This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.
See also: Yokozuna promotion

The Yokozuna Deliberation Council (横綱審議委員会, Yokozuna shingī iinkai),[1][2] sometimes called Yokozuna Promotion Council,[3] and usually abbreviated in Japanese as Yokoshin (よこしん), is an advisory body to the Japan Sumo Association. The council considers candidates for promotion to sumo's top rank of yokozuna, before passing its recommendations to the Sumo Association. It also gives comments about san'yaku ranked wrestlers anticipating their potential promotions.

Creation

The reason the council was created is because of a scandal at the beginning of 1950. All of the three yokozuna of the time (Azumafuji, Terukuni and Haguroyama) were absent for most of the January tournament, driving intense criticism.[4] The Sumo Association even began to think about a demotion system applied to yokozuna but the idea was later dropped under pressure from sumo purists and traditionalists.[5] To maintain the dignity of the rank, it was instead decided that yokozuna should be recommended by experts with a deep knowledge of sumo, like the House of Yoshida Tsukasa (who controlled the world of sumo during the Edo period).[6] The Yokozuna Deliberation Council was established on April 21, 1950 as an advisory body to the Japan Sumo Association. The council was officially established by the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture.[7]

The first chairman of the council was Tadamasa Sakai [ja], a former count and member of the House of Peers. Its ten members were all distinguished members in fields unrelated to sumo; they include college administrators, business directors, sociologists, writers and newspaper editors.[4][7] In January 1951 the Sumo Association declared that the yokozuna licenses would be, from that moment on, entirely under the control of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council and the directors of the Sumo Association, transforming the traditional recommendation and approval of the House of Yoshida Tsukasa into a pure ceremony.[4]

Composition and operation

The Yokozuna Deliberation Council is constituted on the basis of Article 52 of the Japan Sumo Association statutes.[8] A purely advisory body, the council is a pro forma organ within professional sumo.[9]

The council is composed of prominent Japanese citizens from various fields who are said to share a passion for sumo and have a deep understanding of it.[7][2][10] Since it is made up of personalities not employed by the Japan Sumo Association, the council is supposed to represent public opinion on wrestlers promoted to the supreme rank of yokozuna.[7]

During the emergence of foreign wrestlers in Japan's national sport, the media platform offered to council members revealed differences of opinion within it.[11] Some council members publicly sided with opening the supreme rank of yokozuna to foreigners, citing in particular that it "makes no difference if the open door would create a desirable stimulus" for the sport, notably to motivate Japanese wrestlers then perceived as "lazy and slack".[12] Others took a public stand in favor of excluding wrestlers from the rank, deigning that they did not, by definition, possess the dignity necessary to practice at the highest level of the banzuke.[11]

Sumo Association members cannot be appointed in the council and its members are unpaid.[10] Since 1997, it was decided that members would serve terms of two years, with a maximum of five terms.[10] The number of members is limited to 15 and there are currently 9 members on the council.[10] The council is directed by a chairman elected by mutual vote of members. The chairman's term of office is 2 years, up to 2 terms. Sumo Association members can also attend and take part at the meeting; the Sumo Association's chairman and other directors usually attend the meeting.

The meeting of the council is held after the announcement of each tournament ranking and before the final ranking organization meeting. It is also held the day after each tournament's senshūraku. At the request of the Sumo Association, the council will report to the association's consultation on yokozuna recommendation based on the wrestler's hinkaku (品格, dignity) and other yokozuna-related matters, or make recommendations based on its suggestions. Should a wrestler emerge as a contender for the highest rank in professional sumo, the Sumo Association will formally request the opinion of the council, which will vote to approve or disapprove the wrestler in question.[2] Although the Sumo Association is free to ignore the advice of the council, it is customary to follow its recommendation.[2][9][13] Moreover, it is rare for the council to oppose the choice of wrestler presented by the association, as debates on the wrestler's qualities are generally internal.[9]

The council also usually provides three types of advice to the already existing yokozuna it examin:

  • Encouragement (激励, gekirei)
  • Warning (注意, chūi)
  • Recommendation to Retire (引退勧告, intai kankoku)

For the yokozuna promotion process, the internal rule is that an ōzeki wins two tournaments in a row in principle.[13] This rule was established following the promotion of the yokozuna Futahaguro in 1986. The Sumo Association was looking for an opponent to Chiyonofuji who was a dominant yokozuna. Futahaguro's performance suggested that he would win tournaments quickly, and the Sumo Association decided to promote him to yokozuna before he had actually won any Emperor's Cup. However, Futahaguro's results never matched his rank and his attitude problems led to his forced retirement in 1988.[14]

From that day on the Association decided to organise a more efficient filtering of wrestlers eligible for the rank of yokozuna by unofficially requiring two tournaments won in a row. Since Asahifuji in 1990, every yokozuna promoted until Kakuryū won two tournaments in a row. Today, the Sumo Association seems to consider that results "equivalent to a tournament victory" can also be considered sufficient for promotion to the sumo supreme title.[15] When recommending a wrestler with similar results, two-thirds or more of the attending council members must agree. The council also report on the second highest rank of sumo because ōzeki are at the gateway of the yokozuna rank. Therefore, in 2022, the Yokozuna Deliberation council delivered harsh comments on the attitude and performances of the three ōzeki at that time (Takakeishō, Shōdai and Mitakeumi), even going as far as proposing a harsher system in case of an ōzeki demotion.[16] In the meantime, the council also gives praises to promising talents. For example, during the same period, the council praised sekiwake Wakatakakage and maegashira Tamawashi on their tournament.[17]

The December 2011 sōken parctice.

Finally, the council also hold an open keiko session (called sōken, 総見) at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan, in front of a considerable number of toshiyori, as well as many members of the sports and mainstream media. The event is also filmed by at least six different entities. The sōken was opened to the general public and held in the main area of the Kokugikan, but in 2023 the Japan Sumo Association and the yokoshin decided to move the training to the sumo school rings with a limited attendance.[18]

In September 2023, it was decided that the sōken would once again be open to the public. This event, the first public one in four years, also marked the first time that a Yokozuna Deliberation Council event coincided with a kanreki dohyō-iri, the chairman of the Japan Sumo Association, Hakkaku (the former Hokutoumi), having celebrated his sixtieth birthday on the same date.[19]

In 2000, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology appointed Makiko Uchidate [ja] as a member of the council. It was the first time a woman was made a member of the yokoshin.[20] In 2022, the Ministry appointed Konno Misako and Ikenobō Yasuko as members of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council and, for the first time, two women became members at the same time of an organization linked to the Japanese Sumo Association.[21]

Notices

Notices have been issued three times since the council's inception in 1950:

  • January 2010: Recommendation to Retire issued to Asashōryū.[22]
    The recommendation was issued following allegations that Asashōryū punched and injured an acquaintance in a drunken brawl at a nightclub during the January 2010 tournament. It has been suggested in the media that Asashōryū chose to retire before the Sumo Association could follow through on the council's recommendation.[23]
  • November 2018: Encouragement issued to Kisenosato.[22]
    The council issued its first Encouragement notice of its history because Kisenosato lost his first five matches in the November 2018 tournament before withdrawing. Prior to that, he had withdrawn (either partially or fully) without a winning record in eight out of ten tournaments as yokozuna. The withdrawals were due in part to injuries suffered at the end of his winning tournament run in March 2017. He eventually retired from the sport after three consecutive defeats in the January 2019 basho.
  • November 2020: Warning issued to two yokozuna, Hakuhō and Kakuryū.[24]
    According to the council, both wrestlers did not perform to the level required of the yokozuna rank between November 2019 and November 2020. In that timeframe, Hakuhō sufficiently performed three times (yūshō in November 2019 and March 2020, plus a 10-win performance in July 2020) while Kakuryū sufficiently performed just once (runner-up in March 2020 with 12 wins). Both of them sat out of the September 2020 and November 2020 tournaments due to injury.
    The warning to Hakuhō and Kakuryū was upheld in March 2021.[25] Kakuryū sat out for two additional tournaments since the warning was first issued, eventually retiring during the March 2021 basho.[26] After sitting out of the January 2021 tournament due to COVID-19, Hakuhō won two matches in March before withdrawing when doctors told him that he would require kneecap surgery.[25]

Current members

As of January 2025.

Name Appointed since Notes
Tadamori Ōshima January 2023 Chairman of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council.[27]
Former member of the House of Representatives (Liberal Democratic Party).[28]
Uichirō Ōshima [ja] January 2020 President of the Chunichi Shimbun.[29]
Yasuko Ikenobō March 2022 Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Former member of the House of Representatives (Komeito Party).[30]
Misako Konno March 2022 Actress.[30]
Shigeru Uehara [ja] January 2023 Taisho Pharmaceutical president.[28]
Shigeru Kashima [ja] February 2024 French literature scholar and literary critic at Meiji University.[31]
Kazumi Murose [ja] January 2025 Professional lacquerer.
Living National Treasure for his maki-e work.[27]
Yasushi Manago [ja] January 2025 Former Vice-Minister of Finance.[27]
Masahiko Ichiriki [ja] January 2025 Representative director of Kahoku Shimpo Publishing Co. [ja].
External director at Tohoku Broadcasting Company.[27]

List of past chairmen

Name Tenure Note
Tadamasa Sakai [ja] † 1950-1969 Member of the first council after its foundation.
Elected chairman until his death in 1969.
Seiichi Funahashi † 1969-1976 Writer and novelist.
Mitsujirō Ishii † 1976-1981 Former deputy prime minister.
Former president of the Japan Sports Association.
Takahashi Yoshitaka [ja] † 1981-1990 Scholar of German literature, critic and essayist.
Hideo Ueda [ja] † 1990-1993 Former Professor at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo.
Resigned from the chairmanship due to health problem in 1993.
Seiki Watanabe [ja] † 1993-1997 Former Asahi Shimbun president.
Tomokazu Sakamoto [ja] † 1997-1999 Former NHK chairman.
Kazuo Ichiriki [ja] † 1999-2001 Former Kahoku Shimpō chairman.
Tsuneo Watanabe † 2001-2003 Former Yomiuri Shimbun chairman.
Yoshio Ishibashi [ja] † 2003-2007 Former Kyoritsu Women's University president.
Katsuji Ebisawa [ja] 2007-2009 Journalist, Former NHK president.
Current chairman of Japan Sumo Association's Counselor committee.
Takuhiko Tsuruta [ja] † 2009-2013 Former Nikkei, Inc. chairman.
Actively participated to Sumo reforms under Hiroyoshi Murayama term and before the Association became a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation.
Hitoshi Uchiyama [ja] † 2013-2015 Former Yomiuri Shimbun counselor.
Hideshige Moriya [ja] 2015-2017 Professor Emeritus at Chiba University.
Masatō Kitamura [ja] 2017-2019 Advisor to the Mainichi Shimbun's board and former Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association president.
Hironori Yano [ja] 2019-2022 Central Nippon Expressway Company advisor.
Masahiko Kōmura 2022-2023 Former Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs.
Masayuki Yamauchi [ja] 2023-2025 Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo.

References

Citations

  1. ^ Buckingham 1994, p. 234.
  2. ^ a b c d Newton & Toff 2000, p. 124.
  3. ^ Schilling 1994, p. 35.
  4. ^ a b c Cuyler 1979, p. 119.
  5. ^ Gunning, John (13 June 2018). "Sumo's Yokozuna Deliberation Council plays important role in overseeing sport". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on 7 September 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  6. ^ "角界のご意見番・横綱審議委員会　求める綱の品格と「苦言」の歴史". Mainichi Shimbun (in Japanese). 6 May 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d Buckingham 1994, p. 216.
  8. ^ "業務・財務情報". Japan Sumo Association (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  9. ^ a b c Schilling 1994, p. 37.
  10. ^ a b c d "横綱審議委員会、最大５期10年報酬なし". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 26 January 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  11. ^ a b Schilling 1994, p. 38.
  12. ^ Kenrick 1969, p. 136.
  13. ^ a b "大相撲初場所 豊昇龍が優勝 横綱昇進に向け臨時理事会開催へ" (in Japanese). NHK. 26 January 2025. Retrieved 15 February 2025.
  14. ^ "強さの裏に未熟さ、優勝なき横綱　元双羽黒が死去". Asahi Shimbun. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  15. ^ "貴景勝、横綱昇進は絶望的に　審判部長「厳しい」". Sanyo Shimbun. 19 January 2023. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  16. ^ "横審、不振大関陣に苦言　御嶽海＆正代４勝１１敗　「あまりにも負けた人は小結まで落としたら」という声も". Sankei Sports (in Japanese). 27 September 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  17. ^ "「大関去る御嶽海含め一層奮起を」横審委員長が大関陣に苦言「初代若乃花ほうふつ」若隆景に期待". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 26 September 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  18. ^ Gunning, John (10 May 2023). "Return of yokozuna council's open training offers good and bad". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on 10 May 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  19. ^ "八角理事長9月2日に"還暦土俵入り"異例の一般公開「どうせやるなら」化粧まわしは思い出深い"三つぞろえ"【大相撲】". Chūnichi Shinbun. 23 June 2023. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  20. ^ "内館牧子氏の相撲愛の原点は幼少期のいじめ体験". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 1 August 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  21. ^ "大相撲 横審委員に紺野美沙子さんと池坊保子さん 女性2人は初". NHK. 31 March 2022. Archived from the original on 16 February 2023. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  22. ^ a b "Sumo yokozuna council issues rare 'encouragement' notice to struggling Kisenosato". Mainichi Daily News. Mainichi. 26 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  23. ^ "End of the line for Asashoryu". Japan Times. 6 February 2010. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  24. ^ "Sumo: Advisory board issues warning to rehabbing yokozuna duo". Mainichi Shimbun. 24 November 2020. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  25. ^ a b "Sumo: Hakuho remains subject to warning over injury absences". Kyodo News. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  26. ^ "Sumo: Yokozuna Kakuryu retires after missing 5th straight tourney". Kyodo News. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  27. ^ a b c d "横審委員長に大島理森氏が就任　新たに室瀬和美氏、真砂靖氏、一力雅彦氏が委員に". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 30 January 2025. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  28. ^ a b "横綱審議委員に大島理森前衆院議長と大正製薬の上原茂社長". Sanskei Shimbun (in Japanese). 26 January 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  29. ^ "中日新聞の大島社長が横審委員に／日本相撲協会、来年から". The Shikoku Shimbun (in Japanese). 25 July 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  30. ^ a b "横審新メンバーに紺野美沙子氏と池坊保子氏　女性委員は内館牧子氏以来". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 8 February 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  31. ^ "松井奏凪人の幕下最下位格付け出しを承認、制度変更第１号　横審新委員にフランス文学者の鹿島茂氏". Sports Hochi (in Japanese). 1 February 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2024.

Bibliography

Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokozuna_Deliberation_Council
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