Sumo- 2019 Hatsu Basho

[jnight]

Day 14-



Sekiwake Tamawashi maintained his lead by beating No. 5 maegashira Aoiyama and will go into Sunday’s bout at Tokyo’s Ryogoku Kokugikan with a one-win lead over sekiwake Takakeisho.

Aoiyama (7-7) seemed victory bound after the initial clash, shoving Tamawashi toward the edge of the ring by his face and neck. However, the sekiwake remained calm and turned the 198-kg maegashira around before pushing him from the ring.

Tamawashi will face No. 9 Endo (10-4) on Sunday in his campaign to claim his first top-level championship. He has won nine of 15 previous career matches against the fan-favorite maegashira.

Newly promoted sekiwake Takakeisho (11-3) kept his hopes of winning back-to-back top makuuchi division titles alive following his win over No. 4 maegashira Okinoumi (6-8).

The 22-year-old, who won the November Basho in Fukuoka, needed only 2.9 seconds to push the maegashira out. Takakeisho will fight ozeki Goeido in Sunday’s final bout.

Goeido (8-6) secured a winning record following a victory by forfeit over the injured Hakuho, who opened with 10 straights wins.

Along with Goeido, ozeki Takayasu also posted his eighth win after defeating komusubi Mitakeumi. Mitakeumi (8-3-3) entered the ring with a three-match winning streak after he missed four matches with injury.

Three remaining wrestlers — No. 8 Kaisei, Endo and No. 10 Abi — sit in third place with 10 wins.

Brazilian wrestler Kaisei defeated No. 13 Yago (8-6), who is making his debut in the top division at this tournament.

Up-and-coming youngster Abi overcame a 10-year age difference with No. 3 Shohozan (5-9), slapping the 34-year-old to the clay.

Endo made short work of top-ranked maegashira Tochiozan (5-9), quickly pushing out the 158-kg wrestler without giving him a chance to resist.

[jnight]

Day 15-



Sekiwake Tamawashi became the second-oldest wrestler in sumo’s current format to secure his maiden championship, winning the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament on Sunday, the tourney’s 15th and final day.

The 34-year-old Mongolian wrapped up his triumph with his 13th victory, beating No. 9 maegashira Endo (10-5) for the 10th time in 16 career bouts. Tamawashi had entered the day with a one-win lead over 22-year-old Takakeisho, who had won his maiden championship in November.

Tamawashi made quick work of Endo, receiving his charge, pushing him up, throwing him off balance with a couple of full-blooded shoves and then casting him down.

The oldest wrestler to win his first championship since sumo went to six grand tournaments a year in 1958 was his compatriot Kyokutenho, who secured his lone title as a No. 7 maegashira in May 2012 as a 37-year-old. With the title in his hands, Tamawashi sat by ringside, where he continually wiped at his eyes while the final bouts were fought.

The victory was cause for double celebration as Tamawashi’s wife gave birth to a son earlier in the day.

With a second straight championship out of reach, Takakeisho (11-4) faced ozeki Goeido (9-6) in the tournament’s final bout. He was run out of the ring in a heartbeat, carried out by the ozeki’s charge in 1.9 seconds.

Although Takakeisho met one standard for ozeki promotion, 33 wins over three grand tournaments, his poor performance on the final day, and his 9-6 record in September have put his promotion on hold.

[jnight]

Late-blooming sekiwake Tamawashi, who won his first title at the age of 34 in the just-concluded New Year Grand Sumo Tournament, said he does not intend to slow down despite taking his time to claim the Emperor’s Cup.

A day after winning the 15-day championship at Ryogoku Kokugikan with a 13-2 record, the Mongolian said he will shatter the young athlete ideal by fighting age and working out to stay younger for longer.

“I have to be young. I have to train as hard (as the younger wrestlers),” said Tamawashi, who became the second-oldest wrestler in sumo’s current six-basho format to win his first championship.

“I still can’t believe it. (The silver trophy) was very heavy. Dreams are meant to come true,” he told a press conference at his Kataonami stable. “I want to continue fighting past the age of 40.”

Tamawashi, at sumo’s third-highest rank, capitalized on the absence of three top-ranked yokozuna to secure victory by beating fan-favorite maegashira Endo on Sunday, the same day his wife gave birth to their second child.

“My wife worked hard so I felt I had to, too,” he said.

He finished two wins ahead of fellow sekiwake Takakeisho, who was gunning for his second straight title following his feat at the Kyushu meet in November, where he became the sixth-youngest wrestler to clinch a first career championship at the age of 22 years and three months.

When asked about his expectations for promotion to ozeki, Tamawashi, who got less than three hours of sleep, humbly said, “I’m taking one bout at a time trusting that results will come without looking at what might come later.”

Tamawashi’s journey to championship was not all smooth sailing.

Having never missed a tournament since his 2004 debut, Tamawashi’s streak of 1,151 consecutive bouts is the longest among active wrestlers. However, he needed to fight in 38 grand tournaments in the top-flight makuuchi division before earning promotion to the three sanyaku ranks below yokozuna, the longest run ever needed for a foreign wrestler.

Still, quitting was never an option, and he had his reasons.

“Never,” Tamawashi said when asked whether he had ever considered quitting sumo.

“There are people who have always been supportive of me. It would be sinful to betray them,” he said.

Tamawashi is cognizant of the next generation of wrestlers, not as threats but as inspirations as he eyes continued success.

“I’m in awe when I see the way others approach sumo. Like them, I want to put on a sumo performance that allows people to have fun and feel joy,” he said.