Nihon Daigaku (Nichidai: 日大) presented Oitekaze stablemates, Daieisho and Tsurugisho, with some brand spanking new kesho mawashi. Tsurugisho graduated from Nichidai before entering Grand Sumo but Daieisho entered a graduate program there last April. (I’m always glad when athletes are making plans for their post-athletics careers. So props to Daieisho.)
As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, Tsurugisho is already the owner of an awesome Momotaro kesho mawashi. Well, his new one doesn’t feature the eponymous folk hero who was birthed from a peach. [Pause here while Andy recovers from a giggle fit.] “I swear all those old stories are dirty.“
Instead, it features Daikokuten, one of the Seven Gods of Fortune which I have written about in the past. Remember the boat (Takarabune)? Daikokuten is generally shown with his hammer (uchide no kozuchi 打ち出の小槌). In Daieisho’s old kesho mawashi, which, coincidentally, is the one I wrote about with the beautiful sakura and Takarabune, Daikokuten is the one at the very front of the boat. The playful portrait here — this time on Momotaro’s apron — is in keeping with Tsurugisho’s jovial personality. Meanwhile, Daieisho’s new kit features an amazing image of a distant Mount Fuji framed by sakura (cherry blossoms). I look forward to seeing both of these new mawashi on the dohyo in May.
The designer of these kesho mawashi is Tanaka Yuko, vice-chairman of the Female Sumo Federation in Japan and was presented to the pair by her and her husband, Tanaka Hidetoshi, chairman of Nichidai, vice-president of the Japanese Olympic Committee among other key positions in the amateur sumo and sports-world.
Speaking of Oitekaze, what have they been putting in the power water over there? Of the 20-odd wrestlers, six are sekitori, five of them in makuuchi! And Endo isn’t even heyagashira! Daieisho’s yusho, Tsurugisho’s juryo yusho…kensho and special prizes galore!
These are really, really, really, really good
That Fuji with sakura is a stunner.
The kesho mawashi fascinate me. I’m always trying to get glimpses as the rikishi enter and leave the opening ceremony. The subject matter varies from the sublime to the silly. I’d like to find more information regarding their history, creation, or peachy stories – with photos of course! Thank you for this.
I recently saw that sumo in Russia has started using kesho mawashi, too.
Thank you for the excellent feedback. I enjoy researching the back stories on these. There’s a series of them from Endo which I’m researching at the moment and I just saw a new one for Tochinoshin.
Enjoyed the write up. Always fun to hear some of the culture that surrounds the action. Thanks.