Swami

Terrible news and a huge loss. Couldn't believe it when I heard it yesterday morning, I was driving to work and they were playing "Dead Ringer for Love" on the radio before the news. Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Happy New Year and hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Happy birthday and hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty congratulations one and all from the Swami! Swami

Happy birthday and hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

I remember a great bout between Daishoyama and Mainoumi, ending in a great nage battle, Mainoumi lost as his mage touched the dohyo. Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Given their age, that is probably true. The worst thing about the Eurosport coverage was the awful commentary by Syd Hoare. Otherwise it was OK while it lasted. But Lyall Watson was superb with the C4 coverage. Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

It was ironic that after the Albert Hall in 1991 UK's sumo coverage rapidly fizzled out when, in my opinion, there was plenty of mileage left in it. Maybe this might rekindle a bit of enthusiasm in the powers that be. Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! I first got into sumo in the late 1980s when the UK's Channel 4 took a bold leap in showing highlights from usually the Aki Basho - albeit with hindsight for a far too brief period of time. I could never understand why they lost interest all of a sudden, especially after the successful London Koen in 1991. It was a great era of sumo with Chiyonofuji and his awesome technique, though generally the standard of sumo was much higher than at any time in the 15/20 years. With the exception of the relatively few lightweights now, what used to be fairly common techniques (utchari, tsuridashi) have all but gone. Far too much use of henka for my liking. Swami

He showed some promise on his way up to juryo, but not to the degree that had some thinking he was the next big hope. Unless he improves dramatically from that first day showing, I don't see him going much higher. Quite enough some ex-college rikishi breeze through the ranks and then hit the wall, either at juryo or at makunouchi, so Hokuseiho's case is slightly different. Someone previously compared him to a young Akebono but I disagree. Akebono worked very hard to keep his hips as low as possible, arguably that was Akebono at his best between 1990 and 1993 before injuries and too much weight on top affected his balance adversely. Swami

Hokuseiho looked absolutely pathetic and clueless. For all those claiming he's the great hope, I'd be amazed if he goes much higher in juryo. Gawky, no technique and cumbersome. Swami

Hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

They weren't the day I bought them! Swami

Yes, that's the drawback with hard copies. I got excellent bookcases from IKEA a few years ago, and they're full - I didn't expect them to fill so quickly! Swami

Hard copies still have their place, though. I have a very good book collection, even if I say so myself. Swami

For me it is a game called SongPop on my iphone. Swami

Happy birthday and hearty salutations from the Swami! Swami

Hearty congratulations from the Swami! Swami