A sidebar

The world of Japanese Sumo has been dominated over the last two years by one of the greatest and most underappreciated rikishi the sport has ever seen. Yokozuna Asashoryu Asinori, the Allen Iverson of Sumo, has set a historical standard by winning a seven consecutive (and 11 of the previous 12) grand tournaments (basho), including an unprecedented sweep of all tournaments held in 2005. The Mongolian-born Blue Dragon is known not for his overpowering size (at a very average 308 lb, much less than previous foreign born rikishi such as Akebono and Musashimaru rode to victory), but for his unmatched technical expertise and indomitable fighting spirit.

The young buck also known for his petulance and unwillingness to behave as a Yokozuna and goodwill ambassador to the sport. His personality, combined with his Mongolian heritage, have long had the xenophobic world of Japanese sumo decrying the death of the sport, a cry that has been exacerbated all the greater by the meteoric rise of the physically freakish Bulgarian rikishi Kotooshu.

The Japanese gained a note of cheer over the weekend, as Asashoryu’s string of dominance came conclusively to an end today, and not at the hands of the growing gaggle of foreign-born rikishi at the top of sumo’s highest division. Instead, Tochiazuma Daisuke, a Japanese-born Ozeki (sumo’s second highest rank) who has been long fancied for his strength, fearlessness and technical prowess, emerged the victor sporting a 14-1 record. Tochiazuma has long been considered one of the few wrestlers who can technically compete with the Yokozuna and who has the courage to face him as a man, but he has struggled mightily over the past four years with a string of injuries and with loss of focus at critical times.

After a strong start and a miraculous January tournament, fear rose again today on the final day of matches (senshuraku) that Tochiazuma might again miss his opportunity. Faced with a potential playoff with rising Mongolian star Hakuho, the White Heron, if defeated and with the Yokozuna opposing him, Tochiazuma summoned all of the fighting spirit at his disposal and dispatched the champ with aplomb using a nifty uwatedashinage throw- a manly victory over a Yokozuna. This was the 29 year old Ozeki’s third tournament championship, but his first since 2003. Surely the clamor will again arise in the Japanese press for the promotion of Tochiazuma to Yokozuna should he successfully defend his title in the spring Haru Basho scheduled for March. Given the number of qualified rikishi at the top of the sport and the notable pride of the Yokozuna, this will be a difficult venture, but we wish him luck.

One might wonder what all of this has to do with the fate of the Stars. I think that the parallel can be drawn of a long-struggling contender troubled by injuries and noted for periodic lapses of focus faced with a historic opportunity and opposed by a fancied champion of indomitable will and historic reputation. In Tochiazuma, we have seen that if the contender applies all of his talents and pulls from deep within his fighting spirit, a great run can be had and even the most talented competitors vanquished in defense of his sport and his homeland.

Hopefully the same type of effort can be seen from the Stars this week. I, for one, will be counting on it.