Aiming for adoption at the 2036 Summer Olympics”…Former yokozuna Hakuho “Sumo tournament for both men and women” Dream spoken of for holding snowfall.
The 16th Hakuho Cup was held after moving the venue from Ryogoku Kokugikan to the “Toyota Arena Tokyo” in the Tokyo Bay area.
Until now, the tournament had been for boys in preschool, elementary, and junior high from various countries, but this year it opened to elementary and junior high school girls as well as adult men and women, taking place over two days, February 7 and 8.
Former yokozuna Hakuho Sho (40) retired from the Japan Sumo Association on June 9 last year. At the “69th Yokozuna Hakuho Support Party – Shining a Future at Age 40” held on June 14, he announced the establishment of a new company, “Hakuho Dayan Sumo & Sports,” aimed at spreading sumo worldwide.
“My dream is to eventually make sumo an Olympic sport,” he said, sharing his grand vision.
First, to understand the state of sumo around the world, Hakuho visited the “World Sumo Championships” in Bangkok, Thailand, last September. He also traveled to Spain, Estonia, the Middle East, and Asian countries including South Korea to see firsthand the current state of sumo, knowing that increasing the number of sumo participants is key to the path toward the Olympics.
Many sumo wrestlers participated in the Hakuho Cup
On the first day of the tournament, about 1,300 boys from 20 countries, including Japan, Mongolia, Georgia, Ukraine, and Brazil, gathered and competed in nine divisions, including individual and team events.
In the preschool division, Kairi Onami, the eldest son of Makuuchi wrestler Wakatakakage, appeared. Under the watchful eyes of his father and uncle (Makushita wrestler Wakatakamoto), he demonstrated throwing techniques reminiscent of his father.
Also present at the venue were Otonoyama Oyakata (former yokozuna Kakuryu), Takasago Oyakata (former sekiwake Asashoryu), and yokozuna Hoshoryu, all keeping an eye out for future sekitori prospects.
“The tournament’s catchphrase, ‘You are the treasures of the future,’ truly reflects my belief that children who practice sumo are future treasures. Many current sekitori, including yokozuna Onosato and ozeki Kotoumi, once competed in the Hakuho Cup. I hope that through this tournament, countries and people will connect, and that these connections will contribute to world peace,” said Hakuho.
On the second day, the newly established divisions for elementary and junior high school girls and adults were held.
Women, including female participants, are generally not allowed on the Kokugikan dohyo. To address this, in February 2024, Hakuho held a women-only tournament, the Dream Girls Cup – Women’s Sumo Tournament, at the Sumida Futsal Arena in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward, attracting over 200 female participants. Hakuho’s daughters also competed, with his third daughter, Mayuha, finishing as runner-up in the first-grade division. In this tournament, she competed in the third-grade division but was eliminated in the second round of the preliminary tournament.
Universities like Nihon, Ritsumeikan, Keio, and Rikkyo
In the adult women’s light-heavyweight division, Manami Fukusato (Shizuoka Prefectural University) won, defeating Rio Hasegawa (Keio University) and Sakura Ishii (Rikkyo University), both of whom were prizewinners at the World Sumo Championships.
In the heavyweight division, Nana Abe (Kanazawa Gakuin High School) defeated adult competitor Airi Kuno (Tachihi Women’s Sumo Club) to claim victory. Abe plans to join the Tachihi Women’s Sumo Club after graduating from high school, but with the growing popularity of women’s sumo, pathways to university and adult sumo clubs are also expanding.
Previously, female athletes could practice at local sumo dojos during their elementary and middle school years, but as they advanced to high school and university, there were few opportunities for women to continue sumo. Major university options had included Nihon University and Ritsumeikan University, but now schools like Keio, Rikkyo, Kanazawa Gakuin, and Asahi University are also making efforts to support women’s sumo.
Meanwhile, in the adult men’s heavyweight division, Shinnosuke Iga (Nihon University) claimed victory, defeating this year’s amateur yokozuna, Teru Samejima (Nihon University), and others.
At the venue on the second day, there were also appearances by senior wrestlers to Iga and Samejima, including Makuuchi-level Yoshinofuji, “Hakuho’s prized pupil” Makuuchi-level Hakunofuji, and Hideto Hanada, a junior from Nihon Taiiku University’s sumo club who had previously pursued American football before entering professional sumo. Hakuho greeted his former disciples with a beaming smile.
“Today, there were really many great bouts, and I’m glad we were able to meet the expectations of the girls who said, ‘I want to compete in the Hakuho Cup,’” he said.
That day, Tokyo was experiencing harsh weather with snowfall.
“It’s snowing today. When snow and rain fall, the ground hardens—it’s auspicious. I felt like the path has been set as I watched,” he added.
Hakuho also said that, for the time being, he aims for sumo to be included as an event in the 2036 Summer Olympics, steadily taking steps toward his grand dream.
Interview and text： Hazuki Takeda (non-fiction writer) PHOTO： Yanagawa go!