VOX POPULI: Onosato's rapid rise to yokozuna signals new era for sumo world
Ozeki Onosato, foreground, defeats maegashira No. 4 Takayasu on March 23 to capture his third Emperor's Cup at the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka. (Takuya Tanabe)
A father ordered his son, who was leaving home to become a sumo wrestler: 'Do not come home until you've made it to 'sekitori.'' (Sekitori means sumo wrestlers in the highest 'makuuchi' division and the second-highest 'juryo' division.)
This was paternal 'tough love' par excellence. Aware of the hardships his boy was about to face, the father knew that the best thing he could do for his son was to just let him deal with the tough challenges like a grown man.
The son debuted in the May tournament in 2023 and became a sekitori after only two tournaments.
By the Bon summer holidays that year, he was able to visit his family at his home in Ishikawa Prefecture. The situation makes me almost picture his father trying unsuccessfully to suppress his glee by telling his son with mock dismay, 'Aren't you home a bit early?'
This episode was introduced in the Hokkoku Shimbun, a local daily newspaper.
The son's name is Daiki Nakamura, whose 'shikona' (ring name) is Onosato.
Because of his phenomenally rapid rise, his hair did not grow fast enough to be styled into a proper topknot and he sported a messy 'do' until recently.
And, less than six months after he was finally able to wear the formal 'oicho' topknot, he was promoted to the highest rank of yokozuna.
From his ring debut, it took him only 13 tournaments to reach that pinnacle—said to be the fastest since yokozuna became an officially recognized title during the Meiji Era (1868-1912).
Anyone holding that exalted rank is expected to have achieved perfection in what is called 'shin-gi-tai' (spirit, technique and physical strength).
Scriptwriter Makiko Uchidate once complained of 'young men' who raced up the ranks and behaved with no manners whatsoever on the dohyo.
But Onosato, the 24-year-old new yokozuna, has been working on self-improvement forever. There is already something about him that suggests greatness.
For instance, after toweling himself before a bout, he would fold the towel politely before returning it to the 'yobidashi' (ring attendant) as a matter of courtesy to the latter.
He is more than just a great wrestler, enthuses author Nobuya Kobayashi in his recently published book 'Onosato wo Sodateta Kaniya Ryokan Monogatari' ("The story of Kaniya Ryokan that raised Onosato").
Yokozuna Wajima (1948-2018), another Ishikawa Prefecture native, established the 'Rinko Jidai (Era)' together with yokozuna Kitanoumi (1953-2015).
Onosato's promotion to yokozuna ends the 'single yokozuna' situation that lasted three and a half years.
A new era of sumo has dawned.
—The Asahi Shimbun, May 29
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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
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