Locals were abuzz on 3 August as Fukushima City was invaded by a swarm of very large men in yukata and topknots. The excitement was due to the fact that the Sumo Summer Tour of Japan was making a stop in the city - its first in two years. With the roadshow, of course, came all the big stars, including yokozuna Akebono and Wakanohana and ozeki Takanonami and Musashimaru. However, true sumo fans of the prefecture were awaiting the return of the sumo wrestler that Fukushima claims as its own, Tochiazuma.
Although Tochiazuma was born and raised in Tokyo, his parents both hail from Fukushima - his mother from Koriyama and his father from Soma. While most of his childhood was spent in Tokyo, he has fond memories of school holidays spent with relatives in the prefecture, where he enjoyed the laid-back lifestyle and the lack of crowds. A natural sportsman, he enjoyed baseball at school, but decided to become a sumo wrestler when he was in his first year of Junior High School. A major influence in this decision was his father, who himself enjoyed great success as a former sumo wrestler, achieving the rank of sekiwake (two ranks below the top ranking of yokozuna, or grand champion) during his career. In fact, the name Tochiazuma was passed down from his father, who also used the name in his wrestling days. The senior Tochiazuma now goes by the name of Tamanoi Oyakata, and is the stablemaster of the Tamanoi stable of wrestlers.
Sumo wrestlers lead a very structured and traditional life within their stables, usually consisting of practice from early morning until lunchtime, lunch at around noon and then an afternoon nap from 1:00 to 3:30. Cleaning time follows the nap, and then the wrestlers have free time until their evening curfew at 10:30. Still the tender age of 21, Tochiazuma has lived this lifestyle since he was a teenager, taking part in his first tournament in 1994 at the age of 18, and breaking into the top division two years later. He is currently in the top division of wrestlers (makeuchi) and is ranked in the top twelve.
With the Japanese Sumo Federation looking to increase the profile of sumo overseas, exhibition tours are periodically held abroad as well as within Japan. Tochiazuma has travelled to Australia and Canada on such tours, and has had the opportunity to compare the traditional sumo way of life with the lifestyles of these countries. Although he enjoyed the laid back atmosphere overseas, he found the food a little difficult to get used to, being very different to the conventional Japanese cuisine to which he is accustomed. He also found sumo fans to be very different. Whereas the Japanese fans all have their favourite wrestlers and are very vocal in their support, Tochiazuma was surprised that fans overseas watched the bouts quietly and seriously, only becoming vocal when non-Japanese wrestlers appeared.
Tochiazuma welcomes the promotion of sumo outside Japan and hopes that, while the push for the sport to become an Olympic event will be successful, it will not lose its long and deep tradition as a cultural heritage. He encourages all Outlook readers to attend a sumo tournament, even just once, in order to experience and appreciate the skills, ritual and tradition of this unique facet of Japanese culture.
Local sumo enthusiasts packed the Prefectural Gymnasium for the Fukushima exhibition, which included displays of training, sumo hairdressing, a demonstration of winning techniques, the yokozuna's ring entering ceremony and first division bouts. However, the local hero's appearance, and subsequent victory in his bout drew the biggest roar from the partisan crowd. While his many Fukushima fans returned home from the exhibition satisfied, it is hoped that in coming years, Tochiazuma will fulfil his great potential and one day return to Fukushima a yokozuna.