Royal Rumble
This summer the usually stately world of sumo has been shaken by a wave of scandals. Allegations of match-rigging at the highest level of the sport have emerged, and several prominent gaijin wrestlers were embroiled in a drug abuse controversy that made headlines worldwide. This November fans and insiders alike will be looking to the Kyushu-basho, the last great tournament of the year, for an especially spectacular show to appease the sport's ancient deities and reassert its national standing. For both the newcomer and the sumo veteran, the result is the opportunity to see sumo at its best. For two weeks this month the gods of sumo- and their champions- are set to descend on Fukuoka, bringing with them all the grandstand performances, ancient ceremonies and hefty dietary regimes of the greatest grappling show on earth!

Widely considered a sacred cornerstone of Japanese culture, the ritual-like combats at the great basho (tournaments) take place within an intricate league system and are accompanied by ancient traditions understood only by initiates and avid fans. This Summer's shocks even prompted some to call for a ban on foreign competitors in the ring, but regardless, gaijin stars like the Mongolian powerhouse Hakuho and the rising Estonian star Baruto remain wildly popular sumo celebrities. The Kyushu-basho is your chance to see these superstars of the dohyo ring up close and personal, whether in a nail-biting bout or, if you're very lucky, out and about in Fukuoka. But autograph hunters beware: you probably won't be able to get anywhere near the rikishi for the crowds of screaming fans.

Weighing In
Hakuho is currently one of the undisputed masters of the ring, holding the highest rank of yokozuna, named after the heavy braided belt worn for ceremonial purposes. The yokozuna is not merely a tournament champion: he (and it is always a he: women are traditionally not even allowed close to the ring, let alone in it!) must be selected on the basis of skill, power and hinkaku, dignity. Promoted in 2007, Hakuho shares the top spot with a fellow Mongolian, the relatively venerable Asashoryu, and will be looking to capitalize on the elder champion's sliding performance and recurring injuries to assert his total dominance.

Meanwhile crowd favorite Baruto, unmistakable with his blonde top-knot, has created a stir with a meteoric rise from the junior ranks. He hopes to head a rising new generation of successful European wrestlers given the recent decline of the notorious Bulgarian giant Kotooshu. Dogged by knee injuries in the past two seasons, this year Baruto has been once again on the attack, gaining the rank of komusubi. Widely admired for his constant smile in the ring and out, Baruto may nonetheless never live up to Kotooshu's reputation as the heart-throb of the wrestling world!

The Big Bash-O
The Fukuoka Kokusai Center will be hosting this November’s basho, and with tickets ranging in price from the very affordable ¥3,100 for a reserved seat to the more expensive ¥14,300 for a five person box, there are seats available for all, rabid fan and awestruck newcomer alike.

If you're an early riser try to get down to the Kokusai Center as early as possible. The earliest bouts between the junior jonokuchi ranks begin around 8:35 quick, wily matches of skill over power. With a crowd limited to uber-fans and friends and family of the wrestlers, there's an opportunity to sit beside the dohyo and feel the action close-up. You might even be lucky enough to find yourself sitting shoulder to shoulder with a former yokozuna!

The show really gets going around 14:30 when the sport’s second-highest juryo division performs its colorful dohyo-iri entrance ceremony. Clad in beautifully decorated ceremonial aprons known as kesho mawashi, each competing wrestler is introduced by name, home town and stable and then walks around the dohyo for all to see. Save some of your camera battery for the next ceremony around 15:50 when the top makunouchi division wrestlers enter, followed by the yokozuna in their own special version of the dohyo-iri. By now the big boys will be ready to battle it out, but make sure you don't blink: the average bout lasts just six seconds.

Come the day's last fight, the musubi-no-ichiban, the crowd will be at fever pitch. You may not have understood the rankings, the costumes or the elaborate gestures before each fight, but it's hard not to let the tension carry you away as the wrestlers put their reputations on the line, stare each other out like cats and finally charge. You'll have plenty of opportunity to see the rising faces of sumo, Japanese and gaijin, on their way to the upper reaches of the sport, but only a few will ever reach that precarious peak.

This month Fukuoka will see the traditional meet the modern as this most Japanese of contests struts its stuff on an international stage, and who knows? You too might get caught up in the combination of ceremony and celebrity that makes sumo so unique. For tickets, see below.



The Skinny on the Kyushu Basho
Where: Fukuoka Kokusai Center
When: Nov. 9 ~ Nov. 23
Contact: Nihon Sumo Kyokai Fukuoka Office
Tickets: 092-291-9333 (10:00~16:00)
Inquiries: Tel: 092-291-9311 or 092-2919312 (10:00~16:00, closed Sun. & Hol., Japanese only)
Prices: ¥3,100 ~ ¥14,300
Seating: From single ringside seats to different tiers of box seating, to various levels of arena seating. Check the official sumo website or ask a Japanese-speaking friend to call.
English ticket information: www.sumo.or.jp/eng/ticket/

Sumo Speak
Don’t know your mawashi from your rikishi? Using this glossary, even the feeblest of sumo fans can pass themselves off as towering intellectual greats of the sport of the gods.

場所
Basho
A sumo tournament held over a two-week period. There are six each year.

土俵
Dohyo
The raised clay platform where sumo bouts are held. For traditional reasons the dohyo has salt, washed rice, torreya nuts, squid, kelp, and chestnuts buried within it.

土俵入り
Dohyo-iri
Entrance ceremony performed before the juryo and makuuchi division begin their bouts.

部屋
Heya
A ‘stable’; a building used to house and train rikishi. There are dormitories, cooking facilities and a training dohyo.

幕内
Makunouchi
Also called makuuchi, this is sumo’s top division.

廻し
Mawashi
The thick belt wrapped around a rikishi. Protects the genitals as well as offering a place to grip. Juryo level and higher wear silk of various colors, lower levels wear black cotton.

大関
Ozeki
The champion rank of sumo. Other ranks can be attained by consistent wins, this rank must be granted by the sumo kyokai.

力士
Rikishi
The big guys doing all the pushing and shoving.

横綱
Yokozuna
The rank of grand champion, the pinnacle of sumo.



Do You sumo?
You've read about it - so how about taking a shot at Japan's national sport yourself? The Fukuoka City sumo club holds classes in Japanese twice a week, but as with many martial arts, it's possible to learn through gestures. Classes are from 18:00 ~ 20:00 on Saturday at Sumiyoshi Shrine in Hakata and Wednesdays at the Budokan, near Ohori Park. Please have a Japanese-speaking friend call Fujinata-san before you plan to visit at 090-7927-4803. You can wear short pants, but mawashi are provided if you have the 'stomach' for it.

Sumo Info Chunks
- Sumotori sleep after eating to facilitate weight gain
- Lower ranks have to wake up earlier and cook and clean for the seniors
- Sumotori do not eat breakfast
- Beer at lunch? Yes please! Sumotori often drink beer to bulk up and maintain weight
- Sumo wrestlers receive specialized intestinal massages to be able to accommodate the huge quantities of food they consume
- One reason sumo cannot be considered for the Olympic games is its strict no-female policy
- At the start of 2005, the number of registered, professional rikishi was 695 - of that number, 39 came from Fukuoka
- Women are not allowed anywhere near the dohyo lest the gods of sumo be offended!
- Each envelope collected by upper division winning rikishi is worth ¥55,000, and the record amount collected is 49
- The first American national in sumo was actually of Japanese parentage, born in Colorado and named Harry