Martial Sumo - The "national soul" sport of Japan and its shivering secrets that few know

Sumo is known as a martial art of traditional cultural and religious beliefs, the pride of the Japanese. Japanese Sumo fighters are always bright stars respected by the people, but the path to the top of glory also has many dark corners that make anyone shudder.

The martial art of "national spirit and national medicine" of Japan

According to historical documents, Sumo was born 1,500 years ago, the first match was recorded in 642 as a ritual to pray for a good harvest. Under the patronage of the Emperor in the 9th century, Sumo became a court ritual, and was also performed for kings to see during festivals.

Sumo is closely associated with the Shinto (Shinto) religion that emphasizes purity and purification, which is also the religion that makes an important contribution to shaping Japanese culture today. Because of that, Sumo is highly respected by the Japanese, and martial artists also have respect in society. Sumo fighters are divided into 6 different levels, depending on their ability and achievements, including Yokozuna, Ozeki, Sekiwate, Komusubi, Maegashira and Jyuryo, of which the highest rank is Yokozuna - recognized by the Japan Sumo Association.

The boxers with the lowest rank have a salary of about 11,000 USD/month (VND 253 million), the boxers with the higher rank will have a salary increase and the highest rank will have a salary of about 30,500 USD/month (701 million VND (701 million VND). copper).

The salary is high, so professional Japanese sumo fighters never have to worry about money, just focus on practicing and competing. Many sumo wrestlers lead very rich lives. And if you are not graded but are only in the process of studying, you will only receive a rather meager amount of stipend.

The rules of Sumo are quite simple. The match usually takes place in a very short time, about 1 minute, but with a very high tempo and extremely intense. The ring is just a circle of clay with a diameter of 4.55m. Two boxers fight each other in the ring, whoever falls out of the specified circle or touches any part of his body to the ground will be the loser. During the match, the two sides are not allowed to punch, kick, attack in dangerous places such as the eyes or the groin, but only push, butt and trip each other.

However, not everyone can become a true sumo fighter. The standard to become a Sumo fighter is to graduate from junior high school, be less than 23 years old, over 1m75 tall and weigh over 67 kg. After the test, those who are qualified to become Sumo will begin to enter the school and undergo a rigorous training regimen, eating according to standards to be able to increase weight.

Workout time each day usually starts at 4am with an empty stomach to help reduce the amount of metabolism that can be saved to the maximum. At 11 a.m. the boxers began to rest and eat. Sumo's diet does not have breakfast, they only eat two main meals, lunch and dinner, with a special menu rich in vegetables, meat, eggs, fish, tofu, fruit juice... To gain weight fast, after During the meal, the Sumo fighters also eat more cakes and pastries. And after the meal, the boxers can work individually, but mostly sleep to store energy. At this time, they have to use oxygen ventilators to ensure deep and quality sleep.

In addition to the above foods, the boxers only use rice, chestnut products, raw vegetables, a liter of beer or a few glasses of sake... in the meal. The meals of these martial artists cannot be complete without a dish called Chanko. It's a pot of chicken broth and in it are all kinds of cookable foods like beans, beef, vegetables, fish...

Sumo's diet is set up in a reasonable and scientific way. Weight is one of the important standards in Sumo training. With the task of loading up to 8,000 calories a day, Sumo fighters often store a huge amount of fat under the skin. Despite their large body mass, they do not suffer from obesity. Sumo body fat does not exceed 30%. Although this is not a life-threatening type of fat, scientists believe that if people do not try to lose weight after the age of 30, this amount of fat will lead to a higher risk of diabetes, heart disease, and other health hazards.

No salary, no phone, no girlfriend

The average lifespan of a Sumo fighter is only about 55 years, which is about 20 years less than the average Japanese. The cause probably lies in the daily diet of too much protein. They often have to eat a special soup, which consists of meat or fish, tofu, vegetables, noodles, rice and sugar. Their mid-day snack can be up to 100 sushi rolls.

Many boxers also drink a lot of beer. This diet high in protein and fat is very different from the delicate and healthy eating habits of the Japanese people. Perhaps that is the cause of such a large age difference.

A dark corner of the sumo training grounds is for the young fighters of the lower ranks: they are the ones who suffer the most. They have to get up early before everyone else to clean up, prepare breakfast, and eat only after the higher ranked fighters.

After training, they are also the last to shower, and the same goes for dinner. These people are often subjected to caning and physical punishment. This is common in Sumo culture, because it is believed that it helps fighters become stronger. However, once they become a good fighter, these people can earn millions of yen per month and become idols of many people.

It takes a really talented boxer about 2-3 years to climb to the second level and start receiving a salary commensurate with the reputation of the top Japanese sport. Specifically, each second-class boxer earns a minimum of nearly 1.4 million yen per month (equivalent to more than 270 million VND), up to a maximum of 7 million yen (equivalent to about 1.35 billion VND). Advertising sponsorship is included.

But money is not the only reward after they prove their ability in the prestigious ring, Sumo boxers are banned from driving a car, but with a huge fortune, they can absolutely hire a driver. private. It is also a symbol of the high-level status that talented boxers possess, or sometimes it is necessary because most of them have a huge second round that makes it difficult to control traffic. Sumo wrestlers can still get married as usual. Japanese women are very proud to be the wife of a Sumo. That's why the wives of Sumo fighters are always very beautiful.

In theory, neither owning a cell phone nor having a girlfriend should exist for boxers competing in third place and below. Women are also prohibited from living inside the training grounds and are also not allowed to assist in all Sumo-related activities such as training, cooking, and laundry.

In other words, if they are in the bottom 4, they will not have the opportunity to marry the person they love unless they decide to retire from their careers. More seriously, if a second-rate boxer is injured during the competition leading to a drop to third place, he is forced to "abandon" his wife and children outside to return to the training furnaces with steel discipline.

Little known "dark" corners

Young boxers who cannot meet the standards that the leader wants, or when they dare to speak out against the extremely harsh training regime and life, will be punished with a series of red whip marks on their backs. . A Sumo fighter once received a compensation of up to 32.4 million yen (equivalent to more than 6.5 billion dong) after suffering daily abuse at the training academy in 2006, but he permanently blind in one eye...

At the end of November 2017, martial artist Harumafuji attacked a younger colleague in a bar, causing the victim to crack his skull and immediately became the focus of criticism of the Japanese media. The police agency is also forced to investigate in detail before making an official statement to the press and public. That greatly affected Harumafuji's career.

Standing among dozens of reporters working continuously, the famous boxer in the country of cherry blossoms announced that he would end his career with tears in his eyes. This scandal has severely damaged the image of the famous traditional sport in Japan.

About 10 years ago, a 17-year-old boxer in training died after being brutally attacked by a group of seniors from the same training academy with beer bottles and baseball bats. Not only that, the professional sumo tournament in this country is also involved in the suspicion of fixing the results to serve the "business" of yakuza gang organizations operating in the field of illegal betting in the recent past. 2010. In the same year, Sumo champion Asashoryu - the 68th Yokozuna and Harumafuji's teacher was forced to announce his retirement after a fight broke out outside a nightclub in Tokyo.

In the face of unfortunate events, are these a sign that the "national soul" discipline is dying in its own homeland, when the discipline aspect that used to be valued seems to as if it ceased to exist. Or is this just an inherent dark corner of a 1,500-year-old sport that is deliberately hidden by insiders?

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