Sumo Fan Magazine runs a tribute to the retiring Yokozuna (read: king of the world) Asashoryu.
The first story is about him at his peak in 2007. In the second story, Chris Gould relates the reasons why he believes Asashoryu’s demise was inevitable. The last article is just a collection of quotes from people “on the street” about what they think about the retirement of Asashoryu.
For some back story, in Sumo once you reach the highest rank, Yokozuna, you keep it for life. It’s as much an honorary title as anything else. Asashoryu has become one of only 2 Yokozuna’s to be effectively stripped of that rank in over 250 years. The reason: Bad behavior.
Now for us Americans, we wouldn’t think much of the guys antics. He’s arrogant, hot tempered, prone to fights, disrespecting his opponents, and generally doesn’t give a shit what anyone else thinks about it. Sound familiar? He sounds American!
Nearly ALL of our professional athletes would fit most of that description. If Asashoryu was a Basketball player here, he’d fit right in. But, in Japan, his behavior is seen as an affront to the cultural harmony of the whole of Japan. Sumo is their national sport. The Yokozuna are moral standard bearers of the country, of every Japanese individual. They represent them all. At least that’s the belief.
As such, he had to go.
The trouble for the Sumo Association of Japan, however, is that Asashoryu is like the Michael Jordan of the Sumo. The dude is amazing. He brings in massive amounts of money. And letting him go means letting go of a lot of money. Not an easy choice.
I’m personally not comfortable with stripping him of his title. But, I’m American, and I find his antics funny. I have no interest in hanging out with the guy, but at least he’s fun to watch.
The good news for the Sumo Association is that they have a number of guys coming up the pipeline. One of whom is my favorite Sumo player, Kotooshu (the Bulgarian). Kotooshu is everything that Asashoryu is not. Most importantly, he is considered Humble (at least he comes across that way in public). And he is quite popular. He’s beaten Asashoryu, and I think he could make Yokozuna if he works hard enough. We’ll see.
But, not all Japanese are for his retirement:
‘I really respect Asashoryu for living his life the way he wants to live it. I wish I could live like him.’
And another,
‘I thought he was an exciting yokozuna and it is very sad news that he has decided to retire. Sumo attendances will probably decrease because of this.’
Finally, here’s a recent match between Baruto (from Estonia) and Asashoryu.
And a discussion about it by Jasonryu
Do you know what you’re talking about? Asashoryu was not “stripped” of his rank. Where did you get that information? He retired, was not espelled, and will continue to hold the rank of Yokozuna in the record books and in real life. In fact, he is getting quite a nice retirement bonus, as all yokozuna do. Please don’t muddy the facts.
the quote comes from the article in Sumo Fan Magazine:
It may seem like semantics, but his forced retirement is unique except for Rikishi, and effectively amounts to a stripping of the rank of Yokozuna. But, I can see what you’re saying. It’s not like we’ll stop refering to him that way, nor will the history books just ignore that he was one of the greatest Yokozuna to ever play the sport.
So, in light of this, I’ll edit above to include the word “effectively”.
Thanks. While I still don’t agree that he “lost his rank”, I thank you for publishing my opinion and considered perception, particularly based on my years of involvement with the sumo community and as one of the original editors of Sumo Fan Magazine. I believe that most sumo experts would disagree with that statement in SFM.
Sure, I’m always game for opinions on how I can improve things.