(Spoiler ? and long!) Results and comments on the first day of the Osaka Tournament

[A & V Antoce <antoce@main.biochem.osakafu-u.ac.jp>]

	I just saw on TV the live broadcast from the first day of the Sumo
Tournament in Osaka held on April 6 and 7, and I would like to share with
you some impressions. I really hope this is not a "spoiler"; although I'm
new on the list, from what I read the chances that these tournaments be
covered anywhere except Japan are quite slim. It's a long posting, probably
with many errors and imperfections - I hope you won't be be too harsh with
me, please; I'm still learning the basics!
	The Japanese name of the tournament is "ozumo kachinuki yushosen", which I
believe makes a reference to the fact that the winner in each match "goes
on" while the loser is out for good. The action takes place at Osaka-jo Hall
(Osaka Castle Hall), near the recently-embelished Osaka Castle (they spent
7,000,000,000 yen on repair work, if I understood well - I also visited it a
few days ago). The audience was 12,600, and "manin-onrei" banners were
hanging from the ceiling, although I could spot more than a few empty seats.
The prize for the winner was 4 million yen and a sponsor offered a fully
equiped NEC Value Star computer.
	On TV we had of course a Japanese comentator, together with Oguruma-oyakata
(former Kotokaze-ozeki) and a lady playing the role of the beginner who
knows nothing and asks a lot.
	Now let's move to the matches. (Winners' names will be written with capitals).

Ikkaisen (first round):
1) OGINISHIKI - Konishiki (tsukiotoshi). Konishiki had a good tachiai and I
didn't think he will stop until Oginishiki was out, but the latter managed
to step on his breaks at the margin of the dohyo, resisted for a while to
Konishiki's "nodowa", and then twisted his body in a quick move, making
Konishiki fell of the dohyo.

2) DEJIMA - Tochinowaka (tsukiotoshi). Dejima was pushing hard,
Tochinowaka's feet were slipping on the sand; a hand in the right place at
the good moment and the match was over after only a few seconds.

3)YAMATO - Kotoinazuma (yorikiri). Easy win, I'd say.

Nikaisen (second round):
1) Kaio - RIKIO (yorikiri). Kaio couldn't get his right hand on the mawashi
(the left hand either, for what it's worth...).

2) Minatofuji - KOTORYU (oshidashi). A lot of tsuppari at the beginning,
then Kotoryu managed to get a grip of the opponent's mawashi, got him close
to the edge and finished by pushing.

3) Daishi - MISUGISATO (yorikiri). In spite of a heavily wrapped elbow.

4) DAIHISHO - Asanosho (yorikiri). 

5) KOTONISHIKI - Gojoro (oshidashi), after a good tachiai and violent
tsuppari from the winner.

6) Oginishiki - TAMAKASUGA (yorikiri).

7) TOCHIAZUMA - Dejima (yorikiri). Tochiazuma managed to stop Dejima's
forward move right from the tachiai, and then had a good mawashi grip.

8) YAMATO - Akinoshima (yorikiri). A rather long bout, during which each
rikishi had a good chance to win. Yamato seemed stronger.

Sankaisen (third round)
1) TAKANOHANA - Rikio (sukuinage). Rikio put up a good fight, but never got
really dangerous.

2) Kotoryu - MUSOYAMA (yorikiri). Both rikishi seemed very careful, a rather
mild tachiai etc.

3) Tosanoumi - MISUGISATO (yorikiri).

4) Daihisho - MUSASHIMARU (yorikiri). Musashimaru looked very strong, it
took him just a few seconds and a single forward movement.

5) TAKANONAMI - Kotonishiki (harimanage - a rather unusual technique, and it
sure looked so). A very dynamic match, with lots of "running" in the dohyo;
Kotonishiki did a lot of tsuppari, then caught Takanonami's neck in a long
"nodowa", after which he managed even to get behind him. But the ozeki
stretched a hand backwards, got the opponent's mawashi and threw him down
without ever really recovering from the "got from behind" position. Sorry -
I have no idea how to describe this better. Kotonishiki seemed to have hurt
himself a little from the fall.

6) Tamakasuga - KYOKUSHUZAN (okuridashi). The bout started with lots of
tsuppari from both parts, then Kyokushuzan went for some of his specialties.
He pulled the mawashi, tried to get a leg, tried some leg trick and finally
got behind the opponent somewhere very close to the center of the dohyo.
Then everything stopped for a long second (it seemed that both rikishi were
a little surprised, or Kyokushuzan wasn't sure what to do from there, or he
was simply cautios; Tamakasuga was probably desperately thinking what the
hell could he do now). At any rate, it was the slowest okuridashi I've ever
seen...

7) TAKATORIKI - Tochiazuma (hatakikomi). 

8) Yamato - AKEBONO (yorikiri). The two giants were classmates from
kindergarten up to high-school, said the comentator. Yamato had a strong
tachiai, forcing the yokozuna to make a few steps back, but then the latter
got his both hands on Yamato's mawashi and everything was over. Akebono
looked OK to me (I mention this because somebody was asking a few days ago
how is Akebono's leg doing); but of course it's hard to tell for sure.

Jun-jun-kessho (quarter-finals)
1) Takanohana - MUSOYAMA (oshidashi). Musoyama seemed very decided, and
didn't give the yokozuna too much time to think, nor the chance for a
mawashi grip.

2) Misugisato - MUSASHIMARU (yorikiri). Again Musashimaru looked very strong
and sure of himself.

3) TAKANONAMI - Kyokushuzan (tsukiotoshi, after initially being announced as
uatenage, which gives an idea about how "complicated" it looked).
Kyokushuzan was very theatral during preparations; he was going for a
jikan-mae, and even got it, after he first went "matta" once. Takanonami had
some troubles finding his opponent, which was moving in some ways I've never
seen yet, escaping 3 or 4 times from the ozeki's hands and having time for
trying some of his techniques. But they didn't work this time.

4) Akebono - TAKATORIKI (tsukiotoshi). Only a second or so; Takatoriki
twisted aside just a little, and Akebono, pushing too hard at tachiai, fell
to the ground.

Jun-kessho (semifinals). Both were fights between rikishi from the same heya.
1) Musoyama - MUSASHIMARU (uatenage). Both rikishi had good mawashi grips,
but Musashimaru proved stronger.

2) Takanonami - TAKATORIKI (tsukiotoshi). Takatoriki went very decidedly,
didn't stop even for a second, and finaly managed to get Takanonami down.

Kessho-sen (final)
Musashimaru - TAKATORIKI (tsukiotoshi). The only match in which I noticed
some kensho (prizes from sponsors). Takatoriki used almost the same strategy
as in the bout against Akebono: he stepped aside just a little, and
Musashimaru got down mainly because of his own impulse. 

Some other notes I made:
	- Sometimes they were transmitting images from a camera fixed somewhere in
the roof above the dohyo, and I thought it was a very interesting angle. It
gave a great view, we could see clear when one rikishi was getting out of
balance. Of course, it was used only for replays.
	- To make the comentary more interesting they showed some pictures of some
rikishi when they were very young - at kindergarten or first year(s) of
school. And they were asking that invited lady what does she think about
those pictures. In her opinion, Kotoinazuma was "looking completely
different", Oguruma-oyakata was "exactly like today", Kotoryu was "more like
a little girl", Gojoro was "wel built" even at that age, but also "kawaii"
(pretty ? cute ?), Takanonami was "handsome".
	- In a "hanamichi report" before the fight between Takatoriki and
Tochiazuma, they reproduced a comment of Takatoriki which I liked how it
sounds in Japanese: "Aite wa wakai, ikioi ga aru; demo, ikioi nanka, boku mo
makete-masen" (If I may try a translation, it would come out something like:
My opponent is young and has vigour; but I'm not so bad myself with respect
to vigour.  Show me somebody who doesn't like Takatoriki !)
	- In Osaka we had 18 degrees Celsius today, and probably inside it was
quite hot, because the big guys seemed to have a bit of trouble with
perspiration.
	- They showed in replay a match of the Haru Basho 1953, between
Tochinishiki and Wakanohana; at one moment the hair of one rikishi went
completely loose, he really looked strange if not to say scary; they stopped
the match, made him pretty again and continued from were they left it. I
can't say, however, who was who.
	- There was another replay of a spectacular match in which Takanohana
(today's Futagoyama oyakata) in 1982 I think (hatsu-basho) was defeated by
an opponent who almost climbed on him. I'm very sorry, but I didn't get his
name.

That's about all for the first day. If there will not be too many protests
to this long posting, maybe I could summarize for you tomorrow's bouts as well.

Regards,

Vasile Antoce, Osaka.