John Gunning

Sumo’s newest yokozuna is all smiles — but major challenges await

Thanks for alerting me to the fact that TBS is using one of my photos without permission.

Yep

Not only that but a major news agency just got slapped with punishments and threatened with having their access to a certain sport revoked for accidentally putting embargoed news online for a few minutes half an hour before the time allowed.

Nothing to do with London. Can’t say more until the announcement is made tomorrow but it will happen probably around 2pm Japan time

Got my days mixed up. It’s tomorrow

Announcement coming in the next hour or so that’s probably going to make some European sumo fans very happy.

Our review of 2024 is now available to watch for free at this link.

The 15th Hakuho Cup WILL take place Details: * 2025-2-11 Kokugikan * JSA approval ・ Guidance from Isegahama Oyakata * Noto & Ukraine teams invited * Miyagino in mawashi teaching * 1,100 kids approx. (Age 5-15) * Admission FREE

I talked to some sumo fans who were at the Royal Albert Hall in 1991.

Will we see Paris Syndrome on the kyujo certificates?

The counterpoint of course is that if such deliberate misinformation is of little consequence to those in attendance and / or won't affect tickets sales, then why do it? With no apparent upside, all it's doing is simply annoying people who do understand the false nature of the claims, and putting even more incorrect info about sumo out into the world. They could simply have said the Japan Sumo Association is returning to London after 34 years, and even used the 'basho' moniker without issue (as Canada did in 1998).

All JSA info related to the event treats it as a normal Koen. The presenting it as a real basho comes entirely from the organiser and the RAH. I’m pretty sure no one in the kyokai is reading English language media connected to the event, and even if they did I doubt they would care enough to start correcting their business partners in the venture over such phrasing as it has no effect on them or their core audience, nor is it ever picked up by media in Japan. I don’t even know why it bugs me so much - I’ve seen far more egregious claims made about sumo in the past by foreign media.

If anyone was at the 1991 London sumo event and is willing to talk about their recollections please give me a shout.

The Royal Albert Hall are well aware that their claims that this (and 1991) are 'official' basho, and that they are the only two sumo events held outside Japan are incorrect. I've told their staff and the people responsible for the event the same thing directly on numerous occasions. They simply do not care and are happy to continue perpetuating those (easily fact checkable) falsehoods, even including them in materials distributed to the media this week.