Playback 2003: Yokozuna Asashoryu, in a Great Mood After Winning Champion Amidst Long Absence

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Playback 2003: Yokozuna Asashoryu, in a Great Mood After Winning Champion Amidst Long Absence 

 

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Posing in a good mood while holding a beautiful woman’s shoulder (photo taken in 2003)

What did “FRIDAY” report 10, 20, and 30 years ago? “Playback Friday” takes a look back at the topics that were popular at the time. This time, we bring you “Asashoryu’s Dignity at the ‘Launch Party'” from the October 10, 2003 issue, which was published 20 years ago.

Despite his speedy rise to yokozuna in just 25 days after his first bout in the ring, Asashoryu has always been criticized for his lack of dignity.  

It is hard to believe that this is Asashoryu (22 at the time), the strong-faced, seriously angry, and quarrelsome yokozuna. He was posing with his hands on his hips, holding a beautiful woman in front of a cell phone with a camera held by one of his disciples. It was the first good look he had shown since the tournament.

September 21, the last day of the Grand Sumo Tournament. Asashoryu showed a powerful performance that did not seem like he had been absent from the tournament, gaining 13-2 and winning a comeback victory. At the launch party after the Chishuuraku tournament, Asashoryu showed a peaceful expression, free from the pressure of 15 days of hard competition.

“The party had an at-home atmosphere, not only for the supporters’ association, but also for ordinary fans. Unlike during the tournament, he was smiling from start to finish.”

In fact, when a staff member tipped a silver cup filled with alcohol and spilled it on Asashoryu’s hakama at the beginning of the party, the yokozuna did not mind at all, saying, “It’s OK, it’s OK.” Contrary to his image of being “snappy,” he was in a surprisingly good mood.

 

One of the reasons for his good mood was that he was able to win the championship after a long absence from the ring. In the spring tournament, he smashed the door mirror of Kyokushuzan’s car after a dispute in the ring, and in the following tournament in Nagoya, he became the first yokozuna in history to lose a bout when he grabbed a top knot in the ring and lost by foul play. These events turned Asashoryu into a villain. During the ring-entering ceremony, the audience cursed him and threw cushions into the ring. Perhaps depressed, Asashoryu was absent from the tournament from the 10th day of the tournament, citing neck pain. He would have loved to win the tournament to redeem himself as a yokozuna.

Another reason for his good mood was the presence of Mrs. Tamiru (then 22) and her eldest daughter Itinhorro (then 5 months old), who were watching over Asashoryu at the venue that day. When Asashoryu spotted Mrs. Tamiru and her daughter, he crumpled his face and approached them, kissing them on the cheek. He was deeply moved, as he had said, “I definitely wanted to win the tournament for them.” When Asashoryu’s wife became concerned because of the baby’s fussy behavior and went outside, Asashoryu also went outside and helped her daughter.

 

Afterwards, Asashoryu was open to taking pictures, signing autographs, and saying “I will do my best next time,” but he would go on to spend his entire career in the ring as a ‘villain’ yokozuna.

In 2007, he missed the summer tournaments due to injury, but he made headlines when he played soccer in Mongolia and cheerfully scored an overhead shot. In 2010, he won the first sumo tournament, but was forced to retire due to an assault incident that occurred during the tournament. At his retirement press conference, he said the following words.

 

“Everyone talks about dignity, but my honest feeling is that once I step into the ring, I feel like a demon, and I feel like I have to do my best in the ring. I’m the kind of person I’ve never been before, so I think I’ve put everyone in a lot of trouble.”

He still ranks fourth all-time in makunouchi wins. There is no doubt that he was a strong yokozuna.