persona non grata

The rules appear quite simple. Step out of the ring. You lose. You fall. You lose. Still, you have six judges watching very closely. And they do not always agree. Neither does the excited audience. Hundreds of cushions fly and hit the judges. Their final say isn’t too popular. Temper temper. In a steaming Sumo arena even the extremely polite Japanese can lose it.

Day 14 of the tournament. Today the decision is made. Asashoryu, the Mongolian, leads. 12 wins. But Ama, another Mongolian, can still catch up. If he wins his match and Asashoryu loses his, on the next and final day of the tournament he can draw even. The Kokugikan – the Sumo arena – is sold out.

The first matches start around 9 in the morning. Hardly anyone bothers, though. Those are the Jonokuchi, the lowest ranks. Admittedly, their fights are not overly exciting. Rather than risking a thrown down most Jonokuchi opt for a step out of the dohyo - the wrestling ring. This is considered less embarrassing. Their fights are usually very quick and unspectacular.

The Juryo – the intermediate division – starts to draw more people in the early afternoon. But the seats do not really fill up until the Makuuchi – the highest ranking wrestlers – enter the arena. In their colourful aprons 42 giants march towards the sacred dohyo. May the clash of the titans begin.

Quite a few foreigners have made the upper ranks of Sumo. Mongolians, Russians, a Georgian and also one Bulgarian dude. The 23 year old Kotooshu – at home still known as Kaloyan Stafanov Mahlyanov – won 8 out of 13 fights of this tournament. Not his best score. But still - he is one of the most popular wrestlers this year. Not only girls favour Kotooshu, who – 204 cm and only 143 kilograms – really stands out. He is a grizzly amongst rhinos. Since Kotooshu was discovered – so the legend says – by the hairdresser of Sadogatake stable at a wrestling championship in Europe he has quickly climbed the ranks of Sumo. Back in Bulgaria they love him, too. The numbers of Japanese visitors to the country quadrupled since young Kaloyan Stafanov started wrestling in Japan. (Of course, no one bothers to consider whether four times an original number actually means a lot … it just sounds way too cool.)
The wrestlers may do a lot of sweating, bone bending, muscle twisting. But the load on the shoulders of the judges, especially the gyoji - the wiry ones inside the dohyo - is not to be underestimated. Sumo wrestlers are the real heavy guys. But once their weight’s put in motion they move incredibly fast. Judges need the eyes of hawks and the utmost concentration. Misjudgements are not easily brushed aside. Not by the audience. Not by the fellow judges. The four judges to every side of the dohyo watch not only the wrestlers. They also watch the gyoji. A senior judge is presiding over the four judges, the gyoji and their decisions. If necessary, he is also the one who explains their decisions to the audience. As with any spectator sport, the Sumo audience is not necessarily the most qualified but the fiercest judge of all. After an uncertain outcome of a Makuuchi fight the five judges climb into the ring and palaver. Then the senior judge picks up a microphone and announces that they disagree with the judgement of the gyoji. The result is reversed. And the gyoji will face a serious pay cut. The gyoji quickly leaves the hall. Disgraced. Half of the audience cheers, the other seems to feel sorry. Back in the days of old a gyoji payed even more dearly for a misjudgement. There was a reason they carried their ritual daggers.

The atmosphere in the Kokugikan is heating up. The final matches. The bald Russian Roho – who carries a funny fake of the traditional hairdos of the Sumo champions – is unlucky against Miyabiyama. Kotooshu throws his opponent Hakuho spectacularly. Ama loses his match. Now, the winner of the tournament – Asashoryu, again – is already decided. The crowd wants to see their champion beat Chiyotaikai anyway. Both wrestlers are well matched. Finally, Asashoryu manages to push Chiyotaikai out of the ring – and falls himself at very same moment. It was a fraction of a second earlier, in fact, that he lost his balance and hit the ground. So the gyoji decrees. The audience fumes. Seat cushions are thrown at the referee, litter the sacredness of the dohyo. The five judges from outside the ring meet under the roof of the dohyo. They discuss. The situation calms. The storm holds its breath. The judges declare Chiyotaikai the winner. The audience unleashes fury. Hundreds of cushions hit the ring, hit the judges, hit the sponsors in the first rows.

Probably … Japan has no fury like a Sumo fan crossed.

The Sumo tournaments in Tokyo are held in February, May and September. Each tournament lasts 15 days.

Pictures/words: Nimrod