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Sumo
TOKYO, May 5 (Kyodo) - Ozeki hopeful Miyabiyama and yokozuna Takanohana are expected to take center stage when the curtain goes up for the injury-hit Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on Sunday. Miyabiyama,
Takanohana in spotlight
at summer sumoWith Hawaii native grand champion Musashimaru and newly promoted ozeki Musoyama both sidelined, the pressure is firmly on Miyabiyama to carry the flag for the Musashigawa stable, which collected six Emperor's Cups in a row before the spring tourney in May.
If sekiwake Miyabiyama can register double-digit wins over the 15-day meet at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan, he will set a record for the quickest rise to ozeki since 1966, when collegiate champions were first allowed to make their debuts in the third-tier makushita class.
Miyabiyama, who made his pro debut at the 1998 Nagoya tourney, has gone 12-3 and 11-4 this year and 10 wins in Tokyo will give the 22-year-old the magic number of 33 wins in three straight tournaments necessary for promotion to sumo's second highest rank.
While he has the advantage of not having to face stable mates Musashimaru, Musoyama and ozeki Dejima, victory this month would see Miyabiyama elevated to ozeki after just his 12th tournament as a pro, five fewer than former yokozuna Wajima, who holds the current record.
Never one to count his chickens, a leaner and meaner Takanohana will be quietly confident, however, that he can pick up his first Emperor's Cup since autumn 1998 - and 21st overall - after an encouraging month of pre-tourney practice.
The Osaka spring tourney was an emotional affair for the Futagoyama stable, with yokozuna Wakanohana retiring early on and veteran Takatoriki shocking the sumo world by winning his first championship from the lowly rank of No. 14 maegashira.
For the Futagoyama wrestlers, who dominated the competition before the Musashigawa stable shot to prominence in 1999, the sight of Takatoriki sniveling through the national anthem will have provided a welcome shot in the arm, not least for Takanohana.
Musashimaru, out with damaged knee ligaments, and Musoyama, hobbled with a hip injury, are the biggest names among a total of eight wrestlers from the top makuuchi division and the second-tier juryo class who will miss the upcoming meet.
Japan Sumo Association (JSA) Chairman Tokitsukaze blamed the wrestlers Friday, just 48 hours before the start of the tournament.
"One of the reasons for all the injuries is that they're too fat. They should be embarrassed by the fact they can't tell the difference between muscle and fat," he said.
Dejima, who has no such problems, has looked sharp in practice and will be in the hunt for his second Emperor's Cup, while sekiwake Tochiazuma could be a dark horse judging by the way he banged up Musashimaru, inflicting the yokozuna's bad knee, in sparring last week.
Grand champion Akebono, however, has failed to show in the buildup to the summer tourney that he has improved his lower-body technique and only a superhuman effort will see the Hawaiian-born giant net his first title since May 1997.
Ozeki Chiyotaikai is also struggling to reproduce his championship form of January 1999, but has youth - and a brutal thrusting attack - on his side and will relish the underdog status.
Meanwhile, unpredictable ozeki Takanonami will need to manufacture a winning record or slip down the rankings again after finishing with a losing record last time out.
Another focal point will be whether stable mate Takatoriki, who has been promoted to komusubi after winning in Osaka, comes out fired up again or decides to rest on his laurels.
As if preempting the latter, the JSA has paired the grizzled Kobe native with his nemesis, Akebono, on the first day of action.
TOKYO, May 5 (Kyodo) - Makuuchi division bouts for Sunday and Monday, the first and second days of the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Ryogoku Kokugikan: Main bouts for 1st, 2nd days of
Summer Grand Sumo Tournament
Sunday, May 7
Jumonji 0 - 0 Kotonowaka
Aogiyama 6 - 6 Terao
Tochinohana 0 - 0 Asanosho
Hayateumi 0 - 0 Higonoumi
Shikishima 0 - 0 Kinkaiyama
Toki 3 - 1 Tokitsuumi
Takanowaka 0 - 0 Akinoshima
Kyokutenho 1 - 2 Chiyotenzan
Kaiho 2 - 4 Kotoryu
Kyokushuzan 3 - 5 Tamakasuga
Tosanoumi 0 - 0 Daizen
Oginishiki 0 - 4 Tochiazuma
Miyabiyama 0 - 0 Hamanoshima
Wakanoyama 1 - 3 Takanonami
Chiyotaikai 2 - 2 Asanowaka
Dejima 7 - 8 Kaio
Tochinonada 1 - 8 Takanohana
Akebono 27 - 15 Takatoriki
Monday, May 8
Aogiyama 3 - 7 Kotonowaka
Tochinohana 0 - 0 Terao
Jumonji 0 - 0 Asanosho
Higonoumi 4 - 1 Tokitsuumi
Takanowaka 0 - 0 Hayateumi
Kinkaiyama 0 - 0 Akinoshima
Kyokutenho 1 - 2 Shikishima
Toki 2 - 4 Chiyotenzan
Tochinonada 4 - 2 Kotoryu
Kaiho 4 - 3 Asanowaka
Tamakasuga 13 - 7 Takatoriki
Miyabiyama 1 - 3 Kyokushuzan
Daizen 0 - 0 Tochiazuma
Dejima 2 - 1 Hamanoshima
Oginishiki 5 - 9 Takanonami
Chiyotaikai 7 - 5 Kaio
Akebono 1 - 0 Wakanoyama
Tosanoumi 7 - 15 Takanohana
Results in Scoreboard
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Sumo Web
Da Kine Sumo E-zine
Ozumo
Kyodo News Service