Sumo
Musashimaru
escapes 2nd loss
NAGOYA, July 11 (Kyodo) -- Yokozuna Musashimaru barely escaped being tagged with back-to-back losses at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament on Thursday while ozeki hopeful Asashoryu had to battle back from certain defeat himself to maintain his perfect record.
The Mongolian sekiwake, however, came back from the edge of the ring at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium to throw down komusubi Tosanoumi for his fifth win and join ozeki Chiyotaikai and rank-and-filers Buyuzan and Takanonami as the undefeated front-runners.
Musashimaru, the winner of the last two tournament championships, was nearly stunned for a second straight loss in the day's final bout as Takanowaka, a fourth-ranked maegashira, got the Samoa-born grand champion stumbling forward with a right-hand belt throw.
Takanowaka (3-2) yanked the yokozuna forward with his right hand and got him teetering on top of the bales on his right leg as he tried to muster enough drive to push the yokozuna out.
Musashimaru, showing some poise and technique, however, hooked the maegashira with his left leg to avoid going out and then powered the smaller wrestler over the edge for his fourth win.
In the day's other Houdini act, Asashoryu was slammed to the edge of the ring at the face-off by the bulldozing Tosanoumi (3-2) and appeared to be on his way to a first loss for the tourney.
The feisty sekiwake, however, ducked under Tosanoumi's right arm to sneak around behind the komusubi and then shoved his stunned opponent down for a fifth win.
Chiyotaikai, the only ozeki left in the tournament after Kaio and Tochiazuma withdrew with injuries, wrapped up top-ranked maegashira Tochinonada with a twist-down to keep his record unblemished.
Sixth-ranked maegashira Kotomitsuki handed Tochisakae his first loss of the meet, pounding out the 10th-ranked wrestler and leaving both wrestlers at 4-1.
No. 7 maegashira Takanonami lorded over Hayateumi, bullying out the 13th-ranked wrestler with an arm-wrenching, frontal force-out to retain his perfect record.
Buyuzan, Musashimaru's 14th-ranked mate at the Musashigawa stable, continued his impressive run with a frontal crush-out against No. 13 maegashira Chiyotenzan (1-4).
Eighth-ranked Mongolian Kyokutenho got a firm grip on the belt of Tokitsuumi (1-4) before muscling the No. 11 maegashira over the straw bales to improve to 3-2.
Compatriot Kyokushuzan (1-4) picked up his first win of the tourney after receiving an injury default from Tochiazuma, who announced his withdrawal from the tournament earlier in the day.
NAGOYA, July 11 (Kyodo) -- Ozeki Tochiazuma withdrew from the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament on Thursday after being diagnosed with a fracture in his left arm and an injured left shoulder, sumo sources said. 2 pull out of Nagoya sumo
The Tamanoi stable wrestler, who will require two months to recover, sustained the injuries on Wednesday in his first loss of the 15-day meet to rank-and-filer Takanowaka at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
"Yesterday when I took a blow from my opponent, I felt a twinge in the arm and then when I was being tossed out I felt the shoulder dislocate and knew I was done," Tochiazuma said.
"I can't even move the arm, so I'll return to Tokyo and get treatment at the hospital," he added.
It is Tochiazuma's sixth withdrawal from a tournament in his eight-year career and first since the Kyushu basho in 2000. His scheduled opponent for Thursday, Kyokushuzan, will receive a win by injury default.
Meanwhile, third-ranked maegashira Dejima also pulled out of the Nagoya tourney after fracturing his right foot is his loss to Tosanoumi on Wednesday.
Dejima, a former ozeki, will sit out his career fifth tournament and first since his withdrawal from the Nagoya meet last year. Kaiho, his opponent for Thursday's bout, will win by injury default.
NAGOYA, July 11 (Kyodo) -- Results of makuuchi-division bouts Thursday, the fifth day of the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium (+denotes juryo division wrestler): Results
Won Technique Lost Oikari 3-2 oshidashi Tamanoshima 2-3 Buyuzan 5-0 yoritaoshi Chiyotenzan 1-4 Aogiyama 4-1 oshidashi Jumonji 3-2 Akinoshima 2-3 hatakikomi Hamanishiki 0-5 Kyokutenho 3-2 yorikiri Tokitsuumi 1-4 Takanonami 5-0 yorikiri Hayateumi 1-4 Wakanoyama 2-3 oshidashi Toki 3-2 Kotomitsuki 4-1 oshidashi Tochisakae 4-1 Tamakasuga 2-3 hikiotoshi Otsukasa 0-5 Daizen 1-4 oshidashi Hokutoriki 1-4 Shimotori 4-1 hikiotoshi Aminishiki 2-3 Kaiho 2-3 default Dejima 2-3 Miyabiyama 1-4 oshidashi Kotonowaka 1-4 Takamisakari 2-3 sukuinage Wakanosato 3-2 Asashoryu 5-0 oshitaoshi Tosanoumi 3-2 Kyokushuzan 1-4 default Tochiazuma 3-2 Chiyotaikai 5-0 tsukiotoshi Tochinonada 3-2 Musashimaru 4-1 yorikiri Takanowaka 3-2
Friday's bouts
+Takanotsuru x - x Tamanoshima Hamanishiki x - x +Iwakiyama Hayateumi 1 - 0 Oikari Tokitsuumi 1 - 0 Buyuzan Wakanoyama 6 - 4 Chiyotenzan Aogiyama 0 - 1 Tochisakae Otsukasa 1 - 4 Akinoshima Toki 1 - 1 Jumonji Tamakasuga 3 - 1 Daizen Kyokutenho 1 - 5 Kotomitsuki Aminishiki 1 - 1 Takanonami Shimotori 0 - 1 Hokutoriki Miyabiyama 5 - 4 Kyokushuzan Kaiho 0 - 4 Tosanoumi Asashoryu 0 - 0 Takamisakari Tochinonada 4 - 8 Wakanosato Takanowaka 2 - 3 Chiyotaikai Musashimaru 28 - 13 Kotonowaka
For more sumo information online, try:
Sumo Web
Da Kine Sumo E-zine
Grand Sumo Home Page
Ozumo
CyberSumo.net
Kyodo News Service