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Foreword

In the surprisingly long history of English-language writing on sumo, two volumes stand out as truly seminal works in the field. One is a volume called A Guide to Sumo written by the late J.A. Sargent, first published in 1959 by the Charles E. Tuttle Publishing Company. Although there was much talk about revising this proud part of the Tuttle catalogue, it was finally decided to allow the book to go out of print several years ago. The book you are now holding in your hands was originally designed to take the place of that respected volume. What it lacked in its first incarnation, though, was the depth of research required to fill that bill.

When it came time to revise Sumo: A Pocket Guide, Tuttle approached me with the idea of a return to the original book design in mind. I think the changes and revisions we have made over the course of this project have brought us as close as possible to achieving that aim. In working on the book, I kept two goals in mind. The first was to stay as true to the spirit of the original author's work as humanly possible. The second goal was to add, wherever possible, information that would increase the quality of the presentation of this marvelous aspect of Japanese culture that is ever so much more than just another sport. You will notice that I maintained the original format, which was actually based on the Sargent book. Chapters 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,10,11, and 12 were updated and corrected to bring them more in line with contemporary sumo writing and research. Chapters 1, 9, and 13 were substantially rewritten. Chapter 1, retitled "As Old as the Nation," was rewritten to reflect a more mainstream view of sumo history research. Chapter 9, "The Grand Champions," was rewritten in order to give the readers an even better understanding of just how remarkable this rank is, through a more organized approach to the subject matter and a more substantial introduction to some of the men who have held the rank. Finally, Chapter 13, "The Lure of Sumo," was rewritten not only to enhance the reader's understanding of sumo's fascination to foreigners but to help them understand its unique position in Japanese society. The three addenda, "Chankonabe Restaurants," "Addresses and Phone Numbers of Sumo Stables," and the "Glossary of Sumo Terms" have also been updated and revised to make them even more useful than before.

Along with the author's original sources, I turned to several Japanese-language references that I have found to be invaluable tools in pursuing my work in sumo. The first, Osumo jiten, published by Sanseido Co., Ltd., was produced under the supervision of Yoshitaka Takahashi, a former chairman of the Yokozuna Promotion Council. This is an excellent all-around guide and I used it heavily as a reference source related to sumo history. Ozumo Kansen Gaido (1994 edition), published by Nihon Spotsu Shuppansha and edited by Kinjiro Kagaya, was used as a reference in the examination of overall records as well as of more contemporary topics like income and prize money.

I relied on four sources for information related to individual careers and records. The first is the recently published and excellent Ozumo Rikishi Meikan (Volume 1), published by Kyodo Tsushinsha and edited by Naofumi Mizuno and Toshiharu Kyosu. I also referred to another recent publication entitled Showa-Heisei no Ninki Rikishi 100 Nin, which was edited by Shotaro Funaki and published by Nihon Spotsu Shuppansha. Finally, in my discussions of two legendary yokozuna in Chapter 9, Futabayama and Taiho, I turned to Baseball Magazine-sha's remarkable series Showa no Mei Yokozuna: Volume 1, "Futabayama," and Volume 2, "Taiho," edited respectively by Tsuneo Ikeda and Ikuo Ikeda. Mention should also be made here of the invaluable assistance supplied by the staff of the Sumo Museum, located in the complex that plays host to sumo in Tokyo, the Ryogoku Kokugikan. These people have always been generous with their time and talent in answering a variety of questions over the years, and their input helped to make this a better book.

In the original edition, the author took great pains to find a happy medium between the use of Japanese terminology and English equivalents. This is part of an ongoing debate in the field of sumo coverage, and I have altered usage in the text to reflect the direction this debate is taking. Certain English equivalents are still acceptable; "ring" for dohyo and "referee" for gyoji, for example. Where these translations are acceptable they are used freely. The most noteworthy change from the original text is in the use of the English-language term "wrestler." If sumo was nothing more than a combative sport, the use of this term would be justifiable. However, as you read this book, I hope you will discover just how much more than a sport sumo really is. This is one reason why the Japanese term for today's practitioners of the game, rikishi, is used wherever possible. The men in sumo themselves hate to be referred to by the term "wrestler" and there is a solid trend in English-language coverage to make rikishi the standard. (More on this choice of terminology in Chapter 2.)

Finally, as the original author mentioned in the first edition, this is not meant to be a complete guide to sumo. As the term "pocket guide" implies, this book is meant to be a broad overview, offering a taste or general understanding of what sumo is all about. For regular coverage of all aspects of sumo, Sumo World, the world's only English-language magazine specializing in sumo, is the best source around.

With the advent of satellite broadcasting in Japan, English-language coverage of each day of every tournament is now available on a greater scale than ever before, complements of NHK, Japan's public broadcasting corporation. In North America and Europe, contact your local cable companies for further information on whether these broadcasts are available in your area.

One of the things I enjoy so much about sumo, besides the fact that it is one of the most exciting spectator sports around, is its depth. There is always more to know, always more to discover in its rituals, traditions, and history. And for those students of Japanese culture looking for a unique route to some serious insights into what the Japanese people are all about, you would be surprised by what you can find in a study of Japan's national sport. But whatever your reasons for wanting to take a closer look at sumo, I hope this book serves you as a solid first step in the direction of achieving a greater understanding of an athletic/cultural endeavor that is as remarkable as it is unique.

A banzuke, the official list of tournament participants.