Scandals get sumo in trouble
(From The Japan Times Sept. 28 issue)

角界の連続不祥事

The death of a young sumo wrestler is shaking Japan's sumo world, which is still reeling from the yokozuna Asashoryu scandal. Tokitaisan, a 17-year-old wrestler, died shortly after a practice session, apparently because of exhaustion and a beating he received from his stable mates.

The Asashoryu incident had resulted from the failure of the Japan Sumo Association and Asashoryu's stable master Takasago to educate him on the proper behavior that sumo wrestlers must exhibit. Asashoryu played soccer in a charity event in his native Mongolia after reporting that injuries had forced him to skip exhibition tours in eastern Japan. He is now in Mongolia being treated for a mental disorder that he has been suffering from since his punishment suspension from two main tournaments.

The JSA needs to rethink its culture that tends to rely on violence to train young wrestlers, as well as revise its system of education. Other sports associations should also take note of the consequences of education through physical violence.

On June 26, before the start of the Nagoya tournament, Tokitaizan, of the Tokitsukaze stable and in the lowest rank of jonokuchi, collapsed during butsukari geiko the practice of pushing and being pushed in Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture. He was confirmed dead about 2 1/2 hours later. One stable mate told police that he had beaten Tokitaizan with a metal bat. It is also reported that the stable master had hit him with a beer bottle the previous day because he had tried to run away.

The butsukari geiko lasted about 30 minutes unusually long for a sumo wrestler who had debuted in the ring in May as three or four stable mates fought him. Police suspect that they kicked Tokitaizan even after he collapsed. What happened is unpardonable.

Although the police are seeking criminal charges, it is regrettable that they did not act immediately. A probe was not initiated until after the wrestler's family members demanded one. The family made this request after finding burns and other injuries that prompted them to ask for an official post-mortem.

横綱朝青龍をめぐる不祥事に続いて、序の口力士、時太山（17 ）の死が相撲界を揺るがしている。朝青龍問題は、日本相撲協会と師匠の高砂親方が朝青龍に対し十分な教育を行わなかったために起きた。朝青龍は、けがを理由に巡業に不参加を届けながら、モンゴルでサッカーをしていた。2場所の出場停止を命じられた朝青龍は、いまモンゴルで精神的障害の治療を受けている。

時太山は6月26日、大相撲名古屋場所の直前、「ぶつかり稽古」中に倒れ、死亡した。兄弟子のひとりは、時太山を金属バットでなぐったという。師匠の時津風親方はその前日、時太山が逃げ出そうとしたため、ビール瓶で殴ったとされる。時太山の家族は、遺体の行政解剖を求め、警察が捜査に乗り出した。