More thoughts about Taka/Waka

[jac@powerup.com.au (Greg Lund)]

We've been kicking around the things we've been hearing about what is going
on at Futagoyama  beya, and speculating on what might happen if oyakata
can't get things smoothed out.

We have been wondering whether Taka might now  - having won  20 tournaments
- be able to break away and set up his own heya?  With that sort of record,
which he looks (physically) capable of extending for a long time to come,
it would seem likely that he would be the next ichidai toshiyori on
retirement.

My question (Abe san, Doreen, others please) is: Can he assume that ichidai
mantle while still a practising Yokozuna, or is it only bestowed on
retirement.  Even if he could, would the Kyokai sanction a heya operating
that way.   I can't really see that a yokozuna could possibly be his own
oyazata, so I guess not, but it is intriguing to think about, and having
been raised, I guess I should ask.

What was on our minds, of course, was that if he could - and did - decide
to break away as a yokozuna, it would  mean that he and Waka would have to
fight each other, thereby ensuring more Yokozuna Vs Yokozuna bouts, which
is of course what sumo ultimately is all about.  Given the state of Waka's
health, that might not go on for too long, but in the meantime,  the "bad
blood"  angle would be another great drawcard for the Kyokai, which must be
desperate to breathe some life into  sumo's flagging popularity (except, of
course, with a bunch of loonies like us).

Greg Lund
Japan Access Corporation
Brisbane