Sumo Wrestling Still Big In Japan
I suppose it can be considered a stereotype of sorts but I remember that as a child, whenever someone mentioned Japan and sports in the same sentence, I thought of sumo wrestling. A child does not know any better right? Still, today, ages after sumo wrestling began in Japan, the sport still attracts as many people as it used to.
You might be thinking that it is but a natural thing. After all, many kinds of sports are ageless. Think basketball, football, and baseball. The thing is, you may not know that the world of sumo wrestling has been suffering from various setbacks.
One, there is the lack of homegrown talent. In the old days, you could not even begin to imagine that there would be non-Japanese sumo wrestlers. However, these days, you should not be surprised to see Americans, Russians, Mongolians, and other nationals on the mats. Two, sumo wrestling in Japan has been rife with scandals. Three, sumo wrestling has had to compete with the popularity of other “imported†sports.
Still, it seems that this age-old sport has managed to retain its allure and people actually pay considerable amounts to watch live matches. And that is a very good thing. In this age of globalization, it is a sad thing to sit back and watch some old traditions die in many nations. In the cutthroat world of sports, sumo wrestling is one honorable tradition that should not suffer the same fate as other things.
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Posted February 16th, 2011 by Maki | Comments (6)6 Responses to “Sumo Wrestling Still Big In Japan”
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Sumo wrestling is my all time favorite. i always watch it a lot in Japanese channels.”*`
i like to watch wrestling on TV and i have always been a fan of WWE`.’
real wrestling only exists on the olympics, the wrestling on WWE is quite scripted’”`
Jeremiah, please check out the film “The Wrestler” by Darren Aronofsky. The wrestling might be scripted, but the pain is very real.
Sumo wrestling is the national sport and one of the most viewed sports in Japan. It is still very popular today, but has been rocked by various scandals the last few years.
I think sumo is one of the unique cultural that makes japan different