[sumo] Possible Sumo Handbook

[Ann and Al Shaver]

sumo in the popular press==

Sumo officials mull handbook to roly-poly protocol
By Alastair Himmer Tue Apr 22, 6:21 AM ET

TOKYO (Reuters) - Sumo wrestlers who fancy themselves as nightclubbers or 
footballers face a backlash from traditionalists in the roly-poly sport.


Eager to clean up sumo's tarnished image, officials are mulling the idea of 
producing a handbook for the bare-buttocked giants to bone up on the 
etiquette of the ancient Japanese sport.
Japan's government recently ordered sumo officials to clean up their act 
after the arrest of a former gym chief on suspicion of assault following the 
death of a 17-year-old wrestler.

The affair came after Mongolian "yokozuna" Asashoryu was banned after being 
caught on TV playing football while supposedly injured, triggering outrage 
among the sumo establishment.

Concerned about a lack of discipline in a sport no longer dominated by 
Japanese wrestlers, sumo officials could approve a manual to help keep its 
protagonists in line.

According to Japan's popular Nikkan Sports newspaper, top tips for proper 
sumo protocol include not being seen strolling around Tokyo night spot 
Roppongi in a T-shirt.

Also to be avoided away from the ring are shorts and sweatshirts, while the 
clenching of fists after winning a bout would also send wrestlers to the 
back of the class.

The sumo handbook would be illustrated with photographs, accompanied by a 
tick or a cross for the benefit of the dozens of foreign grapplers plying 
their trade in Japan.

"When I came into sumo we didn't have sweatshirts," said Japan Sumo 
Association (JSA) official Isenoumi in support of the proposed guide, which 
could be formally approved next month.

"Clothes are different now so it is hard for young wrestlers to judge."

Sumo dates back some 2,000 years and still retains many Shinto religious 
overtones.

Hawaiian Akebono became the first overseas wrestler to be promoted to the 
sport's elite rank of yokozuna in 1993, followed by Samoan-born Musashimaru 
in 1999.

Modern professional sumo has more than 60 foreign-born wrestlers in Japan, 
drawn from countries ranging from South Korea to Brazil with many more from 
Eastern Europe.

(Editing by Trevor Huggins)