Gyōji (行司)

Kyokai Video: Updating Sumo Scoreboard

Andy Gyōji (行司), Kokugikan, Sumo Topics ,

The Kyokai shared a great video that provides insights into some behind-the-scenes processes. Visitors to Kokugikan will have seen the scoreboards. These backlit screens display the Juryo and Makuuchi bouts, reading from right to left, as well as listing any kyujo wrestlers (far left). A win is indicated with a red light next to the victor’s name. The kimarite is also indicated on the far right. They’re called “denkōban.” We’ve all seen this…but how does it get updated each night?

The video is great but unfortunately it’s captioned in Japanese and not in English. There are some great little tidbits in there that I wanted to makes sure to share. After the day’s action is completed, and after the bow-twirling ceremony, the clean-up crew comes in to prepare for the next day and one team comes in to update the scoreboards. Their main piece of equipment is a big, ole, lop-sided ladder.

The first little factoid that many of you probably already know is that the tiles are hand-written by gyoji. If calligraphy work is needed, like with the banzuke and this scoreboard, that’s the work of gyoji.

Secondly, the East and West sides are alternated each day. If you pay attention to the yobidashi, in particular, you’ll see that on alternating days they’ll come up on the dohyo from the East, or the West to announce the wrestlers for each bout. So it makes sense that the scoreboard order would be consistent. On odd-numbered days, the East names are on top since they’re read out first. On even-numbered days, the West names are on top.

The video here comes from Aki, I believe, before Terunofuji went kyujo. We see the plates changed from his Day 6 bout with Ura to his Day 7 bout against Ichinojo. The worker goes up and down, up and down, over and over, updating the acrylic plates. Then they validate the change and move over to the other scoreboard on the other side to repeat the process.

Safety First

I want to make a quick note about the safety culture. If this were me, I’d probably walk out there alone with a rickety, wooden ladder. Or even better, I’d go to the upper deck and hang over the edge to swap them out real quick. Safety First, or 安全第一, is a common slogan in Japan. You see it at various work places, especially construction sites, around the country. Earthquakes, typhoons, and landslides are pretty common so it’s no surprise that safety is a focus. So it doesn’t surprise me that the worker has two colleagues securing the base of his ladder, they all wear helmets, and that he even clips into the ladder. That’s quite different than this old picture we’ve got here of the worker updating the kyujo board, with no helmet.

I’m pretty happy to see that over the last year safety has been more of a focus on the dohyo, and maybe off the dohyo, too. But, as we saw with this recent yusho play-off, there is still some work to do. Thankfully, Abi won against Takakeisho. If he had lost, I’m not sure if Takayasu would have been in condition to fight. So the Kyokai possibly dodged a bullet there with Abi’s win. Let’s face it, it’s a contact sport and injuries are a part of the game. When those injuries happen, the athletes need confidence that they’re in good hands…and we fans want to know that, too. I like that the Kyokai is moving in the right direction; it’s a far cry from three years ago (Takayasu was at the center of one of those “uncomfortable” moments) but let’s keep it up!

Gyoji Kimura Motoki positive for COVID-19

Herouth COVID-19, Gyōji (行司)

The NSK announces that on January 4th 2021, in the morning, the Makuuchi-ranked gyoji from Minato beya suffered from high fever and coughing, and took a PCR test, which came back positive.

Kimura Motoki, whose real name is Okamura Hiromichi, 53 years old, belongs to Minato beya. However, his contact tracing investigation showed that he has not been in contact with any of the heya members recently (older, married gyoji, tokoyama and yobidashi usually live outside the heya). However, the NSK, on its own initiative, will give everybody in the heya a PCR test, as an extra safety measure.

We wish Motoki-san a full and speedy recovery, and we will keep you posted if any updates come in.

Learning the Lingo: Episode Three

Liam R Gyōji (行司), Learning the Lingo, Liam Loves Sumo

Tachiai readers, do not adjust your screens. This is in fact, a brand new episode of Learning the Lingo. With the school I work for off for spring break, I’ve hade a lot more time to create content, thus you are getting two videos this week! In today’s episode of Learning the Lingo, we will be tackling just one concept, but boy is it a big one! This video will focus on one of the most important occupations in all of sumo: the Gyoji.

Today’s episode was requested by Tachiai readers Ben Marshman and Kukufuji. If there is a term that you would like to see covered, please let me know in the comments below. I hope you enjoy the video, and I will be back with more sumo goodness soon!

Kyushu Day 11 Highlights

Liam R Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Arawashi (荒鷲), Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Endo (遠藤), Gyōji (行司), Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Kachi Koshi, Kagayaki (輝), Kaisei (魁聖), Kyushu Basho 2018, Make Kochi, Okinoumi (隠岐の海), Ryuden (竜電), Takayasu (高安), Yago, Ōnoshō (阿武咲)

The topsy-turvey Kyushu Basho continues into Day 11, and much like before, Wednesday’s action did not disappoint. Our leaderboard stayed mostly intact, with Takakeisho at the top with ten wins and Aoiyama, Daieisho, and Takayasu right behind with nine. The only casualty in the Yusho race was Onosho, who dropped his match and joined Okinoumi and Goiedo in the hunt group. Without further ado, let’s get on to today’s action.

Highlight Bouts:

Yago (7-4) defeats Arawashi (1-10): We begin with another visit from Yago, up from Joryu for the day. He and his Day 11 opponent, Arawashi, could very well swap places in January. After a matta, the two clashed and try as he might, Arawshi could do nothing against the much larger man. Yago takes the match with a yoritaoshi and moves one step closer to the Makuuchi division.

Aoiyama (9-2) defeats Yutakayama (4-7): You gotta hand it to Aoiyama, the man has been on an incredible tear at Kyushu. After dropping his first two bouts, the Bulgarian bull has steamrolled every rikishi he’s faced, and today was no different. Yutakayama, injured as he is, put up a good fight and nearly got Aoiyama out, but the big man fought back with bludgeoning tsuppari until Yutakayama was unstable. A quick slap down followed, and Aoiyama extended his winning streak to nine.

Shohozan (7-4) defeats Onosho (8-3): With his loss to Shohozan today, Onosho has fallen out of the chase group. Onosho started strong, nearly driving Shohozan out, but Big Guns Sho dug in at the edge and used his immense strength to push Onosho back and over the tawara. Shohozan improves to 7-4 and is one win away from his kachi koshi, but he’ll have to go through the eaquily burley Chiyotairu first.

Endo (7-4) defeats Abi (5-6): Following a great first half of Kyushu, Fan favourite Abi continues to fall closer and closer to another make koshi record after three consecutive losses. His Day 11 opponent, Endo, kept low and used his forehead to bear the brunt of Abi’s thrusts. Once he was within his reach, Endo sprang his trap and grabbed Abi around the waist. Once that happened, there was little Abi could do but be guided out of the ring. Endo is just one win away from kachi koshi, while Abi needs to win two for his winning record.

Daieisho (9-2) defeats Kagayaki (3-8): Daieisho maintained his spot in the 9-2 hunt group with a decisively one-sided win over Kagayaki. Daieisho has a habit of letting his sumo slide during the back half of a Basho, but he seems to have bucked this bad habit and could finish with double-digit wins for the first time since last March. Kagayaki is now make koshi and will need to review the fundamentals before January.

Ryuden (4-7) defeats Asanoyama (4-7): This one was a great match between two very promising rikishi. Coming into Act 3 with wins over an Ozeki and a Sekiwake, Ryuden seemed more confident during his Day 11 match against Asanoyama. Asanoyama started strong and nearly got Ryuden over the bales, but the man in black used some excellent footwork and got himself away from the tawara and back into the middle of the ring. Now with a secure double-handed grip, Ryuden drove forward but Asanoyama was ready and used Ryu’s own momentum against him. Asanoyama overcorrected, however, and in turning Ryuden towards the edge of the ring, he lost his own balance and succumbed to the smaller man’s uwatenage. Despite an excellent match, both men are now 4-7 and are one misstep away from demotion. While this has not been their Basho, hopefully, they have been learning from their losses and come into Haru better prepared.

Nishikigi (5-6) defeats Hokutofuji (5-6): Nishikigi continues to surprise this Basho and dominated Hokutofuji right from the start of their bout. Hokutofuji tried to push Nishikigi around, but the blind one wouldn’t budge. Using Hokutofuji’s forward movement against him, Nishikigi busted out a tsukiotoshi and sent Hokutofuji sprawling on the ground. This is Hokutofuji’s third straight loss.

Takakeisho (10-1) defeats Tochiozan (6-5): Takakeisho and Tochiozan have been two of the most surprising rikishi this November. While Tochiozan has since fallen out of the Yusho race, he’s so far proved that he can beat anyone on any given day. However, today was not that day, and Tochiozan joined an ever-growing list of rikishi who have fallen prey to Takakeisho’s wave attack. Right from the tachiai, the Komusubi began slamming into Tochiozan, disrupting his balance and negating his offence. This left him vulnerable to Takakeisho’s well-placed hatakikomi slap down. Takakeisho improved his record to 10-1 and still remains the leader in the Yusho race.

Yoshikaze (6-5) defeats Mitakeumi (5-6): Yoshikaze and Mitakeumi began their bout today with a series of headbutts. Yoshikaze, whose head is no stranger to abuse, weathered the storm and managed to get under Mitakeumi’s arms, forcing them up and out of the way. One quick uwatedashinage later and Mitakeumi found himself face down in the dirt. Prior to Kyushu, there was quite a lot of discussion about Mitakeumi salvaging his Ozeki run. Now with a 5-6 record, the conversation has changed to whether or not he can hold on to his Sekiwake slot. With three Ozeki bouts in his near future, Mitakeumi better get his sumo in gear if he wants to save his rank.

Goeido (8-3) defeats Kaisei (3-6-2): Kaisei figured it out: Goiedo can’t henka someone who doesn’t move. The big Brazilian stood right up at the Tachiai and forced the Ozeki to come to him. Goeido obliged and the Komosubi managed to turn him until Goeido had his back to the tawara. Kaisei went in for the final blow but Goiedo shifted and managed to get Kaisei off balance and hopping towards the bales. A final push sealed the deal and Goeido picked up his kachi koshi.

Tochinoshin (6-5) defeats Chiyotairyu (5-6): Tochinoshin had his hands full today when he faced Chiyotairyu. The man in the salmon Mawashi kept the Georgian off his belt with some fierce tsuppari blows, but Tochinoshin didn’t relent and eventually forced Chiyotairyu towards the edge. Chiyotairyu kept on fighting but lost his balance and landed knee first on the clay. Tochinoshin wins via tsukihiza.

Takayasu (9-2) defeats Ichinojo (3-8): Now, If this Ichinojo had showed up at the start of Kyushu, I doubt he’d be make koshi. After a thunderous Tachiai, Takayasu pushed Ichinojo to the tawara but the Mongolian didn’t go meekly out of the ring this time. The Boulder stands his ground so Takayasu changes tactics, jumping back and attempting to slap him down. This only causes Ichinojo to move forward with tremendous force, driving Takayasu back. Ichinojo tries his own slap down, but neither men are falling for that move today. The hulking Mongolian goes back to pushing and has Takayasu back-peddling until the two go tumbling to the tatami below (with Ichinojo’s colossal knee taking a large chunk of the dohyo with it). But wait! The gyoji motions towards Takayasu. A monoii is called, and video replay shows that Ichinojo’s big toe went out a fraction of a second before Takayasu’s foot touched down. Takayasu wins this very close match and stays in the hunt for the Yusho, while Ichinojo says goodbye to his Sekiwake rank and perhaps his spot in the Sanyaku as well.