Back on Wednesday, two gals and I went to see the week-long sumo tournament taking place in north-east Tokyo. I'm glad we went, it was actually a lot of fun! Some people can find it to be boring since a lot of sumo is about faking out your opponents, which doesn't lend well to action-packed stadiums... But when the matches do start, they can be pretty amazing to see. I wouldn't recommend going for the whole day, three hours was just perfect for us~ One of the sumo wrestlers even got flipped out of the ring, but of course I MISSED IT, because I was outside buying ice cream. I suck.
Outside of the building, banners display the names of each wrestler.
The matches last all day, so you can usually see wrestlers coming and going.
The floor seats can cost hundreds of dollars, but you're taken good care of by the staff. I personally had a beer and a hotdog while I was in my corner of the stadium and still had a great time. You have to wake up early for tickets, though, the cheap ones sell out fast!
This was our more affordable area, about $40 for a ticket. But before the main matches began, we could sneak down to better seats for pictures.
Sometimes, though, the seats can be a little tricky to find...
Does something seem out of place in the sumo museum?
They were also handing out English pamphlets. This one shows the match lineup. Each match up is a one-shot deal, winner-take all to move up in rank. The day starts off with the junior devision sumo wrestlers, then the champs went around 4PM.
Outside of the main building, there's a beautiful mural and a shrine.
Sumo is half sport, half religious ceremony. Between each match, there's a song sung, the arena floor is meticulously swept, and the sumo wrestlers throw salt and stomp the floor to rid if of demons. The 'referee' is a callback to shinto priests.
Spectators are asked not to get too close to the stage--even after the tournament--since it's a sacred area.
Guys with advertisements love to interrupt the matches, seriously... They're worse than commercials.
Our views from the nosebleed seats weren't so bad, to be honest.
Before the champs' matches begin, they come out into the arena in full regalia. Those 'aprons' they have on can cost $200,000 or even more and are provided by their sponsors. Some have pearls and diamonds in them, from what I've heard.
This hall was filled with corporate sponsor stands and guys who would grab bags of gifts to run out to people in the expensive seating area.
Winners--Yokozuna--get a huge photo taken, then oil paints are added to make it look like, well... a painting. I almost think that the pictures are rotated, because I saw a few in the subway station outside... You can tell which of the wrestlers is yokozuna by the detailed white belt they wear.
Outside of the building, banners display the names of each wrestler.
The matches last all day, so you can usually see wrestlers coming and going.
The floor seats can cost hundreds of dollars, but you're taken good care of by the staff. I personally had a beer and a hotdog while I was in my corner of the stadium and still had a great time. You have to wake up early for tickets, though, the cheap ones sell out fast!
This was our more affordable area, about $40 for a ticket. But before the main matches began, we could sneak down to better seats for pictures.
Sometimes, though, the seats can be a little tricky to find...
Does something seem out of place in the sumo museum?
They were also handing out English pamphlets. This one shows the match lineup. Each match up is a one-shot deal, winner-take all to move up in rank. The day starts off with the junior devision sumo wrestlers, then the champs went around 4PM.
Outside of the main building, there's a beautiful mural and a shrine.
Sumo is half sport, half religious ceremony. Between each match, there's a song sung, the arena floor is meticulously swept, and the sumo wrestlers throw salt and stomp the floor to rid if of demons. The 'referee' is a callback to shinto priests.
Spectators are asked not to get too close to the stage--even after the tournament--since it's a sacred area.
Guys with advertisements love to interrupt the matches, seriously... They're worse than commercials.
Our views from the nosebleed seats weren't so bad, to be honest.
Before the champs' matches begin, they come out into the arena in full regalia. Those 'aprons' they have on can cost $200,000 or even more and are provided by their sponsors. Some have pearls and diamonds in them, from what I've heard.
This hall was filled with corporate sponsor stands and guys who would grab bags of gifts to run out to people in the expensive seating area.
Winners--Yokozuna--get a huge photo taken, then oil paints are added to make it look like, well... a painting. I almost think that the pictures are rotated, because I saw a few in the subway station outside... You can tell which of the wrestlers is yokozuna by the detailed white belt they wear.
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