Questions about university sumo

[Katooshu 3,317]

Recruitment

1. Do the universities approach the rikishi (I'm not sure if this term is supposed to be used for amateurs, but it'll do here) when they're in high school and make offers, or do the rikishi apply to the universities with their sumo credentials and get responses back?

Incidentally, I'm also curious about whether rikishi have to apply (again, like offering a resume) to be accepted at the top high schools like Saitama Sakae, or whether they just try out once they're already in the school.

2. What are the type of factors that lead rikishi to one university but not the other?

How the programs run

3. How do the sumo programs generally work? Do the athletes tend to live together? Do they fit practices (and how many) between full-times studies, or are they essentially living a life of sumo with some coursework thrown in?

I noticed in interviews with the Toyo team from last year that they were all in the law program (Mitakeumi was too), which made me wonder if they all get enrolled in law because it is set up in a way that allows them to practice more.By the way, this site contains a lot of posts and pictures about the Toyo team over the last few years, and includes many off the dohyo pictures of Mitakeumi during his amateur days.

Competition

4. What is the significance of each position in team competition? So, for example, in 5 vs 5, is the last position generally assigned to the best rikishi, because that is the one spot where a group win can be on the line for both teams?

Any help would be appreciated, and I'm sure there is quite a bit of variance....

 

Edited August 20, 2017 by Katooshu

[mikawa 1,794]

As far as I know, the rikishis from high school apply to the universities that they want to attend, with their reputation for sumo being a major considering factor. I believe that club members don't actually live together, but they do spend a lot of time together for practice and meals. In Toyo University's case, they have keiko daily from Tuesdays to Sundays each week. The team positions are decided by their coaches, and are mainly arbitrary (except for the 5th position being in deciding bouts and possibly the 1st position being in opening bouts).