Hakuho to quit sumo over forced closure of his stable for physical abuse

3 comments

1. Didn’t he already retire?

2. Well, I guess that does make sense

3. I saw this post on the original article and thought about sharing it since it covers a point of view that should be heard:

   “Hakuho has never been a favorite of the Japan Sumo Association (JSA).

   He was particularly frowned upon for beginning most bouts with a fierce slap to the opponent’s face, a legal move but one the JSA didn’t like to see performed regularly by a yokuzuna. The discontent became far more petty when the JSA criticized Hakuho for leading the spectators in “banzai sansho” (three cheers) and a “sanbon-jime” hand-clapping cheer during his victory interviews.

   The Asahi Shimbun published the following in October 2021:

   There is nothing wrong about debating what yokozuna should and should not do. But the problem is that many JSA critics of Hakuho trace his “unsavory” behavior to his Mongolian roots and question the qualities of foreign sumo wrestlers in general.

   Even more questionable is that the Japan Sumo Association, the governing body of professional sumo, has partly sided with such arguments.

   This spring, a panel of experts set up by the association, led by Masayuki Yamauchi, a professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo, made a set of proposals concerning the future of professional sumo.

   Responding to the association’s request for advice on what to do to maintain and expand the traditional sumo culture, the panel criticized foreign-born wrestlers in remarks that did not name names but apparently referred mainly to Hakuho.

   The panel called on foreign rikishi to transform themselves through sympathy with sumo’s history and tradition, calling the process “nyu nihon ka,” a new word that apparently means embracing and assimilating to Japanese culture and tradition.

   But the panel failed to make clear what historical heritages and traditions should be protected. It also made the ridiculous argument that stablemasters need to have Japanese nationality to show they are rooted in Japan.

   The panel’s recommendations have raised numerous questions, including how their arguments can be consistent with the fact that so many scandals broke out under Japanese-born stablemasters.”. – Not just thought provoking but also insightful.