[sumo] [spoilers]Asashoryu's open armed and beloved return.

[Achim Pawelczyk]

Moti schrieb:
 > ----- Original Message ----
 > From: Scott M. Kahn <smk1 at columbia.edu>
 > << If you state that Asashoryu is being welcomed back with the same 
enthusiasm
 > as Takanohana, the annointed prince of sumo at that time, then I am
 > impressed at how the public has changed.  Somehow, I doubt this is
 > the case.>>
 > I never said that. Taka was a beloved wrestler, while Asa was never 
 >well- liked, even before the last scandal, as I have said in my former 
 >post. In spite of this, he was welcomed warmly by the jungyo crowd. 
 >Asa, regretfully, will never be accepted like Takanohana, for  reasons 
 >we seem to disagree upon.

I think they can be compared in terms of publicity.
Just look at NHK. On the day of his return, Asashoryu was top on nearly 
every NHK news programm, news7: 8:30 minutes , news9: 11:40. On the day 
he appeared at the jungyo, he was in the main news, the two remaining 
days of the jungyo were on the sports news. I can't remember any case in 
which a jungyo was present that much on NHK.


 > Not to tread water-Asa works for THEM, not the other way around, 
 >regardless of how strong he is and how he helps sell tickets and how 
 >the basho is more exciting with two Yokozunas etc.. etc..Here comes 
the >eternal cliche- no athlete is bigger than the sport.

After looking at recent news and reports, I'd estimate Asa as being 
worth 15% of the whole sumo business (but don't ask for detailed evidence).

--
Akinomaki