Planning to check out the Hawaii Grand Sumo Tournament? If you’re new to the sport, here’s a little primer.

First, the rules. To win in sumo you must force your opponent out of the ring, or cause some part of his body (besides the soles of his feet) to touch the ground. Simple. Aside from hitting with closed fists, kicking, biting or pulling hair, just about anything goes. There are an impossible number of winning techniques (called Kimarite) in sumo, if you really want to know them, see this pretty good list of kimarite at Wikipedia.

Second, you should understand a little about how sumo wrestlers are ranked. In professional sumo’s top division (called Makuuchi) wrestlers are ranked in the following system:

1. Yokozuna - Grand Champion. This rank is a big deal, in fact since the 1600’s, only 68 men have ever achieved this status. So revered is the rank of Yokozuna, that there is no demotion from this position. If a Yokozuna performs poorly over a few tournaments, retirement is his only option. As of April 2007, there is only one active Yokuzuna, Asashoryu of Mongolia. There is no restriction as to the number of men who can simultaneously hold the rank of Yokozuna.
2. Ozeki - Champion. Sumo’s second highest rank is also an achievement, but demotion is possible. The benchmark for a good Ozeki is that he should win no less than 10 matches of a 15 match tournament. As of this writing, there are currently 5 active Ozeki (named in part 1 of of this post), and two former Ozeki (Dejima and Miyabiyama) in the top division. Two consecutive tournaments with less than 8 wins each will result in demotion of an Ozeki. Like Yokuzuna, the number of men holding the Ozeki rank is unlimited.
3. Sekiwake - The third highest rank in sumo is level that is hard to keep, as a single tournament with a losing record will result in demotion. Because of this, the Sekiwake rank tends to be a revolving door with different wrestlers moving in an out. Still, a wrestler on his way up will need to stay at Sekiwake for a few tournaments to make a bid for the Ozeki rank. In any tournament, only two men can be at the Sekiwake rank.
4. Komusubi - The fourth highest rank of professional sumo is a similar revolving door as Sekiwake, with similar promotion and demotion criteria. Collectively, the ranks of Komusubi, Sekiwake, Ozeki and Yokozuna are known as “Sanyaku” and represent wrestlers who are at the top of professional sumo. There can only be two Komusubi in each tournament.
5. Maegashira - The Maegashira represent the “rank and file” of sumo’s Makuuchi division. A “Maegashira 1″ (or M1) is the highest Maegashira rank just one step below Komusubi. Below the M1 is the M2, M3, M4 and so forth….all the way down to M15 or M16. In each tournament, there are two wrestlers at each Maegashira rank.

Sumo promotion criteria
Professional sumo consists of six tournaments per year. Each tournament is 15 days long with each wrestler fighting a single match each day. Thus the perfect score one could achieve for a tournament would be a 15 win 0 loss record. In the most simplistic of explanations, if a wrestler posts a winning record (8-7), it is most likely that he will be promoted for the next tournament. For example, if a Maegashira 6 (M6) posts a 8 win 7 loss record, he might enter the next tournament with the rank of M5. Or if an M12 posts a very strong 10-5 record, he could jump several ranks in the next tournament to an M5. Of course, the actual promotions are weighted by other factors as well. For instance, the quality of opponent who one defeats could boost your ranking, but if all higher ranked wrestlers also posted winning records, a wrestler with a winning record could be held down in the next tournament.

Ozeki and Yokozuna promotions are even more complex and there are no hard rules on the matter. But it is generally regarded that a Sekiwake can be considered for Ozeki promotion by posting 33 wins over 3 consecutive tournaments. To be considered for Yokozuna promotion, an Ozeki should win at least 2 consecutive tournaments. Besides just the winning records, “style” also comes into play, both in and out of the sumo ring. Ozeki and Yokozuna are not only expected to be winners, but they must win in a good sumo style with humility and dignity. What does that mean? Well, there are good ways to win and bad ways to win. Example, if a wrestler is being pushed all over the ring but manages to win in this type of defensive posture, it is not the type of victory that will help him earn a promotion to Ozeki. An Ozeki wins on the offense.

The Hawaii Grand Sumo Tournament will not be a full 15 day tournament and it will be held for exhibition only. So like preseason football, these matches won’t be on the record. Still, the return of professional sumo to Hawaii marks an opportunity to expose the next generation to the rigors and rituals of sumo.

In my final post, I’ll do a brief write up on each of the notable wrestlers who should be appearing in the Hawaii tournament. For ticketing and other information about the upcoming Hawaii Grand Sumo Tournament, please see http://www.sumohawaii.com.

Posted by Netsato on Monday, April 9th, 2007 at 10:59 pm.