[sumo] Antics adored and promoted...

[Lynn Matsuoka]

Takamisakari is adored  because he plays to the crowd, like a child. The
fans feel they can touch him and get a response- unlike the  steely affect
of the average rikishi. ( If Takamisakari was Yokozuna material, he would
not be exhibiting these antics ).

He is promoted ONLY when he gets the numbers.

The Kyokai quashed a number of fantastic crowd pleasers in the recent past-
much to my personal disappointment. They were not acting with the required
dignity and decorum. The fact that they wowed the crowd and kept  them
coming in, didn¹t matter at all;

Kyokushuzan was antics-turned-sumo at the tachiai, and after the 3rd time he
was warned to  cut it out, I noticed that not only was he now losing but his
delightful nature was broken.

Asanowaka , with his ³frog-shikiri² was always the hit of the day, win or
lose, but he also was told several times to quit it. You could sense the
crowd¹s disappointment when he didn¹t do what everyone loved at the line.

Even the beloved  Mainoumi was told to stick to regulation sumo, but he
couldn¹t win that way at  the top. So he did his best to skirt the
reprimands.

It doesn¹t make sense to us that the personality kids of sumo are banged
back down into conformity, like that badger/mallet game in Japan, even at a
time when sumo SO needs to encourage fans¹ interest.

Asashoryu¹s very unique, powerful moves are somehow enough a part of the
game that, at least, he is not being told to stop that. I think he is a
genius at what he  does,  and like all geniuses, in his own reality and
sometimes, responsible for his own fall from the pedestal.


Lynn Matsuoka
The Sumo artist, author




On 8/1/07 5:23 PM, "Scott Kahn" <smk1 at columbia.edu> wrote:


> Free-for-all is a bit dramatic, but that raises an interesting
> question.  Why is Takamisakari so adored and promoted?  Would such
> antics be accepted, were Takamisakari ever to rise to Yokozuna?  If not,
> wouldn't that be hypocritical?
> 
> Sukubidubidu