Leoben

If there's been no more news about this and no other outlets picking it up, plus the man himself and coach Isegahama denying it, I'm inclined to believe it was just click bait to score easy web traffic.

Enjoyed Takayasu's display today, his thrusting attack reminded me of our recently retired Ozeki. I hope he can stay strong and go all the way.

the chances of this happening are sub-0.1%, but imagine, just for a moment... Yokozuna Showtime.

In some ways it's remarkable that there aren't more and worse cases. All male environment. Super insular. Culture of machismo and of silence. Strength = power. And the sport's deep rooted traditionalism along with Japan's hierarchical culture. It looks like a set of conditions an anthropologist would devise to conduct a social experiment with college students.

The prices are outrageous. My sister lives in Paris so I was really excited about picking up tickets and going, but all the decent seats cost a fortune. I'm pretty sure I paid less than €81 when I was in Fukuoka in 2023.

In the US, everything is measured in football fields. In Japan, in rikishi.

Is this a recurring thing? I haven't followed him closely but I'm pretty sure it's not the first time I've read about him lacking decorum.

I wonder what they would think if they saw some of the discussions a bunch of graceless foreigners have on here.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ja" dir="ltr">＜新横綱 豊昇龍＞<br>本日1月29日、三月場所の番付編成会議と臨時理事会を開き、豊昇龍の横綱昇進が決定しました。<br><br>74代横綱 豊昇龍が誕生します。<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sumo?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#sumo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/%E7%9B%B8%E6%92%B2?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#相撲</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/%E8%B1%8A%E6%98%87%E9%BE%8D?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#豊昇龍</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/%E6%A8%AA%E7%B6%B1?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#横綱</a> <a href="https://t.co/Tn020ekKyf">pic.twitter.com/Tn020ekKyf</a></p>&mdash; 日本相撲協会公式 (@sumokyokai) <a href="https://twitter.com/sumokyokai/status/1884391854462075341?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> [tweet]1884391854462075341[/tweet]

Official announcement from the association https://twitter.com/sumokyokai/status/1884391854462075341 edit: how do I get this to embed? have tried various versions of the code block and can't get it to work

I remember reading a quote from someone, can't remember who, that said something like the hard work actually starts when you make Yokozuna. I'd like to think that ifwhen Hoshoryu is confirmed as #74, he'll take this to heart and do everything in his power to maintain the level of excellence the rank demands. On the one hand the rush of reaching the pinnacle of the sport must be incredible, but on the other it must feel terrifying to know that you are no longer allowed to make mistakes, like you're constantly balancing on the edge of the abyss. You're up there alone and everyone is watching every move you make and there is zero tolerance for error. I know professional athletes think differently from us, but the psychology of the position of yokozuna is so unique and fascinating even within pro sports.

Thinking about why they may/may not promote him, I've got: For: - He was on a declared tsuna run and he won the yusho. - The manner in which he won the yusho showed determination and the ability to perform under pressure. - The eyeball test. He does prototypical Yokozuna sumo. He has evolved from being a throwing specialist that over relied on his judo to a more rounded style, using effective pushing to set up a powerful yotsu game. - Consistency. He hasn't had a losing score since November 2021 when he was M5. - No injury concerns. He has missed only 5 matches since his debut in 2018, and has shown the willingness to fight while being hurt and get a winning score. - Terunofuji's retirement and the pressure for the top rank to not be empty. Against: - 12-3 is not a strong yusho. - 25 in 2 with only one yusho is a sketchy scoreline. Easy to see it being considered below the Yokozuna standard. - The Takakeisho precedent, being denied twice recently with the same score. - He was 8-7 in September. - Only his 2nd yusho, and he doesn't have a ton of jun yusho either. - He still loses matches in an un-Yokozuna-like manner every tournament (eg. Hiradoumi) Whether the YDC will consider these factors, potentially others I'm ignoring, and how they will balance them I have no idea. I could see the first one (winning the yusho while being on a run) taking precedence over everything else and earning him promotion... just as easily as I could see them saying 12-3/25-2 isn't good enough and asking for one more result in March. Curious to know what others think.

12-3 is not exactly a strong yusho... But dropping those 3 relatively early and then going on a winning streak to close it out with 3 wins in a single day is impressive. Honestly I have no idea what will happen. I'd be overjoyed if they promote him but would also understand if they say he needs one more.

Also very impressed with Oho today. I didn't see any desperation or luck in his win, and it wasn't Daieisho who overextended. It felt calculated and was executed beautifully.