Reonito

Here's what the db has to say on the subject; it only shows 3 for him...

Pretty remarkable that you have to go all the way down to Sd17 to find someone older than Tamawashi, who just went 9-6 at M2!

To be fair, the Markov process implication was that banzuke decisions (outside Y/O promotions, obviously) don't take into account performances older than the just-completed basho (e.g., things like "so-and-so should be over-promoted to rank X because they got bad banzuke luck last time"). Given the nature of the committee, I'd guess that subjective considerations beyond "the numbers" do come into it, but our ability to guess what they might be is next to nil.

That had occurred to me, though one could also have argued for promoting him to give Keisho a proper challenger. It would for sure have been interesting to be a fly on the wall for that part of the discussion.

Here are the most extreme examples of this genre I could find from Juryo debut to Makuuchi debut. The last two were under exceptional circumstances, but still! Yamamotoyama 2008.09 J12e 9-6 2008.11 J3w 9-6 2009.01 M15w 8-7 Fujiazuma 2011.01 J13w 8-7 2011.05 J8w 9-6 2011.07 M15e 10-5 Aoiyama 2011.07 J4w 7-8 2011.09 J6e 10-3-2 2011.11 M16e 11-4

I looked this up, and the highest promotions ever have been to M6, from J1 with a 14-1 record. If he managed a zensho, he could go even higher, but something like M8 with a 13-2 seems perfectly plausible, of course depending on the results in Makuuchi.

If Hokuseiho had one fewer win, it would have effectively been an exchange bout, but given their actual records going into day 15, it didn't end up mattering.

Getting this right got me exactly zero GTB points, as I did not see him going up anywhere near that high.

Here's what I got wrong: They placed K2w Wakamotoharu (9-6) at K1e, ahead of K1w Kotonowaka (8-7). Not sure how this squares with them not reordering Sekiwake based on record unless the difference is extreme, but there you go…is it that they didn’t have to drop Kotonowaka and it would have played out differently if they were K1e and K1w? (–2 points) M8e Onosho (10-5) is at M4e, ahead of K2e Meisei (5-10). So a two-rank computed difference was enough to overcome san’yaku bias on this occasion. (–2 points) They really seemed to want to give the 7-8 guys their full drop, placing M6e Hokutofuji (7-8) at M7e, behind M4w Sadanoumi (6-9) (–4 points), and dropping M7w Ura (7-8) to M8w, behind S2e Takayasu (1-5-9) and M14e Ichiyamamoto (10-5) (–5 points). But of course M12e Kagayaki (7-8) got to stay in place (not that they had great choices there), as did M13w Kotoeko. They were unusually kind to the Juryo guys. J6w Daishoho (12-3) went to M13e, half a rank higher than he computed, and ahead of M8w Oho (4-11), who landed all the way at M15w, also getting passed by J5e Kinbozan (11-4), J1w Bushozan (9-6), and J2e Hokuseiho (9-6)! They basically went straight by the numbers here, as though everyone had been in Makuuchi. (–14 points)

I got very little right M13 on down; I had all the right rikishi in the right rank order within their divisions, but they were much kinder to the Juryo guys than they usually are.

Apparently the Bing version has real-time search access.

Yup. Half-rank over-demotion, don't feel great about it.

I'd sure hate to have to fight my bouts "in the darker parts of the arena"!

The "kujira-sen" or "whale tournament" system is a special ranking system used in professional sumo to accommodate rikishi who have missed most or all of a tournament due to injury or illness. The system is designed to ensure that injured rikishi are not unfairly penalized for missing a tournament and are given time to recover before returning to competition. Under the "kujira-sen" system, if a rikishi misses all or most of a tournament due to injury or illness, they are given a special rank called "makushita tsukedashi" in the following tournament. This rank is equivalent to the rank of "makushita," which is the third-highest division in professional sumo. The "makushita tsukedashi" rank is unique in that it is only available to rikishi who have missed most or all of a tournament due to injury or illness. The rank essentially guarantees that the rikishi will not be demoted due to their absence, and it allows them to take the time they need to recover fully before returning to competition. Once a rikishi has recovered from their injury or illness and is ready to compete, they will start in the "makushita" division and will work their way up the rankings based on their performance in each tournament. The "kujira-sen" system has been in place in professional sumo since the 1950s and has been an important mechanism for supporting injured rikishi and ensuring their long-term health and welfare. By providing a special rank for injured rikishi, the JSA has been able to help them recover fully before returning to competition and avoid the pressure to compete before they are ready.

And all this time I thought makushita tsukedashi meant something entirely different.

The Japan Sumo Association (JSA) has implemented several policies to ensure that injured rikishi are not pressured to compete in order to avoid demotion. One of the key policies is the "kujira-sen" or "whale tournament" system. Under this system, rikishi who miss all or most of a tournament due to injury or illness are given a special rank called "makushita tsukedashi" in the following tournament. This special rank essentially guarantees that the rikishi will not be demoted, and it allows them to take the time they need to recover fully before returning to competition. Additionally, the JSA has established a medical committee to oversee the health and welfare of rikishi. The medical committee is responsible for evaluating the health and injuries of rikishi and making recommendations to the JSA about whether a rikishi should be allowed to compete or take time off to recover. The JSA has also been taking steps to improve the medical facilities and services available to rikishi, including hiring more medical staff and providing more comprehensive medical care for rikishi. Overall, the JSA has recognized the importance of ensuring the health and welfare of rikishi, and they have taken steps to ensure that injured rikishi are not pressured to compete in order to avoid demotion. While there is still room for improvement, the JSA's efforts to improve the health and welfare of rikishi have been a positive development for the sport.

This sounds like a much kinder and gentler JAS than the one I'm familiar with: The Japan Sumo Association (JSA) generally tries to accommodate scheduling conflicts for rikishi due to various reasons, including religious observance, injury, and other personal circumstances. The JSA recognizes that the physical and mental health of the rikishi is important and that they should be given adequate time to rest and recover before competing in a bout. In the case of injury, the JSA has specific rules and procedures in place to ensure that rikishi are given enough time to heal before returning to competition. Depending on the severity of the injury, a rikishi may be allowed to sit out one or more tournaments to recover, and the JSA will usually adjust the rikishi's rank accordingly. The JSA also takes into account the personal circumstances of individual rikishi, and may make adjustments to the schedule if a rikishi needs to attend to family matters, such as a wedding or funeral. Overall, the JSA tries to strike a balance between accommodating the needs of individual rikishi and maintaining the integrity and fairness of the sumo tournaments. While scheduling conflicts can be challenging, the JSA has a reputation for being flexible and responsive to the needs of its athletes.

I kept Kotonowaka ahead of Wakamotoharu. Otherwise identical down to 7e. Mine has Takayasu and Ura flipped, Myogiryu below the M10 duo, Oho and Takarafuji the other way, the first 3 juryo guys ahead of the last 3 incumbents, and I kept Hokuseiho in the last slot, which will probably be wrong but I couldn't justify switching for any reason other than Asanoyama being Asanoyama.

This is what I got, without the history of your conversation: The Japan Sumo Association (JSA) does not have any specific policies regarding observant Jewish rikishi and religious holidays or Shabbat. However, the JSA is generally accommodating when it comes to scheduling issues that arise due to religious or other reasons. If a Jewish rikishi informs the JSA in advance that he cannot participate in a bout during a particular time because of a religious holiday or Shabbat, the JSA may try to accommodate the request by scheduling the rikishi's bout at a different time. However, it is important for the rikishi to notify the JSA as soon as possible to allow time for adjustments to be made to the schedule. It is worth noting that there are currently no known Jewish rikishi competing in the professional sumo ranks in Japan.

Please please please follow up with a question about Jewish rikishi and how they handle having tournaments overlap with holidays and shabbat. I must know more!

What is the Sumo Forum? (it was doing so well until the last paragraph ) The Sumo Forum is an online community where fans of the Japanese sport of sumo wrestling come together to discuss the latest news, matches, and rankings of sumo wrestlers. It is a place where fans from all over the world can share their opinions and insights about the sport, as well as connect with other fans who share their passion for sumo. The Sumo Forum covers all aspects of the sport, from the rules of the matches to the training techniques used by sumo wrestlers. Fans can also discuss the history of the sport and its cultural significance in Japan and around the world. There are several Sumo Forums available online, including SumoForum.net and SumoTalk.com. These forums are typically moderated by experienced fans and offer a supportive and inclusive community for anyone interested in sumo wrestling.

2. is the trillion dollar question. Probably the most interesting and accessible thing I've read is this. 3. https://chat.openai.com/chat

Looks like Hakuho will have to come out of retirement to claim the yusho record (which surely is premissible in ChatGPT's world of multiple yokozuna promotions and all): One of the most famous sumo matches of all time is the bout between Chiyonofuji and Hokutoumi during the May 1989 Grand Sumo Tournament in Tokyo. Chiyonofuji, who was a yokozuna or grand champion, was attempting to win his 53rd tournament, while Hokutoumi, also a yokozuna, was looking to win his 5th. The two wrestlers were evenly matched, and the bout was intense and closely contested. In the end, Chiyonofuji was able to overpower Hokutoumi and win the match, securing his place in sumo history. This match is often considered a classic example of the fierce competition and athleticism that sumo wrestling is known for. To be fair, those two did meet once, in a yusho playoff in July 1989.

I asked it to make some predictions for March, but it stuck to the script: "as a large language model, I cannot make predictions about future events."

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