Week three has already been one for the books. Tuesday we had our first Sumo experience. It was fantastical! The Japanese are petite, well dressed, healthy looking people. Sumo wrestlers, on the other hand, stand more than six feet tall, wear thick thong, diaper-like uniforms, and are hugely overweight. The contrast is dramatic.
As in most cultures, if you are looking, you can often tell athletes apart from the rest of the population. Think of a basketball player, a football player, a volleyball player, a soccer player, a jockey, or a gymnast. Maybe he or she is an athlete in a sport you do not follow, and you might not know his name or face, but if you look closely enough you can often guess he is an athlete of some kind or another. Perhaps, his stature gives him away , or it is something more subtle, like the way he dresses, talks, or walks. Whatever it may be, for a Sumo wrestler the difference is unmistakable, and it only takes one quick glance to know him apart.
Like basketball players and football players, Sumo wrestlers are big. And although it is hard to miss them, it is their traditional clothing that truly sets them apart. Customary garb includes a traditional silk robe similar to, in my untrained opinion, a masculine version of the Japanese Kimono. It is intricate, exotic, and expensive. On their feet they wear flat wooden sandals that look archaic and difficult to walk in. Before fighting there is a welcoming ceremony, where the wrestlers, facing the crowd and standing shoulder to shoulder, form a circle to greet the audience, thank everyone for their support, and pay homage to the spirit of Sumo.
For this ceremony, they also have special clothes, wearing traditional silk wraps adorned with diamonds and jewels, costing as much as $ 25,000. Behind the scenes, each wrestler has a personal hair dresser to tie his long hair into an intricate knot on top of his head. When the wrestler is not fighting he remains in his "stable" with his "stable master". The stable master is responsible for training the wrestler, and his job includes physically abusing the fighter in training to make him tougher and again before a match to get him ready fight.
As in much of Japanese culture, their is a rich history and deep commitment to tradition. Sumo wrestling follows old tradition down to the very last detail. The matches are officiated closely, and they only last about ten seconds. There are more than sixty five ways to win or lose a match, with many techniques for throwing, charging, and slapping the opponent. Some wrestlers rely on size and strength, others are smaller and quicker, and still others are craftier, using the opponent's weight and mass against him.
It is hard to grasp everything that is happening. As quick as the match starts, it is over, and for the untrained eye this is not much time. Recognizing our own limitations, and having gotten sound advice from a friend, Joanna and I rented FM radios with commentary on each match in English. It also helped us pronounce the wrestler's names, which made it easier to pick favorites and cheer them on. Having borrowed a pair of binoculars, we could see the matches up close and ring-side despite our nose bleed seats and bird's eye view. This was both a good thing and a bad thing, because through the binoculars you could see everything. And, although we were very impressed by the strength of the wrestlers' big blows, we could not help noticing all the dimply behinds and massive bellies. It was an experience, and we enjoyed the spectacle as much as anything else.
Stayed tuned for week three, day two ..... Black Eyed and VIPeas.
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