Japanese sports news outlets report that Nakagawa oyakata is facing either a “recommendation to retire” or a dismissal, following a case of verbal abuse.
The compliance committee has already investigated the case, and the decision on the punishment is expected to be made as part of the board meeting planned for July 13th.
However, the heya’s wrestlers have already been seen preparing for a move.
It also appears that the rikishi will not be moved as one unit to another heya, but rather distributed among several heya. Furthermore, it appears some of them will choose retirement.
At the moment, not many details are known about the incident. It appears the oyakata made remarks toward a deshi which can be construed as “power harassment” as the Japanese define it. Another rikishi has recorded the incident and passed the recorded material to the NSK.
Sources:
This is very disappointing but I’m sure the pressures of the last few months have been significant. It is very sad to see careers come to an end in scandal, yet again.
Yes. I’m waiting to see if more details about this are gradually revealed. For example – how long the abuse has been going on.
Wasn’t this the same beya that came about after another stable fell apart after the oyakata got into legal trouble? Pretty sure it wasn’t even that long ago. Feel bad for the wreslers who have had their careers put into flux repeatedly.
Yes, it was Kasugayama beya, and the former Hamanishiki, who was Kasugayama oyakata, got into a long legal battle with the former owner of the heya, and eventually had to quit because he couldn’t prove he obtained the kabu properly. Nakagawa took the heya to prevent it from being disbanded.
Sponichi hints at some sort of friction between the rikishi who were recruited by the Nakagawa and those who were “inherited” from Kasugayama.
Power harassment… Kudos to any wrestler who can survive those with a stunted emotional growth.
What exactly does “power harassment” mean? Harassment based on rank? Abuse of power? Particularly strong harassment?
Abuse of power, mostly. Harassment by superiors towards underlings.
One newspaper claims that the harassment in this case was repeated discriminatory remarks.
And here the other i was looking exactly that that big number on the “Day without scandal” counter and i was thinking “Hum….maybe we should just retire it. Anyway, with this year, it’s the whole 2020 who is a total scandal in itself.” Let’s face it, this year suck ! Well, in general. If you understand what i mean. -_-
Because of all that, i was thinking that no one would be enough stupid to do something worthy of a “scandal”. Everyone already have it rought enough. Buuut, seem i was wrong.
Waaaaa ???? I surely didn’t expect to read something like this today.
Also…immediatly force retirement or dismissal ?!? Damn ! I don’t know how severe was the verbal abuse but…they surely didn’t went with it with putting their white glove.
Guess because especially of the social hard time the society and the sumo association is living in, they just thought they didn’t want any of that bullshit right now they dropped down the guillotine expeditively.
No warning, fine or anything. Bam!
I assume they can just….keep the heya and just replace the coach in question no ? I don’t know. Don’t heya have multiple coach ?
I don’t know if it isn’t the COVID-related stress that brought on this scandal.
One of the articles mentioned that oyakata are held to a higher standard than sekitori w.r.t. the new violence code. That is, we know the standard is higher for sekitori than lower-ranked rikishi, and higher for Yokozuna than rank-and-file sekitori, etc., and apparently oyakata, who are supposed to be role models, are held to more severe standards.
Not every heya has more than one oyakata. Additional oyakata are usually the heya’s old sekitori, but in this case, the heya hasn’t had a sekitori in ages. It has an odd history. It used to be Kasugayama beya, but the old Kasugayama got involved in scandal and had to retire, and the heya went to the former Hamanishiki who became Kasugayama oyakata… but actually couldn’t pay the old Kasugayama for all that, got into a legal battle with him, and ended up not having a proof that he actually owned the Kasugayama name. So he was forced to retire as well. Nakagawa was a secondary oyakata at Oitekaze beya was charged with the heya and it became Nakagawa beya, but there was a rikishi mutiny and about 14 of them retired, possibly more because of the departure of Kasugayama-Hamanishiki than because of Nakagawa himself,
They could, in theory, find somebody who is free, but it requires an ability to come up with an actual heya – the heya building itself does not belong to the NSK but to Nakagawa himself (I don’t know if he owns or rents the property, but anyway, they can’t just give it to someone else – that someone has to come up with his own building or funds to get this one). Also, some of the articles hint at friction between the wrestlers who were “inherited” from Kasugayama and the ones who were recruited by Nakagawa himself.
Wooow! Herouth. Thank a lot!!
This is such a story. I’m stunned.
I learned a lot today.
I think you’re onto something with the stress theory. Finally looks like he’s getting a sekitori, which likely means increased liabilities and spending in the near future, but fundraising and sponsorship opportunities crippled by pandemic craziness.
I think you have that backwards – having a sekitori in your heya is a source of increased income and prestige. Of course senshuraku parties etc. are limited, but still, expenses like kesho-mawashi are supporter-paid. More people are likely to join a heya’s koen-kai when there is a sekitori involved, etc.
When I said “stress” I mostly meant the stress of being cooped together in the heya for these past months.
I would agree with you in normal times but in these times when fansa is cutoff, I would think the boon wouldn’t be big enough right now. Those paltry kenshokin stacks in March were depressing. The greatest yokozuna of all time getting two envelopes?
Still, I don’t see anybody starving at Miyagino beya, do you? The Yokozuna keeps treating everybody to yakiniku every week.
(I hope when they are talking about some of the Nakagawa rikishi moving off-ichimon they mean Kasugaryu will get to join his Yokozuna. At the very least it will be more convenient for him than traveling from Kawasaki every time the Yokozuna needs his
diaperrope changed).In any case, I don’t think a sekitori incurs too much expense compared to the low rankers. And they get paid a salary so don’t need to beg the okami-san for extras.
Also, he is not getting one any time soon. Assuming Kyokusoten manages a kachi-koshi at this rank (which is a big if because with his lack of girth he mostly relies on Aminishikiesque tawara dances), at #6 he has a low chance of making it in September unless there is a general disaster in Juryo. He’ll probably need to wait until Kyushu (?) to switch from cotton to silk wedgies. As for Yoshii, it’s more or less the same. He is not in the range at all at the moment, but can put himself in that position by November. By then they may well have more fansa opportunities.
It will be interesting to see who gets the very promising youngster Yoshii.
Tokitsukaze beya.