The prolific John Gunning brings us another great piece of sumo writing in the Japan Times. For today’s article, he shares a fantastic peek behind the scenes of NHK’s English language sumo broadcasts. It seems the English language audio track started in 1992 after the jungyo went to London, and people begged NHK for more accessible coverage. The article is loaded with amazing facts and tidbits, including the news that Raja Pradhran was a flight attendant before joining NHK, and becoming a favorite for rikishi practice ballast.

It’s also great to note that Hiro Morita is pushing for broader coverage, and John references an idea to put cameras in the tawara to give fans what would be a most interesting view of action. Well worth the time to read.