Olenishiki

Like other art forms through the last century and this, sumo has passed into postmodernism. Yaocho, both real and imagined. Henka. It's sumo ironically commenting on itself. Those of us who love music and literature and visual arts as well as sumo have seen all this before.

I've been away and missed most of the yaocho talk, including the controversial one started by serv that's now closed. There's one point that hasn't been mentioned that seems to me to exclude any serious yaocho charges. If Asashoryu was determined to make Hakuho a yokozuna, why in the world would he let his heya-mate, Asasekiryu, effectively stifle that effort on the first day? Let Hakuho have full credit for beating Asa. It's the only thing that makes sense of day one.

Many thanks to all involved! You can't have too much to read about sumo. And your articles are always particularly interesting. (Sign of approval)

To me it reads more like a diary of a mad man. Sorry The essence of good writing is to be able to talk to the page (or screen) as naturally as you talk to a friend sitting before you. No matter what the tone or mood or emotional valence. SalParadise seems to me to have a natural, personal story-telling voice-on-the-page. Which means it was well written. (I was stupid...) (Holiday feeling...)

But if it wasn't the decision he was upset about, what was it? There was absolutely nothing that Tochinonada did to provoke Kokkai's ire. And the context of the initial reaction clearly had to do with his thinking he'd won. But it wasn't just an expectation of a mono-ii and that was the end of it. Kokkai's visible piss-offedness went on and on and on, all the way down the hanamichi.

The sordid thing about Kokkai's glowering after the bout, it seems to me, was that it was apparently directed at the judging. The tachiai was straight-forward, the maneuvering was clean, but it looked as if Kokkai thought there should be a mono-ii. That was the galling thing. How in the world did he persist in thinking--after the in-the-zone heat of battle, with no view of his or his opponent's feet--that he was in a position to question the shimpans' decision? (And can I add, as an aside, a vote for the most wonderful after-the-bout, technically-speaking-inappropriate show of facial emotion? The classically composed Takanohana's extraordinary facial contortion of triumph after beating Musashimaru fully 24 hours (or was it even 48?) after sustaining a leg injury so severe that it would eventually end his career. That win and that look was one of the greatest moments in sports history--any sport.)

Thanks, SalParadise, for a fascinating (and well-written) tale. (Applauding...)

It may not be the first time, but by my memory, henka from Dejima is very rare. I have the same impression. But I think his rare use has been striking. I don't remember the exact instances, but I do have the strong impression that they were as nasty as this one. This was in my early years of following sumo (and I probably didn't even know what henka was back then) but didn't he henka Akebono for Yusho back in 99? I think you're right. And didn't he henka Chiyotaikai just last March? Chiyo sure thought so. (Remember the extra shove?)

This is a rather interesting comment I think. A year and a half ago me and Maguroyama discussed Chiyotaikai's "deader than dead" basho quotes and counted the days to his retirement. This comment rather sounds as if it comes from some 23-year-old new Ozeki just burning for learning new things to apply in the future... Maybe just a one-off, but interesting notwithstanding... (Clapping wildly...) And he's been trying consistently to do straight-ahead sumo--even with the massive Baruto and even after Baruto's henka injured him.

(Clapping wildly...) Maybe Buyuzan will pull a Henka on him! (Laughing...) (Henka!!!) Or maybe he'll pull a henka on Buyuzan. For all his glowering and posturing about having it done to him, he himself has done it before. :-/

It may not be the first time, but by my memory, henka from Dejima is very rare. I have the same impression. But I think his rare use has been striking. I don't remember the exact instances, but I do have the strong impression that they were as nasty as this one. If I had this impression, I'd think a well-prepared rikishi would too. I'm a long-time and faithful but satellite-remote observer of this great sport, so this isn't a rhetorical question: Do the better rikishi keep at least mental notes on the fighting particularities of their opponents, rather like the better baseball pitchers and batters carefully study each other's strengths and weaknesses?

As always, thanks so much for these translations! (Clapping wildly...) Just wondering. Do you have any sense, from the sources you work with, whether Dejima declined to say anything for himself after that particularly heinous henka? Or was he hiding from the press? Or didn't anyone ask the question? (By the way, as bad as it was, it's true that Tamanoshima should have kept his eyes open. I don't think this is the first time that Dejima has done this.)

In spite of his banged-up body, in spite of his size, in spite of what some us might think is a certain predictability in his small-man's tachiai, today he quite elegantly picks Tosanoumi up and puts him out. This is why we love the guy. (Poking the other guy...)

Don't get me wrong. I adore his "big-man" sumo. It's a big part of why I like him so much. But it wouldn't devalue that aspect of his sumo if he mixed in a rare but often-enough-to-be-a-threat off-center tachiai. It would make his straight-ahead sumo even more effective.

That's the only thing I can call some of Mainoumi's most spectacular moves! He would basically leap up and over his opponent.