Stomp! Japan’s top sumo stars in New Year ritual

Japan's top sumo wrestlers performed a traditional foot-stomping rite on Wednesday (January 7) as they ushered in New Year at Meiji Jingu, Tokyo's biggest Shinto shrine.

Sumo, with its roots deep in Japan's indigenous Shinto religion, originally started in shrines or temples as offerings to gods.

Naked except for his loin cloth in the winter cold, Hakuho, the grand sumo champion who weighs 151 kilos (332 pounds) and stands 1.93 meters (6 ft 4 inches) tall, showed off his control of balance as he lifted up his bare foot above his head and stomped on the granite floor.

The Mongolian-born "Yokozuna," the highest rank in sumo, is just one title away to becoming Japan's greatest sumo wrestler of all time with a 33rd career title at the January 11-25 Tokyo tournament.

The 29-year-old matched in November the record of 32 titles by legendary sumo star Taiho, who resigned in 1971.

"I hope I can present the record-setting victory to the fans in the first tournament of this year," Hakuho said in a media interview after his performance.

Hundreds of fans turned out to see Hakuho and his lighter rivals, Yokozuna Kakuryu and Harumafuji, showing off their prowess in the "ring-entering" performances.

"So many people came to see today's performance and I feel their high expectations," Hakuho said.

The hour-long ritual, in fact, may become a lifelong memory for one 70-year-old fan who was able to shake Hakuho's hands.

"I shook hands with Hakuho. It was a very soft hand and I felt very good. I will never forget today until the end of my life," said Kazuo Odagiri, a retiree from Tokyo suburb.

Another fan, who was also lucky to get an autograph from Hakuho, wished Hakuho a good luck.

"I hope he makes history in the next competition," 43-year-old housewife Fumiko Takenaka said.

Professional sumo now has more than 40 foreign-born wrestlers from nearly a dozen nations ranging from Bulgaria to Brazil.

The participation of foreigners has raised eyebrows in the conservative sumo world, with a Japanese wrestler denied the top spot since 2000.

But the rivalry between waves of foreign competitors—the Hawaiians in the 1980s and the Mongolians in the 1990s—and their Japanese counterparts has also been credited with halting a decline in the sport's popularity. — Reuters