Re: Tokyo Sumo Tournament - Day 1 (spoiler for some, and long!)

[jz8d-smmn@asahi-net.or.jp (Doreen Simmons)]

At 18:52 98.1.31 -0500, OhSumo@aol.com wrote:
 
>>And that's all. The second day will apparently be transmitted too (for those
>>who are in Japan - it's on Kansai TV, starting 16:05). If I have the time
>>maybe I can tell you about the second day too.

In Kanto, it was on Fuji - Channel 8 - the main sponsor. Fuji put in its
own commentator and invited its own guests. It was interesting to notice
the different style. It was much more like the chatty style of NHK's
English commentaries. I too noticed the Fuji man's way of addressing
oyakata as 'XXX-san' but I suppose it's just the different style practised
(or allowed) by one of the commercial stations. I was told years ago that
this form of address meant that you were claiming the oyakata as a friend,
so I am always careful in public to stick to the formal title. In the case
of the English commentaries, what we say is likely to be imitated by the
listeners, and it's always better for them to err on the side of
politeness.
 
>2.  I didn't have the feeling I was watching real sumo.  If sumo was always
>like that I don't think I'd have a passion for it.  Mitoizumi beating, excuse
>me, Kaio?  Minatofuji beating Musoyama?  Everything seemed too easy somehow.
>I can understand that they didn't want to get hurt right before the Olympics,
>but this is the worst sumo I've ever seen.

I have to agree. I went to the very first one, since at that time I never
missed any sumo at all. The following year, I bought two tickets again, but
when the time came around, I just gave them away. It wasn't the real thing.
There's money to be won, and sometimes the knockout format allows a man to
win who would never get a real yusho. There is also interest in the fact
that drawing for pairs means that stablemates can face each other.

Fuji did at one time have a pioneering bilingual commentary, featuring Andy
Adams, editor of Sumo World magazine, assisted by other contributors to his
magazine; but it was dropped after about three years.

 Doreen Simmons in sumoland, Tokyo        jz8d-smmn@asahi-net.or.jp 

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