Injured But Competing?

Readers will note that we have been following with great interest the story of Goeido’s injury on day 12 of Hatsubasho against Endo. It was clear the Ozeki, and Aki tournament winner, was seriously hurt in that bout. Later stories surfaced of significant damage to the Osaka native’s ankle, possibly requiring hardware to repair.

Now according to the Japanese sumo press, Goeido’s injuries were worse than originally feared, including a report of torn ligaments. As a result Goeido has been off of his ankle since his injury, and has not been able to take full training. He has compensated by focusing on his upper body only, doing push-ups, dumbells and other strength training that did not require him to stand.

In spite of his injuries and the slow nature of their recovery times, Goeido is quoted in the article as still intending to compete in Osaka. Goeido is a home-town favorite, and his zensho yusho in September only made him more of a star.

With the banzuke announcement only a few days away, we will soon see which of the damaged rikishis are going to be in, and who will have to sit.