sumojoann

I may be the lone voice in Sumo Land but I still think he is going to retire very soon. I was very surprised that he didn't announce it at the end of the Kyushu basho. So, I think there are 5 possiblilties, the 5th one of which I don't agree with --------------- 1) He will announce his retirement by the end of this year. 2) He will announce his retirement after the Hatsu basho if he injures or re-injures himself during keiko prior to the start of the Hatsu basho. 3) He will announce his retirement after the Hatsu basho iif or when he goes kyujo during the Hatsu basho. 4) He will announce his retirement at the end of the Hatsu basho for any other reason. 5) He will keep going for an undetermined number of bashos in 2016. (I'm sorry that I'm not really answering the poll, but I just can't get beyond thoughts #'s 1 through 4). I suppose he could always retire and join a circus, where his antics might be more appreiciated! Oh, I know!! He could be the first Yokozuna that does that sumo comedy routine (Is it called Shokkuri or something like that?). He would be great!! He wouldn't have to memorize the routine. He seems to be pretty good at improvising. Yeah!!

Why do I get the feeling that if Hakuho wins this yusho, he will announce his retirement during the post-yusho interview? After he wins his bout and then sits on the floor next to the dohyo, he generally has a neutral look on his face. This basho seems to me to be noticeably different. The first two days, he had a peculiar look on his face, almost disturbed-looking. After the first two days, he still looked like he had a lot on his mind. But yesterday after his bout with Goeido, he sat on the floor with a strange, bittersweet look on his face, almost as if he was reminiscing. I watched the live broadcast on TV Japan. The cameraman lingered for a very long time on Hakuho's face. It was awash with emotion. There were obviously a lot of thoughts and feelings occurring simultaneously. It almost seemed like he was reflecting on his whole career or life itself. I do not believe this had anything whatsoever to do with his bout with Goeido. Hakuho's face has always been very expressive, which can at times be frightening. At other times, his vulnerability can be moving. His happiness a joy to witness. But to see him lost in thought and close to tears as he sat next to the dohyo after his bout yesterday, made me wonder if a life-changing event in his life was about to occur. An event connected with sumo. There are those, perhaps, who know what is really going on. They can say that I am wrong, which I may very well be. They can be dismissive and say that I am being merely speculative. Perhaps so. There are those who don't know, who can say the same things about what I am writing here. Maybe you are right. But being kyujo for most of the Aki basho gave him plenty of time to think hard about his present life and focus on his future. He had the luxury of time away from the dohyo to think and thinking can result in a change in priorities or direction. Let's see what happens.................

There is a Hakuho version of this bath towel. To get an idea of what the towel actually looks like, you can see the Hakuho version on Amazon.co.jp. Using English, type Hakuho Bath Towel in the search box. Harumafuji's bath towel is almost identical except he's facing the other way. To the left, there are thumbnail photos of Hakuho's towel that you can click on. Cool, huh?

Does your wife already have the "official" Harumafuji bath towel? If not, she would LOVE to be dried off with it! My husband bought one for me at the 2013 (I think) Nagoya basho. A year ago, I saw them still being sold at the Kokugikan during the Aki basho. On the towel, Harumafuji is dressed as a Yokozuna and has a soulful look on his face. Even better, whoever did the artwork left off his acne scars!! The towel is 42 inches by 24 inches and Harumafuji takes up the whole towel from top to bottom. If your wife does not have this towel, I can contact 2 sumo friends of mine in Japan to see if they know where to get one. They are both Ebay sellers and one of them had listed this towel probably over a year ago. Maybe they might know where to get one. You can let me know. I'm pretty good at finding stuff. I would consider selling you my towel but it's used. When is your anniversary? It would be helpful to know if you're pressed for time or not. You are a cool husband!

Uhhhh...............He DID win the yusho, didn't he? Why isn't anyone else commenting??

Unbelievable!!! A torinaoshi with Kisenosato, and then Hakuho won his 33rd!!! Zensho yusho!!!

YAY, HAKUHO DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This video is hilarious!! However, I hope they don't start stage-diving or crowd-surfing. And they'd better not jump into a mosh pit or they might get their mawashi torn off!!

CORRECTION---------------- The above quote from the Sumo Santa card should read "For 363 days...." NOT "For 365 days..." We all know what Santa was doing the other 2 days!

8. I nominate SANTA CLAUS to be a sumo wrestler!!!! I found this great Sumo Santa card on Zazzle.com. The artist is Keith Garletts. At the top of the card, it reads: FOR 365 DAYS OF THE YEAR, SANTA TRAINED FOR HIS TRUE PASSION...BECOMING A YOKOZUNA! You can get small note cards, medium-size greeting cards and even a large 8 1/2 X 11 greeting card. (Dear moderator: Please forgive the commercial. This card is so cool and so sumo that I had to show it off!)

6. My husband treated me to a special "Sumo Trip" to watch the last 8 days of the Aki basho this past Sept. I was able to watch my favorite, Hakuho, as well as the other Makuuchi rikishi, some of the Juryo, and the occasional Makushita (Ishiura). I first got interested in sumo in March 2013 and soon became hooked. The Aki basho was my first "live" basho. Every day was exciting but when Hakuho defeated Ichinojo, the entire Kokugikan erupted. For 5 minutes, the crowd screamed, shouted, cheered and clapped. The atmosphere was electrifying!! The highlight of my trip was meeting Hakuho at his stable on Day 12. It was such a privilege to watch him train for an hour. He practiced mainly tachi-ai, using a hapless, short, low-ranked rikishi as his "opponent". Hakuho slammed him into the wall again and again. Finally, the poor rikishi could no longer hide the terror in his eyes. Hakuho patted him on the arm to reassure him, but then slammed into him some more. Afterwards, Hakuho talked to the assembled news media for about 10 min, and then I was introduced. I knew my chances of meeting him were small but I prepared ahead of time anyway. I speak very little Japanese and knowing he speaks barely any English, I decided to learn some Mongolian phrases!! I was able to say in Mongolian, "Hello, how are you?, My name is Joann, I have come from America, from Texas. It's nice to meet you, I admire you a lot." Then, I said (still in Mongolian), "You are very handsome!" He groaned loudly (probably embarrassed) and looked away momentarily but I think he secretly liked it. Hakuho was polite, reserved but not particularly friendly. I don't think he quite knew what to make of me, a 65-year-old American female sumo fanatic, with him being my favorite. He looked at me apprehensively, once while training and when we were introduced. At first, I thought it was dread, but I think he was apprehensive for some reason, maybe because he thought that "Granny" was going to criticize him about something! What a morning! The highlight of my trip, of course. Later in the day, he went on to defeat Kisenosato.

How can a fan in America make a donation to Kakuryu's heya or koenkai to help him get his kesho mawashi set? Sumo Jo