With Musashikuni and Wakaichiro retiring, I will be posting less about each basho on NorthAmericanSumo.com, and instead I will be focusing more efforts on general sumo discussion within Reddit.com/r/sumo. For a little over a year, I host the daily discussion threads on /r/sumo, and I try to start some conversation about the lower divisions -... Continue Reading →
Musashigawa Beya Confirms that Wakaichiro has Retired
As can be seen in this link, the Musashigawa Beya confirms that Wakaichiro has retired. A rough translation of the text can be seen below: [Wakaichiro Retirement Notice] Wakaichiro has been working hard as a sumo wrestler for about three and a half years, but he has decided to retire and return to Houston. We... Continue Reading →
Konishiki Claims that Wakaichiro has Retired
Surprising news! After recent improvements, Konishiki claimed on his Instagram that Wakaichiro has retired! I am sure that we will hear more about this development in the near future, but we wish Wakaichiro the best of luck in his future. His sumo brought joy to many, and we are sure that whatever he does in... Continue Reading →
Hatsu Basho 2020 Results – Wakaichirō Ken
Wow! What a basho! The Hatsu Basho 2020 may have been the most exciting basho in years. With both yokozuna dropping out so early, the field was open to absolutely anyone - and the result proved it! Tokushoryu has been a juryo mainstay for the past two years, making some appearances in the makuuchi division. ... Continue Reading →
Mid-Hatsu Basho 2020 Update – Wakaichirō
Wakaichirō is performing incredibly well! He is now 4-1, and already has the kachi-koshi! Great work, Wakaichirō! To see gifs of each match, check out our Twitter page at the following link: https://twitter.com/NorthAmericanS5 . We are going to use our Twitter moving forward to give mid-basho updates on Wakaichirō, so be sure to check it... Continue Reading →
Preview of North American Sumo Wrestlers in the Hatsu Basho 2020 – Wakaichirō
It is another basho already!? Just when I was going to write more posts after the holidays, I unfortunately had a family member pass away. I had to spend some time away from my hobbies and focus on the family (and work, of course). Nevertheless, the Hatsu Basho 2020 is well timed. It will improve... Continue Reading →
Men in North American Sumo – Who’s Who 2019
Whew! Like everyone at this time of year, I am a little overwhelmed with how busy life can be! Nevertheless, this is my favorite post to write - Who's Who in North American Sumo 2019. In this post, I recap the major competitors at the national-level in North American Sumo. This post focuses on the... Continue Reading →
Kyushu Basho 2019 Results – Wakaichirō Ken
That's all for the Kyushu Basho 2019! In makuuchi, the boss is. . .well. . .still the boss. Hakuho grabbed the yusho, and he made it seem almost easy. He had a final record of 14-1, whereas the two next highest (Asanoyama and Shodai) had records of 11-4. Going into the basho, I thought that... Continue Reading →
Mid-Kyushu Basho 2019 Update on Wakaichirō
This basho has been a test for Wakaichirō. At his highest rank ever, Wakaichirō has never faced competition like this before. While he isn't getting an "A" on this test, he certainly isn't failing either. So far, Wakaichirō's biggest downfall seems to be his experience. As you'll see, he got a late start on one... Continue Reading →
Preview of North American Sumo Wrestlers in the Kyushu Basho 2019 – Wakaichirō
With Musashikuni retiring, Wakaichirō stands alone as the solitary lonely warrior representing all of North America. That is correct - Wakaichirō is the only North American currently competing in Japanese professional sumo. I swear that I'm not trying to add pressure to the young rikishi! In this post, I discuss what Wakaichirō needs to do... Continue Reading →