Asashoryu announces his retirement

I am so upset by this. Asashoryu was the first sumo wrestler I ever knew by name. He was my favorite. Hakuho is good but he’s a bore.

I doubt there is any grand conspiracy to it but judging by the tone of the news programs today (including viewer mail) there is certainly an air of “he wasn’t properly trained.” This was not always implicitly stated as a foreigner-thing, but more than a few people suggested that his stable master bears great responsibility in this mess.

I thought SUMO wrestlers used to teach juniors by beating ‘em. I really think that if I were a japanese would have thought the same thing the unbittable records were about to be breaken.

How can anyone think this is an anti-foreigner conspiracy?

What?

He smacked a dude, quite hard in the face…hard enough to break a few bones. If that wasn’t enough, he then threatened to dump the guy’s body in the river!

I think he got off easy. If any other so-called ‘Foreigner’ or Japanese person did the same, he would be looking at the world through some iron bars.

Try doing the same thing in Roppongi tonight and see where it gets you.

Foreigner or not, he committed a crime. There is NO discrimination here. Just justice.

Damn I hate it when the ‘race’/'discrimination’ card gets pulled. Surely we’re able to be more objective and educated than this?

I AM NOT JAPANESE! For the record.

I personally blame Asashoryu for all these messes. I am a Mongolian and my point is if anyone in foreign land crosses line 5 or more times that is utter stupidity and supposed punishment should serve. In Mongolian traditional wrestling especially in higher ranking wrestlers these kinds of violent behavior is strictly forbidden but our dear son Asa wanted more “candies” of unlimited excuses from that local community. It is all kind of pathetic stupidity that paints badly our national reputation on world stage.

But every nation is almost same that Tiger Woods sex addiction thing exploding all over or Stefi Grafs’ tax evasion adventures exploded a decade ago, every nation has similar dirty laundry after all.

This “yokozuna” badly abused his own wife and beaten her many times and even broken his wifes tooth. His own brother Mr.Sumyabazar notoriously abuses his wife and beats. Now do you get the full picture of Asashoryu’s violent life??!!

Anti foreigner conspiracy? So what you are saying is its ok for a foreigner to beat up a Japanese? How would you react if it was the other way around?

He did not deserve to be a Yokozuna and I bet Hakuho, Akebono and Musashimaru would feel the same way.

There was an incident years ago, when Akebono the recently designated Yokozuna caused property damage, I believe when he broke the chouchin of an izakaya when he was drunk.

At least Akebono apologized and showed ‘repentance’ and people let it go. Even then, Akebono was no where near Asashouryu. I have never heard of Musashimaru nor Hakuho cause trouble.

Asashouryu was trouble from day 1 and he deserved what he got. No he should have been kicked out way before.

Japanese people are more demanding, as in comparison to other sports, cause it is a national, traditional sport funded in part by the taxpayers.

The time of Akebono/Musashimaru and Taka/Waka brothers were the last time when it was the good ol sumo days. They showed technique with class and not the ‘wresling’ style with only strength.

That’s why sumo is losing popularity in Japan for all the non-sense that is going around and I hope with this incident, the Sumo Kyoukai gets it right by going back to the basics. Don’t tell me it’s racist, as if Akebono, Musashimaru, Asashouryu and Hakuho can be Yokozunas, so can other foreign sumo wrestlers.
They just have to work hard to show they deserve it.

BTW: it is true that it was unfair to deny Akebono the title, as he was a foreigner, but at least he got to be a Yokozuna.