[Maegashira Terminology]

If you're talking to Japanese you could additionally mention the term 筆頭.

Would that be read "fudegashira?" Is that a military term? Never seen in before. 勉強になりました！

[Jiko-shokai!]

Oh, also, I majored in Japanese in university, so I hope to help answer any language questions where needed!

[Book about Sumo Techniques/Training]

Thomas Zabel's book is basically the current North American Amateur sumo wrestling bible:

http://www.amazon.com/Sumo-Skills-Instructional-Guide-Competitive/dp/0991408608

It's not full of too much stuff that will surprise you if you're experienced, but it teaches you the basics of training (shiko, suriashi, etc) and illustrates how various kimarite are performed.

[Jiko-shokai!]

Hi all,

Just realized I made a post without introducing myself first. Hi! I'm about a year into training in amateur sumo in the Los Angeles area. I participated in the U.S. Sumo Open last September (which was where new Canadian recruit Brody Henderson won the openweight championship) and am planning on competing in the U.S. national tournament in Parkville, MO this June. I definitely enjoy being able to be more than just a spectator to the sumo world, as it's given me a chance to train with guys like Byambajav Ulambayar (former Daishochi) and also former maegashira Yamamotoyama.

Here was a piece on our club that got features on the syndicated show "American Latino:" (I'm Angel and I'm latino)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hO0nbYsBL1k

Looking forward to contributing to discussions where I can!

[Canadian Sumo Hope]

amateur sumo does not allow for tsuppari to the face, so yes, that will be a big adjustment.

Tsuppari is allowed. You're probably mixing it up with harite which isn't (in amateur sumo).

Hi there, yes, you're correct, I was referring to harite.

[Canadian Sumo Hope]

Hi there!

I train amateur sumo in the Los Angeles area, and have had a few chances to meet (and wrestle!) with Brody. He's a nice humble guy who seems to really enjoy doing sumo. I saw him win the openweight championship at the U.S. Sumo Open last September and he seemed really overjoyed, even surprised, given the stiff level of competition he faces, including multiple amateur sumo world champion Byambajav Ulambayar (former makushita Daishochi).

I think Brody's biggest challenge entering pro sumo will be keeping a positive attitude. Living as a professional sumo wrestler can be very tough, especially for someone that young that far from home. He's physically very tough, though, so I hope that helps him.

Regarding someone the above post's remark about tsuppari, amateur sumo does not allow for tsuppari to the face, so yes, that will be a big adjustment. One of the articles previously posted had a quote from Nishikido-oyakata saying that it was amusing to see Brody get tsuppari'd for the first time.

The unfortunate truth about amateur sumo, at least in North America, is that the competition is very poor. A lot of the people who compete are part-timers or dilletantes who decide to maybe do one or two tournaments because of the freak show appeal of saying they do sumo. It's hard to find the support to maintain any kind of dojo for training regularly, and a lot of the people who WOULD be more dedicated if they could are scattered across different states. That's often why Byamba runs roughshod over the competition in North American tournaments (they don't mention in the articles that Brody lost in the heavyweight category of that same tournament despite winning openweight), because most of the people he faces just don't train often enough to put up any kind of fight. So Brody is going to encounter a whole different level of competition and it might be a big shock.

I wish all the best for Brody, and look forward to following his development. If sumo doesn't work out, I know a few pro wrestling promoters who'd like to make him just as successful as John Tenta was.