On Location: Sumo in Tokyo

By Gray Shealy

While our days in Japan had been generally scheduled to the brim, by the time we arrived in Tokyo to immerse ourselves in the Lost in Translation experience at the Park Hyatt, we had left the entire day prior to our return open to possibility and whatever chance encounter we happened upon. A day of exploration, if you will. And that’s honestly what I love about planning travel – you structure your days so that you have your must-sees carefully orchestrated, but always leave space to stumble upon a wonderful discovery. 

I was in the lobby of the Park Hyatt milling around the concierge desk, just racing for possibilities of things to do when I happened upon a flyer advertising today’s final in the Sumo Grand Tournament. The key being “today” – and while I’m not really a sports-fan, the idea of having a very localized sporting experience like sumo just resonated. Within a second, I knew where we’d spend our afternoon. We made our way across the city, using the very efficient metro rail, which dropped us off right at the bottom of Ryogoku Kokugikan, the national sumo stadium. Unlike most stadia I’ve been to, this one was different: sloping paths carefully formed giant public plazas, forming a ziggurat-like shape, topped by this giant, green roof. Buzzing with excitement, we made our way inside, finding our assigned seats in the top tier of this 10,000 seat arena. 

The event was just beginning. Attendees were loud and boisterous. There was this central pavilion in the middle, a small square stage, capped by a temple-like floating roof, and surrounded by dozens of people sitting on the floor around the stage. “That’s where the most coveted seats are,” voiced the woman next to us. Luckily, she had observed that we were newcomers to the event and looked lost in the festivities. “Business people bring their most important clients to those seats, the most expensive in the house.” A parade of wrestlers suddenly entered the arena. The crowd remained mostly silent as each bulbous man stepped on to the stage, wearing colorful sashes around their loins. A strike-like sound signaled the name of each as they encircled the tiny stage and presented themselves to the onlookers. 

Then it came time for each match, where two wrestlers grabbed a big handful of white salt, tossing it into the air and across the floor in front of them. “It’s to purify the ring, as a sort of heavenly offering,” said our seatmate. Each brawl was intense, sometimes with the wrestlers staring at each other in anticipation for far longer than the actual act of wrestling. After only a few matches, the spectacle everyone wanted to see happened: a big, brawny wrestler was thrown off the stage and on top of the spectators in those coveted seats, nearly smashing them! Everyone “ahhhed” and the crushed attendees smiled and giggled as they adjusted themselves back into seating position, indicating that they were delighted to get their money’s worth. It was back to the stage for the wrestler for another tossle, and the crowd held baited-breath as they waited for another audience-crush.

See it for yourself:

Ryogoku Kokugikan National Stadium, Tokyo

Schedule of Sumo Events: https://sumo.or.jp/EnTicket/year_schedule/

Syllogi’s ‘On Location’ is a series of trip reports reflecting on our personal travels, as we research and experience the bounty the world has on offer.