How is sumo, then, an expression of traditional Japanese culture and religion and values?
Yoshio Sugimoto: Well it contains quite a lot of interesting traditional elements. The winner of a 15-day tournament is given the Emperor’s Cup, which has a lot of symbolic implications. The sport has been supported with the blessing of the imperial household. And in the ring, the spectators of sumo can see a referee wearing the court costume of a 14th century nobleman, brandishing a warrior samurai war fan. So there is an element of pageantry as well. And in a sense I think, the Japanese fans who are now living in a very technologically sophisticated society, find some satisfaction in identifying themselves with what one might say, the imagined lost past. In other words, they are somewhat exotic towards their own past. Amanda Smith: During a sumo tournament, the wrestlers – rikishi – perform a whole series of rituals. Like throwing salt, stamping their feet, clapping and showing their hands, and staring at each other. Which the Yokozuna Akebono says are an expression of traditional Ja
