Japan’s elite sumo wrestlers slapped, thrust and flipped their way through the first evening of their five-day exhibition tournament at London’s Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday, to the delight of a full house of spectators.
After a ceremony-heavy start and some lively explanations for first-time watchers from Japanese broadcaster NHK’s veteran English-language announcer Hiro Morita, the audience watched the first few bouts in an atmosphere of near-reverence.
By the time the small-but-powerful young wrestler Asakoryu, who like all “rikishi” goes by a single ring name, charged furiously into Sadanoumi in the fifth bout, the crowd had the gist of things. Fans cheered wildly as the elder man locked his opponent in a belt grip before slowly, but surely marching him backward out of the ring.
Photo: AP
The event, the first such sumo match in the UK in 34 years, was aimed at promoting ties between the two countries, Japan Sumo Association chairman Hakkaku Nobuyoshi said.
Spectators reveled in the sight of Midorifuji, the lightest wrestler in London at a mere 114kg going toe-to-toe with towering Kazakh fighter Kinbozan — who is 64kg heavier — before being lifted in the air and dumped outside the ring.
In the second half, the audience began to let rip.
Photo: AP
A shout of “I love you Takayasu” from high up in the arena might not have been the kind of encouragement the former champion wrestler was expecting, but it did the trick and he duly sent his opponent Abi crashing to the dirt.
The most skillful performance of the evening came from the young Ukrainian wrestler Aonishiki, who flipped his much heavier opponent Atamifuji over with a rarely seen technique, thrusting one of his legs outward from inside the knee while twisting him downward by the opposite shoulder.
The two grand champions, Hoshoryu and Onosato, each won their bouts in stately fashion to bring the evening to a close.
Photo: AFP
One final moment of ritual awaited as a junior wrestler stepped into the ring with a long stringless bow to perform the bow-twirling ceremony — a last chance to cast any evil spirits out of the “dohyo” earth and clay fighting platform before sending the audience out into the night.
“It’s just so different up close, so impressive,” Japanese London resident Masami Sato said as she waited for a bus home outside.
The Royal Albert Hall had to make special preparation to host the six tonnes of elite athletes.
Photo: Reuters
“We’ve actually had to source and buy new chairs which can take up to 200kg in weight,” Royal Albert Hall director of programming Matthew Todd said. “Our usual standard is only 100kg.”
The hall also had to reinforce the toilets.
“It’s the ones that are screwed into the wall which are the most challenging,” Todd said, wearily.
Hosting the event also required special insurance, because “the jeopardy of having a ringside cushion is fairly substantial.”
Similarly, the rice bill was no small fee.
“It’s substantial,” Todd said. “I know the wholesaler actually ran out of noodles, because we’d already ordered so many from them.”
Additional reporting by the Guardian
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