Sumo action is NOT over so Tachiai does not hibernate until Natsu basho.

Jungyo (巡業) means tour in Japanese. In the sumo world, the jungyo refers to off-season promotional tour events, usually sponsored by local corporate sponsors and supporter groups. Sometimes there will be visits to important local shrines, like tomorrow’s visit to Ise Jingu to kick-off this tour, and the visit to Yasukuni in the middle of next month. Those events usually feature a Yokozuna dohyo-iri at the shrine. Local communities will try to time these tours to coincide with local festivals or other occasions.

Not all wrestlers participate in Jungyo. Most head back to Tokyo but sekitori, their tsukebito, and some special cases will lead those from lower ranks to participate. Often wrestlers whose hometown is near one of the tour stops will be included in the tour. Kyujo wrestlers will not. For this particular tour there are several kyujo sekitori, including: yusho-winner Takerufuji, Kirishima, Takakeisho, Tsurugisho, Tamawashi, and Shimazuumi. REST, BOYS. To learn more about this tour and see a full schedule with map, click to read more. (I don’t want the visualization to load for everyone visiting the site, unless you actually want to check out the Jungyo map. I think it’s pretty cool.)