Pictures from the Kyokai - 2014 Kyushu, Senshuraku

[Yubinhaad 11,761]

Pictures from the final day of the basho - lower division action in the first box.

Outside, yobidashi Hiromasa and Shin are on the drum tower for the yosedaiko performance.

In the arena, the action began with Shoryudo getting his third win against debutant Ozaki.

In Jonidan, Yamana gets the best result of his short career, finishing 5-2 with a win against Sadanogo.

Takakurayama also gets his fifth win, throwing Yasui with an uwatenage here. (Clapping wildly...)

Shiraseyama slaps down Buken to improve to 3-4.

Daitenyu picks up his fifth win by pushing down Hidano.

Suekawa finishes with a fine 6-1 kachi-koshi for the second basho in a row as he continues his comeback from injury. He pushed out Motokiyama for the sixth win.

Veteran Isenohana gets his fifth win by pushing out Fujitaisei from behind. In the next basho, Isenohana will be among the small group of active rikishi over the age of 40, celebrating that birthday on January 3rd.

In Sandanme, Ako finishes with five wins and a third consecutive kachi-koshi, here about to force out heavier Ishii who has started his career in the same way, with three consecutive kachi-koshi.

The oldest active rikishi, 44-year-old Hanakaze, gets his third win by pulling down Minatoryu with a katasukashi. Both of them will drop back to Jonidan on the next banzuke.

Kasugamaru finishes the year as he started it, with a 6-1 kachi-koshi, unfortunately with four make-koshi in between. On senshuraku he threw down Baraki with a sukuinage, and leads their head-to-head 3-0.

Hokutohana takes a dive but manages to get the win as Wakarikido (near side) just stepped out first. Six wins for Hokutohana, five wins for Wakarikido.

Over 400kg of rikishi collided in this bout, as Takatenshu gets his third win by forcing out Higonoryu.

A good view of a sukuinage here, as Akatsuki gets his second win by throwing down Hibikiryu.

Yoshinokuni (far side) picks up his third win by twisting down Kiryu with a shitatehineri.

Kosei finishes with a 5-2 kachi-koshi, throwing down the heaviest active rikishi Orora with an uwatenage. Kosei leads their head-to-head 3-0 now.

Although his winning streak ended at 15, Hamaguchi pushed out Daigofuji here to finish with a 6-1 kachi-koshi.

Former Maegashira Nionoumi pushes out Wakaryusei to finish with an excellent 6-1 result - his first kachi-koshi since 2013 Natsu! (Applauding...)

In Makushita, Kotokuzan gets his third win by pushing out Matsubayama. Both will drop back to Sandanme next time.

Shodai finishes with a 5-2 kachi-koshi, pushing out fellow rising star Shiba who finishes with a 4-3.

Sasakiyama ended his run of three consecutive make-koshi with six wins, here slapping down Onami.

Akinokawa gets his fifth win with a kotenage against Aokishin. Aokishin was at his highest career rank this basho and gets his fourth consecutive kachi-koshi.

Horikiri will be at a new career-high rank on the next banzuke, finishing this one with a 6-1 kachi-koshi thanks to a win against former Juryo Kotomisen.

Kawanari finishes with six wins, here pushing out Sasanoyama who finishes with five wins at his highest career rank.

Rikishin gets his second win by pushing out veteran former Juryo Dairaido on senshuraku.

Horyuyama also gets his second win, throwing Kotokobai out of the ring with an uwatenage.

And in the final Makushita bout, Onosho gets his fifth win by pushing out Ishiura. Onosho has chalked up eleven consecutive kachi-koshi from the start of his career, and will be promoted to Juryo on the next banzuke.

Juryo division action in this box.

Juryo East dohyo-iri.

Juryo leader Tokitenku in the centre, flanked by Sadanofuji and Dewahayate.

Juryo West dohyo-iri.

A cool freeze-frame as Sakigake and Abiko try to be the last man on the tawara. After a mono-ii the shimpan decided that Sakigake was the winner, leaving Makushita visitor Abiko with his first ever make-koshi.

Daieisho gets his sixth win by dispatching the other Makushita visitor, Wakanoshima, who also misses out of promotion with a 3-4 make-koshi.

Kotoeko gets his fifth win by pushing out Azumaryu. Kotoeko will drop back to Makushita on the next banzuke.

Daido and Wakanosato in action. Daido got the hatakikomi win here to leave both men with 9-6 kachi-koshi.

Asasekiryu gets his ninth win, keeping Asahisho on the run throughout the bout and eventually forcing him out of the ring.

Gagamaru ends his run of four consecutive make-koshi, getting the crucial eighth win on senshuraku by pushing out Juryo returnee Tochihiryu.

Tosayutaka gets his ninth win and probably secures himself a return to the Makuuchi ranks, forcing out Tokushinho who is on a run of three consecutive make-koshi.

Dewahayate picks up his fifth win by forcing out Sotairyu. Dewahayate will drop back to the Makushita division on the next banzuke.

Tamaasuka clinches his kachi-koshi with a final day win against Shotenro.

Despite an injury-hit first half of the basho, Hidenoumi has done well to finish with effectively a 7-8 make-koshi, picking up the seventh win against Seiro.

Fujiazuma gets his seventh win by pushing down Satoyama, who seemed sadly out of sorts this basho. :-(

Sadanofuji reaches double-digit wins with an oshidashi win against Tenkaiho. Both finish with 10-5 kachi-koshi, but this loss knocked Tenkaiho out of the yusho race completely.

Kagamio forces Kitaharima out of the ring to leave both men with a 9-6 kachi-koshi. Kagamio will return to the Makuuchi division on the next banzuke, while Kitaharima will be at a new career-high rank.

Over a decade after his first Juryo yusho, Tokitenku secures his second in typical fashion, tripping Kagayaki with a nice uchigake. Tokitenku will return to Makuuchi next time, while I thought Kagayaki showed good composure in his Juryo debut basho, finishing with ten wins.

[Yubinhaad 11,761]

Jonidan kettei-sen, lower division yusho presentations, Makuuchi dohyo-iri, and tate yobidashi Hideo with hair.

Rijicho Kitanoumi gives his senshuraku speech, joined on the dohyo by the Yokozuna and the sanyaku rikishi.

Former Juryo Ryuden pushes out Daishoko in the Jonidan kettei-sen, winning his second consecutive yusho as he makes his way back up the banzuke.

Jonokuchi yusho - Sato, Takanohana-beya. Kyokai certificates presented by Isegahama-oyakata (former Yokozuna Asahifuji).

Kyushu Tamari-kai certificates were also handed out by a representative of the group.

Sato with his yusho certificate.

Jonidan yusho - Ryuden, Takadagawa-beya.

Sandanme yusho - Shinohara, Onomatsu-beya. (Sign of approval...)

Makushita yusho - Higoarashi, Kise-beya.

Juryo yusho - Tokitenku, Tokitsukaze-beya.

The winners.

Ryuden talks to the press.

Waiting to give a yusho interview, to NHK I presume.

Back in the arena, Makuuchi dohyo-iri, East and West.

Yokozuna Hakuho's dohyo-iri.

Yokozuna Kakuryu's dohyo-iri.

Yokozuna Harumafuji's dohyo-iri.

Tate yobidashi Hideo with the hyoshigi, on the final honbasho day of his career.

Hideo, circa 1971.

Makuuchi action and presentation stuff still to come, will try and have it done tomorrow.

[shumitto 418]

What was Fujiazuma doing on the west side dohyo-iri between Asasekiryu and Wakanosato ?

That makekoshi was very bad luck, but Abiko should have done better to deserve promotion.

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

What was Fujiazuma doing on the west side dohyo-iri between Asasekiryu and Wakanosato ?

Look at the torikumi - he was a West End Boy on Senshuraku.

[Naganoyama 5,945]

Thanks for all your pictures and helpful commentary.

[Yubinhaad 11,761]

Ran out of time yesterday, so here's the Makuuchi action from the final day.

Kyokutenho wins his seventh Gino-sho by pushing out Chiyomaru, finishing with a 10-5 kachi-koshi this basho.

A smile for the camera while waiting to conduct an interview with NHK.

Kotoyuki stays on the tawara while slapping down Myogiryu. Kotoyuki gets his kachi-koshi and saves his Makuuchi place on the next banzuke.

Tamawashi also secures his kachi-koshi with a kotenage win against Sokokurai.

Kyokushuho got his ninth win by throwing down Shohozan, much to the disappointment of local fans who see Fukuoka native Shohozan fall to make-koshi.

Chiyotairyu gets his ninth win by blasting Amuru out of the dohyo. Amuru finishes 5-10 in his Makuuchi debut and will drop back to Juryo on the next banzuke.

Endo finishes with ten wins after pushing down Homarefuji on the final day. Homarefuji gets his first kachi-koshi in the top division with eight wins, while hopefully this result will give Endo a bit of confidence.

Sadanoumi finishes just short of kachi-koshi, getting his seventh win on senshuraku by forcing out Arawashi.

Jokoryu clinches his kachi-koshi with an oshidashi win against Tochinowaka. Tochinowaka has looked very ordinary this basho, perhaps battling some unrevealed injury. His 3-12 record will see him drop to Juryo on the next banzuke.

Osunaarashi gets his fourth win of an injury-hit basho, forcing out Takanoiwa who finishes with three wins. Osunaarashi leads their head-to-head 4-0.

Takayasu and Tochinoshin during the shikiri for their bout, a meeting of two of the basho's sansho winners.

Takayasu won the bout as his uwatenage grip proved stronger than Tochinoshin's shitatenage. Ten wins for Takayasu will see him return to Komusubi rank next time, while Tochinoshin won't be far behind with his 11-4 kachi-koshi.

Toyohibiki gets his fifth win by pushing out lacklustre Kitataiki. Toyohibiki leads their head-to-head 11-2 now.

Takarafuji secures his kachi-koshi with a yorikiri win against Okinoumi, who also finishes with an 8-7 record.

Aminishiki gets his sixth win by slapping down Yoshikaze, whose injury-hit basho sees him finish with effectively a 4-11 record.

Tochiozan secures his kachi-koshi and his return to sanyaku, getting his eighth win against Chiyootori on senshuraku.

Kaisei gets his seventh win by forcing out Ikioi. Despite the make-koshi, Kaisei can still celebrate the official announcement that he had been granted Japanese citizenship mid-basho. Ikioi finishes with a solid 6-9 result on his sanyaku debut.

Takekaze has endured a torrid time this basho and finishes with only two wins, here pushing out Tokushoryu.

Terunofuji finally forces out Ichinojo for his kachi-koshi after a prolonged yotsu battle in their bout. Ichinojo also finishes with eight wins and will keep his Sekiwake rank.

The other Sekiwake Aoiyama secures his kachi-koshi and retains his rank as well, pushing down Toyonoshima who also finishes with eight wins.

Sanyaku soroi-bumi, East and West.

Kisenosato finishes with an 11-4 record, the only Ozeki to finish kachi-koshi, pushing down Goeido in their senshuraku encounter. Goeido finishes with a poor 5-10 make-koshi and will be kadoban in the next basho.

Shikimori Inosuke about to give the kachinanori to Kisenosato, along with a set of arrows as the winner of the first koreyori sanyaku bout.

Harumafuji throws down Kotoshogiku with an uwatenage. The Yokozuna finishes with an 11-4 record, a decent result considering his shaky start. Kotoshogiku finishes with a 6-9 make-koshi and will be kadoban in January, like Goeido.

For the final time, tate yobidashi Hideo calls up the rikishi for the musubi-no-ichiban.

Sweeping the dohyo, along with Soichi.

Hakuho and Kakuryu perform chiri-chozu ahead of the bout.

The senior Yokozuna had little trouble forcing Kakuryu out of the ring, securing his record-equalling 32nd Makuuchi yusho.

Satonofuji performs the yumitori-shiki as the senshuraku sumo comes to an end.

[Yubinhaad 11,761]

Finally, some pictures from the awards ceremonies.

Rijicho Kitanoumi repeats the familiar routine of handing the yusho trophy to Hakuho.

Yusho flag presented by Isegahama-oyakata (former Yokozuna Asahifuji).

The Prime Minister's trophy was presented by Taro Aso, a former holder of that office.

Mayor of Fukuoka's trophy.

Governor of Fukuoka's trophy.

This trophy was from RKB Mainichi, a Fukuoka broadcasting company.

This trophy was from Nishinippon Shimbun, a newspaper headquartered in Fukuoka. It is presented to the rikishi with the most wins in the calendar year - Hakuho, of course.

This trophy was from the producers of Yame-cha, a leading green tea in Fukuoka. It comes with a year's supply of the tea, I believe.

France-Japan friendship trophy. It comes with a supply of Pierre Hermé macaroons, a giant version of which is being held by yobidashi Masayuki.

Ozeki Co. trophy.

Shiitake mushrooms from Oita prefecture.

Coca-Cola trophy.

Governor of Miyazaki's trophy.

NHK trophy.

United Arab Emirates friendship trophy.

Mongolian Prime Minister's trophy.

Czech Republic friendship trophy.

Sansho winners Takayasu, Tochinoshin and Kyokutenho return to the dohyo to collect their awards from Asahiyama-oyakata (former Ozeki Daiju).

Hakuho arrives back in the shitaku-beya following the conclusion of the presentations.

Banzai with his family and friends.

Kanto-sho winner Kyokutenho joined him in the car for the yusho parade.

Finally, this basho's shindeshi return to the dohyo for the teuchi-shiki and kami-okuri ceremonies. Kimura Kichijiro was the gyoji being launched into the air this time. Thanks for reading!

[Jakusotsu 6,047]

And the Oscar goes to Hakuho's daughter for her perfect impersonation of the late Taiho.

[Treblemaker 254]

That's an awful lot of hardware.... Surely he doesn't take it all home with him. (And don't call me surely...) Where do they keep all that stuff? Who eats the macaroon? Where's the fish? Which one Is the most expensive trophy? Does he get to keep the car, too? Did they throw Hideo in the air, too? (After all, it was his last basho.) If Hakuho gets a zensho yusho, do they give him a broom? (Did anyone get that?)

[Asameshimae 220]

I think it actually might be a good idea if a heya was allowed to keep some of the bigger cups in it's premises on display. When one heya gets it for too long, the others might get hungrier for it. Having said that, in contrast to the Kokuigikan, there isn't much in the way of security at most heyas, beyond a bunch of near naked big men, to keep would be thieves at bay.

[bettega 431]

... SEVENTEEN prizes to Hakuho?

[krindel 675]

That's an awful lot of hardware.... Surely he doesn't take it all home with him. (And don't call me surely...) Where do they keep all that stuff? Who eats the macaroon? Where's the fish? Which one Is the most expensive trophy? Does he get to keep the car, too? Did they throw Hideo in the air, too? (After all, it was his last basho.) If Hakuho gets a zensho yusho, do they give him a broom? (Did anyone get that?)

I seriously hope that Miyagino has the good sense to distribute the various huge supplies of stuff Hakuho wins to other stables, or even charity. After all, being offered "a year's supply of whatever" 4 times a year on average over the last 8 years is a heck of a lot of food and assorted goods...

[Hakuhonofan 334]

Finally, some pictures from the awards ceremonies.

The Prime Minister's trophy was presented by Taro Aso, a former holder of that office.

Wasn't Taro Aso the one who said the 2010's sumo scandal a "betrayal for the people"? That's why people cheered louder when he came up. To have him come back and awarded the PM trophy himself meant a big deal then.

[Asameshimae 220]

I thought that was pretty cool that Aso did it too. I even pointed it out to my wife, who thought that was something - and her interest in sumo goes about as far as she could throw Gagamaru.

[Orion 431]

I thought that was pretty cool that Aso did it too. I even pointed it out to my wife, who thought that was something - and her interest in sumo goes about as far as she could throw Gagamaru.

It's normally presented by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (unless it's a woman -- remember that time?). If a PM does it, as Koizumi did, it was to enjoy the limelight. When a deputy PM does it -- and I think this is the first time -- just think there's a General Election coming up in two weeks.

Orion