The Kokugikan amphitheater in Ryogoku this morning became the setting of spectacular Sumo bouts with the stars of the annual 15-day summer tournament.
    As in the last tournament is expected to draw record crowds throughout its duration, during which time, the East and West camps, captained by Futabayama and Akinoumi, respectively, will battle for honors and teams points.
    More than ever, the Japanese people under the current wartime situation have been returning to the Spartan mode of living; and sumo, as Japan’s national sport which calls for intense spiritual as well as physical training, will draw the interest of the entire nation.

    Sumo is of very ancient origin, the first bout on record taking place as early as 23 B.C. It appears to have been a regular function at the Imperial Court, the experts in the art being summoned to Kyoto, then the capital, every year from all parts of the country and made to wrestle for a prize.
    One of the unique facts of this ancient art is that the office of umpire of “Gyoji” was made hereditary in the two families of Shiga and Yoshida, the latter being represented even to this day. The formal authority of naming the Grand Champion or Yokozuna is held by the umpire.
    Sumo also received great encouragement and protection from the warrior classes, especially during the Tokugawa Shoguns, Ieyasu, the first Shogun, honored an exhibition of the sport with his presence and his example was followed by his successors, so that wrestling bouts became important social functions.

    In feudal times each daimyo kept his own bank of wrestlers, who vied with one another in upholding the reputation of the daimiate; but with the abolition of feudalism the wrestlers were thrown upon their own resources. For a time the sport decayed; but it was revived about 1883 and encouraged by the presence of the Emperor at a series of bouts held at the Shiba Detached Palace in Tokyo. The wrestling rink, in Kyoto, however, never recovered from the blow administered to it by the removal of the capital of Tokyo.
    Up to recent years there were two main groups of professional wrestling, the Tokyo and the Osaka bands. The latter, however, seldom rose to the level attained by the former, and in 1927 the two groups were amalgamated and it was decided to hold half-yearly matches both in Tokyo and Osaka.
    Wrestlers are broadly graded into two groups, the maku-no-uchi (“Within the curtain”) and the maku-shita (“Outside the curtain”). The maku-no-uchi group consists of three champion wrestlers, called the San-yaku (Three services). Ozeki, Sekiwake and Komusubi, and he who attains the position of Ozeki may be further promoted to Yokozuna or “Champion of champions” the highest position attainable in the ring.
    The Yokozuna alone is entitles to wear round his waist the coveted straw belt. Between this select body and the Maku-shita or junior wrestlers comes a body of about twenty called the maegashira.
    Today wrestling matches last for 15 days and are held twice a year in January and May. Before the construction of the Kokugikan in Tokyo 1909, the contests used to be held in the open, inclement weather often prolonging the tournament to great lengths. The Kokugikan provides accommodation for 12,000 spectators.

    The ring is the work of artists who take great care in its construction for the tournament. It is sanded and raised somewhat above the level of the lowest seats. It originally consisted of two circles, each formed by 16 rice bales, one bale being removed from the opposite side of each circle to mark the place of entry. Under modern arrangement only the inner circle remains, the outer circle having become a square.
    The bales forming the ring are supposed to represent the sings of the zodiac and the 12 months. Pails of water are placed on the eastern and western sides for the use of the wrestlers, who on entering the arena wash their hands and rinse their mouths with the water.
    In professional sumo, the Issue is decided by one encounter, and today there is imposed a time limit of seven minutes for the wrestlers to rush each other on their own initiative. The wrestlers have traditional rules for their guidance, the most important referring to the manner in which they may defeat an opponent. There are 48 falls allowed, namely 12 throws, 12 lifts, 12 twists and 12 back throws.

    When a match is over, the contestants stand on the east and west side of the ring and perform a ceremony each saluting the other as a token of courtesy as he did before the bout. The etiquette is very important, because the bout if of religious significance, being an offering to the deities instead of a mere matter of gaining victory.
    The ring is a sacred place. It is the holy precinct of a religious festival. The real significance of Sumo lies in the fact that the antagonists exert themselves to the utmost in this sacred ring, putting forth all their mental and physical resources into play, almost with the enthusiasm and ardor of men who are on a crusade for some noble object. The greatest feature and significance of Japanese wrestling is the harmonious blending of the profound religious sense of courtesy, with the whole-hearted struggle, contestants mobilizing all their mental and physical resources.
    Between the bouts a spectacular show is given called the Dohyo-iri, or “ring entry”. This consists of a clapping of hands and stamping of feet. Beautiful aprons made of costly fabrics are worn by the wrestlers of the occasion.
    When the right moment comes or the time limit expires, the two wrestlers go to it swiftly and spring upon the other for the battle. Once they become thus engaged in the actual contest, east must see to it that no part of his feet touches the ground, for the slightest touch of the ground, or even the scratch of sand in the ring with the tip of the finger means defeat. Another sign of defeat is that of stepping out of the ring. A wrestler will be judged as defeated should his toe or heel slip out of the ring, for even the fraction of an inch. And it is of course defeat for him to touch the ground outside the ring with any part of his body. From this consideration, Sumo is the most exacting form of wrestling in the world.
    When the wrestlers are called out, the umpire enters the ring with a fan-shaped and elegantly embellished article known as a gunbai-utiwa, or “war-fan”, to control the match, give a decision and announce his verdict to the winner and spectators.
 In Japan, the wrestler never says, “Lets wrestle” of “Lets compete in wrestling”. He always says; “Lets take wrestling”. The manner of challenging anyone for wrestling is called tekoi, or “asking for hands”. The custom of sikiri, or crouching in the ring with the fisted hands on the ground for a “get-set”, has developed from the custom of lowering the hands.

    On the last day of the tournament, the three champion wrestlers of the victorious side, that is the side which has scored the largest number of points, are awarded prizes by the umpire, the prizes consisting of a bow for the Ozeki, a bow-string for the Sekiwake, and a fan for the Komusubi, in accordance with historical precedents.
    The hour which brings about the greatest excitement is late afternoon, when champions and near champions enter the ring for their matches.
    The leading wrestlers for this summer tournament as announced by the Sumo Association follows: