Author: Herouth

A day of ropes at Isegahama beya

Herouth Terunofuji (照ノ富士), Yokozuna (横綱) , , ,
Image: Ajigawa oyakata

Yesteday, Ajigawa oyakata tipped us off about a tsuna-uchi taking place at Isegahama beya.

But – except to those who can estimate it by the amount of hemp – we were completely unready for two ropes in the same day!

Rikishi from Isegahama beya, with some assistance from Asakayama beya, started by rubbing the hemp with rice bran.

Image: isegahama.net

And then, under the watchful eyes of supervisors from the NSK, who were there to make sure tradition does not drift, the hemp was laid on the long sheets of white cotton:

Image: NSK Twitter

Tied off and anchored to the teppo pole:

Image: isegahama.net

But… more than one rope was being made. The other rope was red!

Image: Ajigawa oyakata

A red rope can only mean one thing: A Yokozuna is about to celebrate his 60th birthday.

Or, because this is the world of COVID, A Yokozuna is about to celebrate his 60th birthday a year or two after the fact.

In Japan, the 60th birthday, called “kanreki”, is a special occasion, and it is usually celebrated wearing something red – typically a red vest and big beret. But former Yokozuna get to celebrate it in a unique way – wearing a red tsuna, in their old style, and performing a dohyo-iri. Their assistants, the dew gatherer and sword bearer, are not mere rank-and-filers, but Yokozuna themselves, wearing their own tsuna. Most of the times, they are former Yokozuna, but on rare occasions, the 60-year old will have the privilege of being accompanied by active Yokozuna, as did the late Chiyonofuji in his kanreki dohyo-iri:

Isegahama oyakata turned 60 last year, and is now 61, and like all the oyakata who are waiting for their hair cutting ceremony, he is waiting for his kanreki dohyo-iri to be held, hopefully with spectators, as befits the occasion.

Back to Isegahama beya:

Video: Ajigawa oyakata

There is still no official date for Isegahama’s big event, but the rope is now ready.

Image: isegahama.net

And I think I will not be way off mark to think that at least one of the Yokozuna accompanying him there will be an active one.

Ah, yes. The white rope.

That one is actually the center of today’s attention. Here is a short video from the NSK summarizing Terunofuji’s big day:

Yeah, learning that dance isn’t easy.

Video: Ajigawa oyakata

Isegahama oyakata is apparently the only oyakata to have guided two of his own deshi in the Yokozuna dohyo-iri (Harumafuji and Terunofuji, in addition to Hakuho who is not his own disciple). Two Yokozuna from the same heya are relatively rare. Two Yokozuna from the same heya whose master was a Yokozuna is even rarer. Kitanofuji raised two Yokozuna, but his first (Chiyonofuji) was the one to guide his second (Hokutoumi).

It’s still unclear when Terunofuji’s first official dohyo-iri – the one performed at the end of the “suikyoshiki” ceremony at Meiji Grand Shrine in Tokyo – will take place. Those of you with sharp eyes may have noticed that Terunofuji was wearing one of his own Ozeki-era kesho-mawashi for this practice. And also, that Isegahama has borrowed one off of him. This means they have not as yet gone into the vault where, presumably, Asahifuji’s old kesho-mawashi sets are kept, and have not yet prepared a set for the suikyoshiki.

Congratulations to both the new and the old Yokozuna, may Terunofuji’s career be serene and his health as good as possible, and may Isegahama live a long and healthy life after his kanreki dohyo-iri, at least as long as Kitanofuji, and see more of his deshi and grand-deshi reach the highest rank of sumo.

COVID-19 cluster at Takasago beya

Herouth Asanoyama (朝乃山), COVID-19

 

The NSK informed us today that 7 rikishi in Takasago beya have been found positive for COVID-19. They include Takasago oyakata (the former Asasekiryu), Asanoyama, and 5 low-ranked rikishi.

Yesterday (July 26), one of the low-ranking rikishi in the heya started to show symptoms, including a high fever and fatigue. Tested in a medical facility, his result was positive.

Therefore, the next day everybody in the heya has been tested, and then the other six were discovered. They are being isolated, and will go through the usual routine of contact tracing and further instructions from the local health authority.

Asashoryu informs us in his Twitter that he called Takasago oyakata (his friend and companion since arriving in Japan), and that he assured him he was doing well.

Shibatayama oyakata says the NSK doesn’t really know how the infection came about, but that it was likely contracted during the post-basho period, in which rikishi have more freedom to go out. However, they are still supposed to be tested when they come back to the heya. “I would like to remind the rikishi they should take caution”.

We wish the infected rikishi a speedy recovery with no long term effects. And most of all we wish them to get the second vaccination shot

Terunofuji’s Tsuna-uchi takes place today

Herouth Terunofuji (照ノ富士), Yokozuna (横綱)

Yesterday, Ajigawa oyakata, from Isegahama beya, gave us the heads-up tweeting this “riddle”:

“Well, what is this then?

Tomorrow we’ll be using it

It’s something that goes inside something”

The answer to the riddle is, of course, that this is raw hemp. And it goes inside a Yokozuna’s rope. So today is Terunofuji’s tsuna-uchi – the preparation of a Yokozuna’s rope.

A tsuna-uchi is always a festive occasion, even for veteran Yokozuna. But a Yokozuna’s first one is even more festive. Expect to see Isegahama’s practice ground walls draped in white and red, and the rikishi preparing the rope to be wearing a twisted red and white headdress called nejiri-hachimaki.

The hemp is rubbed with rice bran to soak out the remaining oily essence. it is then lain in the middle of a long sheet of white cotton, together with a copper wire which help retain the rope’s shape. Three of those are made, and then twisted together into the Yokozuna’s rope. It takes an entire heya to braid a rope, and sometimes the heya needs external assistance.

At the end of the tsuna-uchi, the Yokozuna wears his rope over his kesho mawashi. Veteran Yokozuna simply check it fits. But for a new Yokozuna, this is where work start. A former Yokozuna (or even an active one) teaches him to do the dohyo-iri in the style that he has chosen.

Hakuho and Harumafuji have been taught by Isegahama oyakata. Kakuryu has been taught by Takanohana. Kisenosato learned his dance from Shibatayama oyakata.

The first tsuna-uchi is done soon after promotion, and therefore there is no time to wait for the Yokozuna’s first set of three kesho-mawashi to arrive from the artisan’s. Why three? Well, the Yokozuna wears one, and his two assistants, the sword bearer and the dew sweeper, wear the other two.

So for the first dohyo-iri, the new Yokozuna will wear some other Yokozuna’s set of kesho-mawashi. This is often a set on loan from the Sumo Museum. Kisenosato performed his first dohyo-iri in a set that belonged to the “Demon of the Dohyo”, the first Wakanohana. Kakuryu performed in a set that belonged to the late Kitanoumi.

But if you happen to have access to another set, you may use that. And of course, it’s usually a great pleasure to a heya’s master who is a former Yokozuna, to bestow both his set of kesho-mawashi and his guidance upon his deshi.

Terunofuji has chosen the Shiranui style. The difference between the two Yokozuna styles are in the shape of the rope, and in the way the Yokozuna positions his arms when he rises during the dohyo-iri. Here you can see, on the left, Kakuryu performing the Unryu style, and on the right, Hakuho performing the Shiranui style.

And here is the distinct shape of the ropes – on the left, the Shiranui rope, which has two loops. Remember that copper wire? That’s what makes the loop and the tail stay firm. On the right is the Unryu rope, which has a single loop. The Unryu rope is asymmetric – one side of it is much longer, to form that loop. The Shiranui rope is symmetric.

It is the tradition of Isegahama ichimon for its Yokozuna to perform the Shiranui style. And it is also almost unheard of that a new Yokozuna will choose a different style from his master, if that master is a former Yokozuna.

So Isegahama oyakata will be teaching Terunofuji the performance today. In addition, it’s highly likely that Terunofuji will be wearing one of Asahifuji’s old kesho mawashi sets (Asahifuji is, of course, Isegahama oyakata), as Harumafuji did before him.

We still don’t know when the first official dohyo-iri will take place. During normal times, the tsuna-uchi comes the day after the promotion ceremony, and the ceremony and dohyo-iri at Meiji Grand Shrine takes place the next day. But currently Tokyo is under a state of emergency due to COVID, and of course, the Olympics are taking place there. So the tsuna-uchi has been postponed a few days, and it’s likely that the ceremony and dohyo-iri will be postponed further.

Will we get to see any of the Tsuna-uchi? Many Japanese fans have been hoping that the NSK will stream the event live on its YouTube channel, but so far there is no indication of such a stream. If it suddenly materializes, we’ll publish a link here.

 

Takagenji caught smoking pot

Herouth Nagoya Basho 2021, Scandal, Takagenji ,

Our sharp-eyed readers have noticed by now that the scandal meter has been reset recently, with a title “Takaganja scandal”. I did not want to let this matter overshadow Terunofuji’s promotion or the other good news coming from the banzuke committee, but here is the story.

Before I go on, a note: this story is not about sports doping. This is not a Sha’Carri Richardson kind of controversy about whether or not cannabis should be banned in sports. Cannabis is simply a banned substance according to Japanese law, so read the title as “Takagenji caught committing a criminal offense”.

Two more points to bear in mind:

  • Japanese law has penalties for possession or trafficking, but not for use of cannabis.
  • CBD products are sold legally, and even promoted by the former Kisenosato, Araiso oyakata (fun fact: the yokozuna’s rope is made of hemp).

So here is the story.

On Saturday, July 17, day 14 of Nagoya basho, a report came to the NSK officials, saying that “rumors among the rikishi say that Takagenji has been using cannabis, and two of the NSK employees in the heya know about it”.

At around 8pm the same day, Tokiwayama oyakata and other employees in the heya were summoned for inquiry. One of them said that he heard such a rumor once in the past, but did not hear it again.

On the 18th (senshuraku), after his bout was over, Oguruma oyakata, who is the head of the compliance department, questioned Takagenji about those rumors. Takagenji claimed that he was using CBD oil for pain relief, as well as gummy drops to prevent stage fright, which are said to contain CBD, and that this was the source of the rumor. He was asked if he would agree to be tested, and gave his consent.

On the 19th, around 3PM, under supervision from the Compliance Committee’s lawyer, a urine test was held, and Takagenji came out positive.

When questioned about this, Takagenji admitted to having smoked one joint while taking a walk on a road near the heya’s lodging during the basho.

Following its own regulations, the NSK referred the case to the police. He was questioned by the police and then released. He is now back home (in Tokyo), confined to his house under instructions from his oyakata.

Once the police completes its investigations (which it may have already done) and the compliance committee hands in its report, the board will decide on an appropriate punishment.

The prospects do not look good for Takagenji, and it appears he will be joining his older twin in the world outside sumo.

Following the cannabis scandals in the early 2000s, the NSK regulations have been revised, and although the police does not penalize people for positive THC tests or for smoking a doobie, the NSK regulations forbid drug use and the penalty is dismissal. Insiders tell the press that Takaganja is facing either a “recommendation to retire” or a straight up dismissal.

This is not the Juryo man’s first involvement in scandal. He was involved in the same scandal that saw his twin brother ousted from the sumo world, although he stopped short of using physical violence then, and was reprimanded for “power harassment” only.