Akinoumi (left) and Itsutsushima (above)

    Akinoumi, "sekiwake" of the West Team, won the individual tourney of the Nippon Professional Sumo Association which was completed on May 23 after a 15 day competition. He finished his 15 matches by winning 14 and losing only once.
    This was the first pennant victory for Akinoumi. On the last day, he defeated Matsuuragata, a "maegashira".
    Itsutsushima, junior "sekiwake" of the West Team, who has been staging a neck and neck race with Akinoumi for the individual championship, suffered defeat at the hands of Aobayama, a "maegashira", on the last day of the tourney. Thus Itsutsushima finished as the runnner-up in individual performance with 13 wins and two defeats.
    In the team competition, the West Team defeated the East Team by a wide margin of 61 points, 202 to 141. The absence of such point getters as Futabayama and Haguroyama since midway through the tourney, greatly depressed the spirits of the members of the East Team, this resulting in the unexpected wide margin. By virtue of the victory in the summer tourney, the West Team and the East Team will exchange positions in the next spring main tourney, 1941.
    The individual performances of the high ranking grapplers were:

    The Nippon Professional Sumo Association at a regular post tourney conference of its officials on May 24 unanimously decided to recommend Akinoumi and Itsutsushima, both holding the rank of "sekiwake", to the rank of 'ozeki', the highest position next to 'yokozuna', due to their brilliant showings in the summer main tourney.
    Akinoumi's real name is Setsuo Nagata. A native of Hiroshima city, he is 26 years old. Itsutsuhima, real name Isaichi Kanesaki, was born on Goto island, Minami Matsuura-gun, Nagasaki prefecture. He is 28 years old.