National Children’s Sumo Tournament: Schoolchildren (of varying sizes) battle it out in the ring in Tokyo

  • Boys of all shapes and sizes competed at the National Children’s Sumo Tournament in Tokyo

By
Jill Reilly

11:23 EST, 31 July 2012

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14:34 EST, 31 July 2012

You don’t have to be a heavy-set adult to enjoy a spot of Japanese sumo-wrestling as these fiercely competitive schoolchildren prove.

Boys of all shapes and sizes competed at the National Children’s Sumo Tournament in Tokyo.

The crowd roared with delight when pint-sized Hayato Matsunaga defeated an opponent who was bigger than him.

Boys don’t cry: One of the competitors at the National Children’s Sumo Tournament in Tokyo reacts with an expressive face after a bout

Victory: Hayato Matsunaga walks back across a sumo ring after he defeated an opponent who is bigger than him

Some of the more slight competitors may not have the bulk of their bigger counterparts, but they
can still outmanoeuvre their opponents.

The
keen youngsters are among dozens of Japanese wrestlers taking part in
the annual competition, which is popular with sporting fans across the
country.

The Japanese consider Sumo a modern martial art, even though the sport has a history spanning back several centuries.

Sporting fun: The keen youngsters are among 300 Japanese wrestlers taking part in the annual competition, which is popular with sporting fans across the country

Sumo wrestling is a national
obsession in Japan where the giant competitors, known as rikishis, are
seen as national heroes and become unlikely sex symbols.

Full-sized
wrestlers can weigh well over 250kg and in order to stay in fighting
shape they need to consume a whopping 20,000 calories a day.

As well as their enormous meals the wrestlers top up by downing around six pints of beer at every mealtime.

Fighting face: The competitors attempt to heave each other out of the ring

Rest: Although their faces were fraught with concentration and exertion during the matches, they boys smiled as they watched other opponents compete

Someone has to win: Kaito Igarashi reacts after he lost his bout at the competition

Although the sport of Sumo has been practised for over 1000 years the Japanese consider its a modern martial art.

The bouts take place in a circular
ring known as a dohyō and the winner is the first wrestler to force his
opponent to step out of the ring or to force them to touch the ground
with any part of their body other than the bottom of their feet.

Tradition is extremely important and
before each bout the wrestlers perform a ritual known as the Shiko
exercise where they stomp their feet in order to drive away evil
spirits.

Warming up: The first boy to touch the ground with any part of his body other than the soles of his feet loses the bout, which typically lasts less than a minute

Support: Proud parents cheer and clap from the sidelines at Sunday’s competition

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