Tachiai readers please forgive me, as I was so pre-occupied trying to get folks to Osaka so that I forgot to wrap-up a few loose-ends of our Ones to Watch coverage! So let’s dig into it.
As usual let’s start with some high level stats on how our picks performed. At Kyushu we managed 17 kachi-koshi against 3 make-koshi, but slipped to a 12-8 record at Hatsu. How did we do at Haru?
My biggest gripe about my video provider is that there was no way to get any Japanese language programming, not even NHK World, across its satellite beam. Now word comes to me that they are carrying TVJapan. Sure, it’s a ton of crazy stuff in Japanese every day. But the solid gold nugget in the $25/month fee is the honbasho coverage it will bring every day for two solid weeks.
Expensive? You bet! Extravagant? You bet! Crazy? Indeed! But for a sumo lover like me, it’s a tempting scenario. If you want to check it out yourself, take a look here: DirecTV TV Japan
Tickets went on sale for May’s Natsu basho at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo. Reports from the Sumo Association are that the entire 15 day event has sold out, except for tickets reserved for “day of” sales to ardent sumo fans who wake up and get in line at 5:00 AM.
Public interest in sumo seems to continue to be strong, in spite of the brief outcry over the Maizuru tour stop, where a pair of female medical professionals were admonished for mounting the dohyo to render medical aid to the mayor, after he collapsed during his welcoming remarks.
For readers of Tachiai who were able to score tickets, events at the Kokugikan are quite enjoyable, and offer a vastly different experience from watching the matches on video.
It’s Sunday, maybe you have some free time and you are a sumo fan. I have been missing some of my favorites, who have faded from the top division. So I am going to share this 22 minute long example of just how much sumo has changed since Osaka last year.
Sumo is always evolving, but this was in fact a monumental turning point for the sport it seems. A year later we can see recognize the seeds of change in this video. The triumph, the defeat, the raw emotion