Engage

23 September 2007: Where do all the big breasted sweaty people in Tokyo go?

To the final day of the Ryogoku Kokugikan Grand Sumo Tournament - of course!

I'm shocked how they casually these massive men enter the South gate, while standing out so painfully. They arrive on foot (pictured), the arrive by car (dwarfing the taxi to a clown car), and they take the metro. Everyone loves them.

Today is the final tournament day - I'm in box seats, 15th row with an Australian, Denise. I wandered around the stadium first. This is awesome. Lower rank matches have been going on since the morning, senior wrestlers end the evening's bouts.

The routine is simple, routine, and long... The wrestlers are sung into the ring, enter from their respective sides, and stomp out bad spirits. They step outside to their ringside partners to receive water (only from the previous bout's winner) and re-enter the ring throwing salt.

They face each others, squat, and slowly raise their arms to a clap above their heads. Stomp. And exit again. Another salt toss from the outside, next squat - fists to the ground.

Outside salting #3 and inside squat. At this point, the crowd is done with the tease and begins to bellow as they head back out to their sides of the ring - salting 4 - and then... fight!

Images from: jackie