London koen- October 2025

[Godango 1,092]

I always make sure to watch NHK World's live broadcasts via either the app or in browser on the days they do them (usually days 1/8/15 for the second hour of Makuuchi -- sometimes others). If we want them to know there is a market, we need to make sure what they give us has high viewership.

[Heather82Cs 15]

3 hours ago, Godango said:

I always make sure to watch NHK World's live broadcasts via either the app or in browser on the days they do them (usually days 1/8/15 for the second hour of Makuuchi -- sometimes others). If we want them to know there is a market, we need to make sure what they give us has high viewership.

There must have been a TV or TV browser update at some point that made it impossible for me to watch that second hour. I'll start watching and then at some point the video quality starts decaying and then the stream lags, stops etc.  I have to have the laptop ready to go to make sure I don't miss a bout.

[RabidJohn 2,069]

12 hours ago, Jakusotsu said:

Are you sure that kosho also applied for injuries suffered during a koen? I honestly don't know...

Maybe that's what they meant by 'official' back then.

[John Gunning 3,719]

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2025/10/22/sumo/sumo-albert-hall-london/

[Yamanashi 4,076]

On 20/10/2025 at 16:32, Koorifuu said:

Fair.

To me, it felt Kotoeiho and Oshoumi went in there with a clear assignment, but Shishi and Hitoshi just happened to go with the flow.

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?"

 

[Koorifuu 1,120]

https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/article/sumo-champion-hoshoryu-fulfils-stamford-bridge-dream

Mainstream sports are taking notice.

[Reonito 1,781]

It even made the NYT (well, the Athletic): https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6723187/2025/10/18/wrestling-sumo-grand-tournament-london/

[Kajiyanosho 66]

 

7 minutes ago, Reonito said:

It even made the NYT (well, the Athletic): https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6723187/2025/10/18/wrestling-sumo-grand-tournament-london/

Well, the other host (James Richardson) works for The Athletic! It was a big success in terms of media coverage.

Massive success for the BBC also on social media. And not just for "viral" moments but also many actual bouts like Takayasu's tsuppari or Aonishiki's win vs Ura.

We'll see what impact this huge coverage will have on actual following. 

 

[Akinomaki 41,812]

Return of group B

o ooo

oo  o o o

o o

o o oo

o o oo  

o oo

oo oo

[Akinomaki 41,812]

A quite short London koen digest from the NSK

sumochannel000 playlist youtube.com/playlist?list=PL60ei_akshMiK0iGAc7No0Oc0BVhaGzBf

Edited Thursday at 09:22 by Akinomaki

[Vancouver BC Sumo Fan 69]

I'm a little late to the party here as I couldn't finish watching until last night, but my comments are...

I loved every moment of it. Every. Moment. I have zero complaints about anything. I didn't believe the marketing and knew this would be like jungyo. I'm 100% fine with that. 

I would gladly pay money dollars to have Hiro do 9 hours of commentary on sumo match days--literally almost anything would be better than listening to frickin Leo Dickinson, the only stream that meets my needs of being on youtube, helping with new names, and being available to watch afterwards--and enjoyed his sense of fun. I also did indeed by that same SUMO jacket when I visited the Kokugikan. Had a good "ME TOO!!!" laugh when I saw him wearing it.

The real joy here for me though was seeing the rikishi in and around London, a city I once called home, and one I'm sure many people from the west have visited and know better than, say Nagoya (which is an alright city). Seeing the guys in a whole new context for them that was so familiar was ...just the best time.

Thank you to everyone who shared photos. <3 

[Asojima 2,874]

8 hours ago, Akinomaki said:

A quite short London koen digest from the NSK

sumochannel000 playlist youtube.com/playlist?list=PL60ei_akshMiK0iGAc7No0Oc0BVhaGzBf

Did anyone notice that there is not a bandage or knee brace in sight.  Playground pseudo sumo.

[Bunbukuchagama 974]

1 hour ago, Asojima said:

Did anyone notice that there is not a bandage or knee brace in sight.  Playground pseudo sumo.

 Not a single scratch or a bloody nose or a post-bout limp. This was 100% exhibition sumo.

[Bunbukuchagama 974]

3 hours ago, Vancouver BC Sumo Fan said:

I would gladly pay money dollars to have Hiro do 9 hours of commentary on sumo match days

Let's not get carried away... 

[RabidJohn 2,069]

5 hours ago, Vancouver BC Sumo Fan said:

I would gladly pay money dollars to have Hiro do 9 hours of commentary on sumo match days...

I'm not here to kink-shame sado-masochism, but that's certainly the strangest one I've ever heard of.

[Vancouver BC Sumo Fan 69]

I said what I said. I like Hiro. You guys have your laugh if that's what you need though. I'm cool.

[Fashiritētā 213]

Hiro does tend to be over the top annoying, a day with Murray would have been nice.

[Kishinoyama 625]

Even though I don’t understand very much of the Japanese language, I prefer to hear the Japanese announcers. 
 

Of all of the English announcers, Murray is by far my favorite and Hiro is my least favorite. Hiro’s vocal tone is grating to me and he also talks too much for my liking.

 

 

 

[Oshirokita 198]

I watched a little of the London Koen where I could on YouTube. I did find the ceremony entertaining but the matches seemed so obviously non-competitive that I had no excitement as to who won or lost. There was a torinaoshi that was so blantantly staged as the two rikishi made certain to step outside the ring simultaneously. This was presumably to show the audience some nuance of the possibilities of what can happen, but was too "fake" for me.

i had previously gone to one day at the Sumo Canada Basho in Vancouver and all three days of the Las Vegas sumo event. Perhaps I was more naive then, but those earlier events seemed more competitive and entertaining in my memory. Regardless, if I lived in London, I would have gladly paid to see it in person and buy lots of swag.

One day in the not so distant future, I would love to go to Japan to see a honbasho in person (but as a gaijin non-Japanese speaker it might be a while before I can figure out how to get tickets, let alone coordinate a full vacation plan).

[Jakusotsu 6,392]

8 hours ago, Kishinoyama said:

Of all of the English announcers, Murray is by far my favorite and Hiro is my least favorite.

No love for Ross Mihara? He's my favourite.

[RabidJohn 2,069]

Murray=Ross>Hiro>Raja

Now I've gotten over the cringe schtick, I enjoy Hiro's 'Sumo Prime Time'. He does a great job and his enthusiasm for sumo is undeniable. His live commentary at honbasho is clichéd, but good enough.

After the sheer dishonesty of his commentary at the Royal Albert Hall, I kind of admire his brass neck, but I wish I'd had the option to mute him.

Edited Friday at 11:28 by RabidJohn

[Tsuchinoninjin 1,291]

3 hours ago, Jakusotsu said:

No love for Ross Mihara? He's my favourite.

My wife still calls sekiwake as sekiwacky because he said it one time.

[Octofuji 431]

5 hours ago, RabidJohn said:

His live commentary at honbasho is clichéd

The Cambridge Dictionary definition of cliché is "a phrase that has very often been said or expressed before".

Hiro gets accused of a lot of things but no-one can deny his unique take on the English language .

I agree with you on everything else, his energy levels are amazing for someone approaching 60. His Saturday night spiel was virtually word-for-word the same as when I watched on TV on Wednesday, so his memory must be pretty good too.

[RabidJohn 2,069]

36 minutes ago, Octofuji said:

The Cambridge Dictionary definition of cliché is "a phrase that has very often been said or expressed before".

"And that's all she wrote," for example.

There are others, some of his own invention, that he uses over and over.

I thought 'clichéd' sounded nicer than 'hackneyed'.

[Octofuji 431]

17 minutes ago, RabidJohn said:

"And that's all she wrote," for example.

There are others, some of his own invention, that he uses over and over.

I thought 'clichéd' sounded nicer than 'hackneyed'.

Fair enough, "and that's all she wrote" is one of Raja's too. I was a little disappointed we didn't get any "trickeration" last week.