The sumo wrestling tour resumed for the first time in about two years and eight months, and on the first day, on the 5th, at the venue in Tachikawa City, Tokyo, while infection control measures were being taken, many fans saw Yokozuna Terunofuji and other sumo wrestlers up close. I applauded.
Due to the spread of the new corona infection, the sumo tour was the last to be canceled in the winter of the first year of Reiwa, but from the 5th, it resumed for the first time in about 2 years and 8 months, and the venue in Tachikawa, Tokyo. was visited by more than 2200 fans.
However, at the time of the event, 13 sekitori of ten cars or more, including injuries, did not participate due to the newly confirmed infection in the inspection conducted before the tour, and various infection control measures were taken under the advice of experts. was taken.
In the morning practice, the number of wrestlers waiting around the ring was limited, and the wrestlers below the ring wore masks and waited their turn to warm up.
Then, when the colliding practice began, Yokozuna Terunofuji lent his chest to Wakamoto Haru, who was out of breath, and the audience applauded.
In addition, "sumo jinku" by sumo wrestlers who are proud of their songs, and "first cut", which introduces sumo's forbidden moves in a funny way, were performed while wearing masks.
In the bouts of makuuchi wrestlers, a big round of applause was sent to Hiramaku Ichinojo and Wakamotoharu, who won their first victory at the Nagoya tournament last month, and Yokozuna Terunofuji and Ozeki Takakage's knot first. rice field.
On the other hand, the interaction with the wrestlers, which is one of the pleasures of the tour, is not a traditional handshake event, but rather a non-contact form such as taking pictures, and visitors can enjoy the unique atmosphere of the tour. I was there.
Sumo wrestling tours
in the summer usually go around eastern Japan, but this time the period was shortened and held in Tokyo and its surrounding
areas
.
Koga City, Ibaraki Prefecture
▽ The 14th will be held in Kasukabe City, Saitama Prefecture.
Yokozuna Terunofuji First participation after promotion "Grand sumo wrestling with fans"
Yokozuna Terunofuji will be participating in the tour for the first time since she was promoted to Yokozuna after the Nagoya tournament last year. After all, sumo wrestling has fans, so I want to fulfill that responsibility and do my best on the tour so that I can enjoy it.”
He continued, "Until I became a yokozuna, I worked hard at training with the desire to become recklessly strong. There is. I want to learn it one by one."
Also, regarding the fact that the tour was held due to the corona wreck, he said, "It's really unavoidable. I think that even one or two things that were able to be held are moving forward."
Master Irumagawa “An event unique to the tour, take measures as much as possible”
Irumagawa Oyakata, former sekiwake Tochiji, who is the deputy director of the tour club, said that in light of the fact that sumo wrestlers were suspended due to the new corona infection at the Nagoya tournament last month, he said, "Be careful during the tour and don't get corona. The emphasis is on not contagion.The most important thing is to prevent the spread of infection to sumo wrestlers and customers."
After that, he said, "Since there are events unique to the tour, we will take measures to prevent infection as much as possible. And I would like to proceed while thinking about how to please the fans."
sumo wrestling fans
People who visited the venue of the tour enjoyed the powerful appearance of the sumo wrestlers up close while wearing masks to prevent infection.
A woman who came to see the tour for the first time said, "I recently fell in love with sumo wrestling and wanted to hear the clash of wrestlers echoing in the venue."
Also, a man in his 70s said, "I was disappointed that the annual tour was canceled due to the corona disaster, but I'm happy that sumo wrestlers have the opportunity to gather."
Also, a young woman said, "It's fun to see the sumo wrestlers relaxed, unlike the main tournament."
A man in his 50s who is a fan of Ichinojo, who won the Nagoya tournament for the first time last month, said with a smile, "It's great to be able to see Ichinojo up close."
Unusual situation continues due to the spread of new corona infection
Due to the spread of the new coronavirus, sumo wrestling has been in an unusual situation since last month's Nagoya tournament.
First, on the 7th day of the Nagoya tournament, an infected person was confirmed in the Dewanumi stable, and it was decided that sumo wrestlers, including the sumo wrestler Ozeki Mitakeumi, would rest.
Until now, there have been cases where sumo wrestlers in the room related to the front of the venue were closed due to the infection of the new corona, but it was the first time that the infection was confirmed in the venue.
In addition, on the 13th day, infections were confirmed in 4 rooms, 7 makuuchi wrestlers were suspended in the middle, and 7 out of 18 bouts after entering the middle were "not fighting". Infection was confirmed in the Hakkaku room, and after Hakkaku's annual greetings from the association, he left the venue and did not attend the award ceremony.
Including injuries, the number of sekitori in ten or more cars was 23, the highest number since the war.
In addition, we had to make a difficult decision regarding the ranking organization for next month's autumn tournament.
The Japan Sumo Association has taken measures to keep the rankings of sumo wrestlers who have been absent due to the new corona or to lower the rankings slightly, and after the ranking organization meeting on the 27th of last month, referee director Isegahama said, ``The base is now. We are doing the same as before,” he said.
However, this is the first time that the tournament will be closed due to the influence of the new corona, and the wrestlers who have decided to win or lose before the break will be ranked up or down in consideration of their results.
In addition, ozeki Mitakekai, who was a corner guard, was absent from the 7th day when he had 2 wins and 4 losses before the winner or loser was decided. .
On the other hand, at the board meeting after the Nagoya tournament, opinions were exchanged on the idea of resting wrestlers due to the corona crisis.
If an infected person appears in the room, currently all the people involved, such as sumo wrestlers and masters who live together, are closed. , It means that there was also an opinion to review the rules so far.
At this point, however, there are opinions calling for careful judgment, and the discussion ended in a parallel line.
Now that we have experienced the unusual situation in Nagoya, we are once again asking how the sumo world, which is affected by the spread of infection, will proceed smoothly in the future.