Sports Japan - 2013/02/10

Feb. 10, Sun.

The first sumo tournament of the year
[Focus]
1. The first sumo tournament of the year - Harumafuji Wins with a Perfect Record
The big question at the New Year tournament was which of the two yokozuna wrestlers Hakuho, who didn't win a single championship in Tokyo last year, and Harumafuji, who had a disappointing 9-6 win-loss record last time, could lift the Emperor's Cup. Harumafuji won steadily from the start. He had lost to Myogiryu in the previous tournament but used his light frame well to overcome him this time on the second day with quick, skilful sumo. Hakuho, however, fell to Myogiryu on day three.
Harumafuji was still undefeated and Hakuho defending that single defeat into day twelve, when ozeki Kotooshu grabbed Hakuho's belt and sent him to a painful second loss in the day's big bout. Harumafuji, meanwhile, had recovered his quick, sharp form and was giving nothing away in the tachiai (the critical charge at the start of each bout), carrying on to clinch his first championship as a yokozuna in the main bout on the fourteenth day by swiftly seizing ozeki Kakuryu's belt and forcing him out of the ring. Harumafuji faced Hakuho on the final day with the aim of clinching the title with a perfect record. Hakuho, of course, was not going to step aside easily to his junior but Harumafuji overcame him superbly to secure the championship with a perfect record for the third time in his career.
2. Kitanoumi - The Secrets of his Strength
Kitanoumi, the president of the Sumo Association, was a mighty, even frightfully good wrestler in his day and set numerous records as a yokozuna. He was the youngest ever wrestler to be promoted to yokozuna at the age of 21 years and 2 months and stayed there for 63 grand sumo tournaments, the longest ever. His 670 victories also still place him first on the all-time list. From his very first bout at the age of 13, Kitanoumi's key strength lay in his speed moving forward off the mark. He used his large body to overwhelm one higher ranking opponent after another with tremendous force and won his first Makuuchi title when he was only twenty. Kitanoumi grew even stronger through his rivalry with Wajima, a popular and gifted yokozuna with a mean left under-arm throw. Yokozuna Wajima held off the challenge from ozeki Kitanoumi to win the title in the play-off at the 1974 Nagoya tournament but their many powerful showdowns from that point thrilled the fans and continued through man y more famous bouts between the two yokozunas. Kitanoumi grew mightily in the process and firmly established his champion status by winning five tournaments in a row in 1978 with what was then a record 82 wins in the year. Kitanoumi famously said that going into the ring was the only thing that mattered and fought proudly, as befits a yokozuna, for seven years without sitting out a single tournament.
[Science Lens]
Bobsleigh - The World of Ice at 130km/h
The bobsleigh hurtles down the icy track at top speeds of over 130km/h. The pilot must contend with the usually unthinkable force of 4G while making judgments about the shortest possible route. A super camera unveils the secrets of this intense battle where not even the slightest hesitation is allowed.
[Guest]
David Shapiro

Sumo writer from New York. Came to Japan for judo at the age of 18. Worked in Japan as a general sportswriter after graduating from Sophia University, but drawn strongly to sumo, then chose to specialize in that. A guest on NHK's international sumo broadcasts who has seen many wrestlers over the years. Turns 58 this year.

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