Fraternity & Ranking

The Japan Sumo Association acts as the governing body of what could be called the sumo society or community. It dictates rules to the wrestlers and stables which could be regarded as frivolous to the outsider. An apt example would be when the association banned wrestlers to drive their own car, this came in the wake of a car accident involving a senior rikishi.

The association made up of retired rikishis and are called the oyakata be painted a despot but nobody is complaining. They equally share the donations from wealthy patrons and the general public to the established stables in Japan.

These men are the only ones who can train new wrestlers and they also are the stable masters of the 56 stables with roughly 700 wrestlers therein. They are responsible for the conduct of tournaments and other sumo related functions in the entire country.

Based on a system that has been in use for centuries originating from the Edo period, the strict sumo wrestling hierarchy is simply based on sporting merits. Two weeks before any tournament is held listing (banzuke) is published. Wrestlers are either promoted or demoted according to their previous performance.

There are six divisions in sumo: Makuuchi (fixed at 42 wrestlers), Juryo (fixed at 28 wrestlers), Makushita (fixed at 120 wrestlers), Sandanme (fixed at 200 wrestlers), Jonidan (approximately 230 wrestlers), and Jonokuchi (approximately 80 wrestlers). Jonokuchi is the lowest division for wrestlers, they slowly or depending on the ability, work their way up to the top Makuuchi division. Only wrestlers in the top two divisions are salaried, and they are called sekitori (to have taken the barrier). Wrestlers in the lower divisions are regarded as being in training and receive a subsistence allowance, in return for which they must perform various chores in their training stable.

In Makuuchi, the topmost division, there are a number of ranks within it. There are sixteen or seventeen wrestlers in that category called the Maegashira. Each rank is further subdivided into East and West, with east being slightly more prestigious. Thus, Maegashira two east is ranked below Maegashira one west and above Maegashira two west. Above the Maegashira are the champion or titleholder ranks, called the Sanyaku. These are, in ascending order, Komusubi, Sekiwake, Ozeki and, at the pinnacle of the ranking system, Yokozuna.

Yokozuna, or grand champions, are wrestlers who generally are regularly in competition to win the top division tournament title near the end of a tournament. As such, the promotion criteria are very strict. In general, an Ozeki must win the championship for two consecutive tournaments (or an equivalent performance) to be promoted. It is a rank held at the moment by only one man, Asashoryu. Other recent Yokozuna include Akebono, Musashimaru and Takanohana, who retired in January 2003. In the previous decade, Yokozuna Chiyonofuji retired after winning an astonishing 31 tournaments. That's nearly as many as Akebono and Takanohana won together. Once a wrestler has been promoted to Yokozuna, he can never again be subject to demotion and is expected to retire on his own initiative if he cannot perform to Yokozuna standards.

There are also special promotion criteria for Ozeki. Usually at least 33 wins are required over three tournaments as a Sekiwake/Komusubi with special attention paid to the most recent tournament record.