小澤 海翔) from Tachikawa Renseikan Sumo Dojo was able to make it to the Wanpaku finals, but his first bout was always going to be a very tough one, as his opponent was Kanazawa Towa. Towa is a strong kid, no doubt about that, but what really makes him such a difficult opponent to face is his immense wrestling talents. Kaito had a good tachi-ai in the match, but once the bout turned into a belt battle, there was really ever going to be one winner. Good luck in the next tournament! Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, AHHHHHHHH...... Prior to the tournament, former Kinboshi mascot Kanazawa Towa (金澤 永和) was one of the favourites to win his year group, and as the bouts went on, he was living up to that billing. Not only is Towa one of the strongest wrestlers in Grade 4, his background in wrestling and the moves he's learned from it combine to make him an incredibly dangerous opponent. Just when it was looking so comfortable for him as he inched ever closer to the Quarter-Finals, this happened. Kanazawa Towa vs Suekawa Atsuki was definitely one of the bouts of the entire tournament. Glimpses of Brilliance Because the Wanpaku Tournament is entirely knock-out, and they have to go through so many matches on the day, for the vast majority of competitors, we are only able to get glimpses into what they are capable of. Many bow out not because they're not good enough, but because of other factors, such as opponent, body condition, injuries, tachi-ai etc etc. One kid whose sumo caught my eye is someone called Nomura Yusuke (野村 祐介), from Shizuoka. He may not have gone far into the tournament, but the way he handled his opening bout, and how low he kept during that entire bout, definitely warrants a mention. That's someone whom you can see has always worked incredibly hard during training, and has really taken heed of his coaches' advice.

Coming up on tournament report time (early next week): There Was Once A Mighty Samurai Named Tsubaki Coming Out Party For The Next Naya Konosuke Action Really Does Speak Louder Than Words

In case you were wondering, Motomura Kosei, the star of the Hakuho Cup, has NOT been able to qualify from his home prefecture of Fukuoka. This was the bout that made him famous:

Notable Rikishi - Grade 6 #7 - Kodama Hayato (児玉 颯飛) Since quitting Mitaka Sumo Club last year, I wasn't sure how this would affect Kodama Hayato's progress. After all, he potentially had a very bright future ahead of him. Since then, Hayato has reached the semi-finals of the Hakuho Cup (where he lost against his nemesis from Kumamoto), and will now aim to win this tournament for a second time via a strong performance at the Tokyo qualifiers. This is an important year for him, as Hayato aims to prove that he still has what it takes to return to the top. Once again, his incredible arm strength will be his biggest weapon.  #11 - Ito Hirohide (伊藤 博英) Although not as glamorous as his national champion of a clubmate, Ito Hirohide should not be underestimated. He achieved second place at this year's Hakuho Cup, and was pivotal in his club's (Kawakami Dojo) road to victory in the team competition. He will be Kodama Hayato's third biggest threat on Sunday. #27 - Yoshioka Ryudai (吉岡 竜大) This silent assassin from Komatsuryu Dojo is a very very clever sumo wrestler. He is the physical embodiment of "action speaks louder than words", as although he doesn't talk much (giving one word answers whenever possible), he is easily able to mix it with the big boys. Ryudai's biggest asset is his ability to recognise his opponent's strengths and weaknesses, and adapt his sumo accordingly. The way he clamped Kodama Hayato's hands together last summer in order to neutralise Hayato's most dangerous weapon was pure genius. Definitely one to watch out for on Sunday. 35 - Yamashita Masakiyo (山下 正清) When defending champion Kodama Hayato suffered a shock defeat in the quarter-finals last year, Yamashita Masakiyo took this opportunity to win the whole thing, and in doing so, achieved the first ever sibling yokozuna in Wanpaku history (as his older brother Yamashita Shosuke also won this tournament back in his day). Although Masakiyo isn't the favourite in this year group, he is the defending Wanpaku Yokozuna, and that has to count for something. #94 - Matsui Yuato (松井 碧星) A couple of months ago, a TV show featured a pair of sibling rikishi from Hyogo Prefecture who were both able to qualify for this year's Wanpaku Tournament. Matsui Harua was the younger brother, and Matsui Yuato is the (much larger) older brother. It will be very interesting to see which of the Matsui siblings can make it furthest into the tournament. #103 - Kuraoka Yuta (倉岡 優太) The large and powerful Kuraoka Yuta has won all there is to win, the Primary School Championships, the Hakuho Cup, you name it, but he has yet to win the Wanpaku Tournament, the most illustrious of them all. If he were to add the Wanpaku Tournament to his trophy cabinet on Sunday, then he will be holding all 3 national titles at the same time (the primary school grand slam). It's hard enough to win all three tournaments during your primary school days, it's harder still to hold all three simultaneously. That really would be an incredible feat.

Notable Rikishi - Grade 5 #10 - Matsui Harua (松井 遥海) I would have had no idea who this kid was if not for a TV program from a couple of months ago featuring a pair of brother rikishi from Hyogo Prefecture who were both able to qualify for this year's Wanpaku Tournament. Matsui Harua is the younger of the 2 siblings, and has a much smaller build compared to his older brother. #17 - Toyoda Rinnosuke (豊田 倫之亮) Although not present at last year's Wanpaku Tournament, he is the defending Primary School Yokozuna, and was runner-up at the Hakuho Cup earlier this year. He qualified for Sunday's tournament at the expense of his Kagoshima compatriot and last year's Wanpaku Yokozuna Shigemura Konosuke, which makes Toyoda the favourite in this year group. #21 - Nishizaki Soma (西崎 想馬) Nishizaki Soma qualified as the champion of Tokyo, but his most notable achievement so far is finishing second at last year's Primary School Championships, only losing to Kagoshima's Toyodo Rinnosuke. Those two could meet each other in the round of 16 for a rematch. #56 - Tamiya Aiki (田宮 愛喜) Under the tutelage of his father, former Kotomitsuki, Tamiya Aiki has been threatening to win a national tournament for a year now. He has the body, he has the strength, and he has the skills, but sometimes Aiki tries to do a bit too much in a bout, and ends up in a bad position because of it. It's certainly possible for him to become yokozuna on Sunday, but in order to do so, he would need to overcome his conqueror from the Hakuho Cup. #66 - Aoki Kanta (青木 貫太) Speaking of, Shizuoka's Aoki Kanta has been there and done that. All that's missing on his resume is winning a national tournament, which he certainly has the potential to do. Kanta's short stature gives him a naturally low centre of gravity, and combined with his strength, that's one difficult opponent to deal with.

Notable Rikishi - Grade 4 #31 - Toda Hayato (戸田 勇翔) 3 years ago, when Kinboshi Sumo Club visited Kumamoto in support of those affected by the then earthquake, the club's youngest member and mascot, Kanazawa Towa , found himself a rival and a friend at JKA Treasure Club. His name was Toda Hayato, who was already a prefectural champion at only 6. Three years on, Toda Hayato is now ready to take on the Wanpaku Tournament. Wouldn't it be great if he were to face Kanazawa Towa in the final on Sunday? #102 - Kozawa Kaito (小澤 海翔) It was unfortunate that none of the kids from Tachikawa Renseikan Sumo Dojo were able to get through the tough Tokyo qualifiers this year, but one of their clubmates was able to make it through the Saitama qualifiers. Kozawa Kaito only joined the club less than a year ago, and doesn't have a big body, but he works harder than anyone at the club, and is rewarded with a place at the Wanpaku Tournament. I will be supporting him all the way, but he has a very tough first round opponent, whom I would also like to see do well. Tournament draws can be so cruel sometimes...... #103 - Kanazawa Towa Yes, Kozawa Kaito's first round opponent just happens to be Kanazawa Towa, the youngest of the Kanazawa siblings from Kinboshi Sumo Club. Towa and his brothers have since joined Kashiwa Junior Sumo Club, and their sumo skills have improved dramatically. Coupled with his already incredible wrestling talents, Towa has to be one of the favourites to win the whole thing. Could we see a Toda vs Kanazawa final? Now that really would be something.

The final between Okuwa and Kusano. Credit to Okuwa for timing that move to perfection.

I think this is the first time that a Mongolian rikishi has won this tournament?

In a similar vein to Inter-High, neither Shizuoka nor Tottori managed to win the team event, as both teams fell in the semi-finals. Ishikawa beat Kumamoto in the final. Sosorufu, the Mongolian Viper, won the individual event, as Narita “the Mountain” Rikido finished third. Uchida Kyota had a poor day by his standards (not enough power maybe?) Here are Sugahara and Team Shizuoka’s matches from the tournament, uploaded by Sugahara Haruka’s father:

That fourth bout in the team final was contentious to say the least. Did Kumamoto’s right leg touch before Tottori’s right arm? Should a torinaoshi have been called?

Six years ago, Kumamoto were heavy favourites going into their national club final against Aomori, but Kusano lost against Koseki on their way to losing 3-2. Today, Kusano and Koseki opened the team final, with Koseki’s Tottori Johoku being the favourites. This time, the final score was also 3-2, but to Kusano’s Buntoku, so I guess it was payback for Kusano? Speaking of, I’m disappointed that Kusano couldn’t claim the individual title, as he is easily the best in his year group. The same thing happened three years ago, but at least he won the tournament that mattered the most. Congrats to, I’m assuming, 大桑 元揮 (Okuwa Motoki)? One thing I learnt from the team final was how violent Tottori’s Dawaninji’s sumo has now become. He now uses his height and long reach to slap the life out of his opponent. Ouch.

Henkas are allowed at all levels of amateur sumo, but prior to middle school, face slaps and throat grabs etc are not allowed.

The only information I've been able to find that mentions Shiroyama Seira is the following extract from a blog about the East Japan Championships: 「満身創痍」とありますから、故障者が多かったのでしょうね。準優勝メンバーに、エースで主将の城山聖羅選手の名前がありません。１１月のインカレまでには回復して欲しいです。城山は４年生で成績如何では幕下付け出しの可能性もありますから・・・・。 Sounds like he has suffered a major injury of some sort?

Last weekend, while Hokutofuji was waiting for what turned out to be good news from the Nagoya Banzuke, three of his Renseikan kohai were giving their all in the Tokyo qualifiers. However, neither Tsurumi Yusei nor Kinoshita Shun were able to make much headway into the tournament, and while Miyazaki Keijiro did reach the quarter-finals, that wasn't enough to earn him a spot at the Wanpaku National Championships. The Grade 6 winner, as it has been for the past two years, is the former Wanpaku Yokozuna Kodama Hayato. It's great to see that he's still got what it takes to continually being successful, but he will have to step up his game if he wants to regain his wanpaku title, as Kumamoto's Kuraoka Yuta is an opponent whom he has not beaten for two years now. P.S. For the first time ever, this year's Wanpaku Tournament has a girl's counterpart, which will take place on Sunday 25th August at Eight Hall in the Katsushika District (about 5 minutes south of Aoto Bridge) P.P.S. Due to renovation work at the Kokugikan Stadium in preparation for next year's Tokyo Olympics, this year's Wanpaku Tournament (boy's division) will take place on Sunday 4th August at the Sumida City Gymnasium. Likewise, the National Middle School Student Championships has been moved to Yasukuni Shrine, and will also take place on 4th August. The Friendly Examination Tournament has been postponed until October

Now that Reiwa has arrived, it's time to try out a spoiler-free version of these amateur sumo tournament reports. Please let me know whether you prefer this layout. Videos Individual Quarter-Final #1 - Tanaka Daisuke (田中 大介), Chuo University vs Fukai Takuto (深井 拓斗), Toyo University Individual Quarter-Final #2 - Nishikawa Toki (西川 登輝), Chuo University vs Nakamura Taiki (中村 泰輝), Nippon Sport Science University Individual Quarter-Final #3 - Shiroyama Seira (城山 聖羅), Toyo University vs Tanioka Koshiro (谷岡 倖志郎), Kindai University Individual Quarter-Final #4 - Yamaichi Daigo (山市 大悟), Takushoku University vs Suguro Ruki (勝呂 隆稀), Takushoku University Individual Semi-Final #1 - Tanaka Daisuke (田中 大介), Chuo University vs Nishikawa Toki (西川 登輝), Chuo University Individual Semi-Final #2 - Shiroyama Seira (城山 聖羅), Toyo University vs Suguro Ruki (勝呂 隆稀), Takushoku University Individual Final - Tanaka Daisuke (田中 大介), Chuo University vs Suguro Ruki (勝呂 隆稀), Takushoku University Team Semi-Final #1 - Chuo University vs Nippon Sport Science University Team Semi-Final #2 - Kindai University vs Toyo University Team Final - Chuo University vs Toyo University

Comments Just like the Battle of Winterfell gave us an unexpected conclusion, this year's college sumo has started with some surprising results. Few would have expected the Uwajima Tournament to be won by Chuo's Tanaka Daisuke, and even fewer would have predicted his opponent in the final would be Takushoku's Suguro Ruki. For Toyo fourth year and 2-time amateur banzuke topper Shiroyama Seira, this was his best ever result in the Uwajima Tournament, but even he couldn't do anything against that spectacular move which Suguro pulled off in their semi-final bout. The team final is a rematch of last year's Uwajima final, and this time, Chuo were able to come out on top. At the moment it's looking like Chuo and Toyo are the strongest college teams this year, but it's still very early days. Next up, the Usa Tournament.

Individual Competition Winner - Tanaka Daisuke (田中 大介), Chuo University, Tokyo Runner-Up - Suguro Ruki (勝呂 隆稀), Takushoku University, Tokyo Semi-Finals - Nishikawa Toki (西川 登輝), Chuo University, Tokyo Semi-Finals - Shiroyama Seira (城山 聖羅), Toyo University, Tokyo Quarter-Finals - Fukai Takuto (深井 拓斗), Toyo University, Tokyo Quarter-Finals - Nakamura Taiki (中村 泰輝), Nippon Sport Science University, Tokyo Quarter-Finals - Tanioka Koshiro (谷岡 倖志郎), Kindai University, Osaka Quarter-Finals - Yamaichi Daigo (山市 大悟), Takushoku University, Tokyo Team Competition Winner - Chuo University Nishikawa Toki (西川 登輝) ･ Sumigi Genta (住木 厳太) ･ Kanno Yota (菅野 陽太) ･ Tanaka Daisuke (田中 大介) ･ Nakamura Yusei (中村 悠星) Runner-Up - Toyo University Shiroyama Seira (城山 聖羅) ･ Hoshiba Shinsuke (干場 伸介) ･ Asano Ryo (浅野 凌) ･ Fukai Takuto (深井 拓斗) ･ Shigematsu Tatsuhiro (重松 龍大) Semi-Finals - Nippon Sport Science University Semi-Finals - Kindai University

Although strictly speaking this documentary isn't focused around a sumo wrestler, however, it does tell the story of how Takakeisho got into sumo, and by extension how a future Middle School Yokozuna and Ozeki was born. When Takakeisho was growing up, the K-1 martial arts tournaments were wildly popular in Japan, and like many many kids at that time, Takakeisho wanted to be a K-1 kickboxer when he grew up. This is how he got into Kyokushin Karate, and people soon discovered that he was really good at it. So talented in fact that Takakeisho was already good enough to reach a national final in Grade 3, where he faced a karate phenom called Ishino Shobu (石野 涉生). They both chose an entrance music for that match. For Ishino, it was "We Will Rock You" by Queen, and for Takakeisho, it was the theme from Godzilla. Takakeisho would go on to lose that match, something which even now, 14 years on, he still cannot forget. It was because of this painful loss that a young Takakeisho decided that he wanted to learn sumo to get stronger, a sport which he has since fell in love with. Ishino Shobu would go on to win more than 70 tournaments at various levels, including 2 national championships and 2 world championships. However, when Shobu was in Grade 6, he wanted more and more to participate in a sport where he could enjoy with his friends, and work as a team. This strong desire, couple with the fact that he could no longer stand the huge amounts of pressure and expectation that his dad put on him, that Shobu decided to quit karate altogether. 14 years later, Shobu is now a professional basketball player (from this month onwards), and is aiming to represent Japan in the 3-on-3 basketball competition at Tokyo 2020.

The sumo club at Nippon Sport Science University hold a nice event every year for the 4th-years who are about to graduate. The 4th-years form a team and take on, in turn, the 1st-years, 2nd-years and 3rd-years. This year, each match is a best-of-9, with the 4th-years team consisting of Fujimoto, Hayata, Miyakami, Tatsuta, Tsuda, Kanai, Sakurai, Nishi and Hashimoto. Only one person in this team actually made it onto the University Banzuke 2019 (Nishi Taisei at M1e), so overall it's not actually that strong of a year group. Will they be able to defend their honour as senpai? Team 1st-Year vs Team 4th-Year Team 2nd-Year vs Team 4th-Year Team 3rd-Year vs Team 4th-Year