Baruto – The Leonardo DiCaprio of the Sumo World
Estonian sumo wrestler Baruto Kaito (Kaido Höövelson) has been promoted to the second highest rank in professional sumo, ozeki:
As you can see from the video clip embedded above, some in the Japanese media are commenting on how he is handsome (“ikemen”). Apparently he is said to resemble actor Leonardo DiCaprio. Baruto has laughed off the comparison, joking that maybe he is better looking than DiCaprio. The Japanese media also seems to have taken a liking to his Russian wife, who looks quite nice in a kimono.
Mainichi reports on his polite and happy demeanor:
“I want to be cheerful and be an ozeki that can live up to the expectations of the fans,” Baruto said after officials were sent by the sport’s governing body to convey the decision.
“Unless I win a championship I can’t move up to yokozuna. I just have to target winning a title,” he said.
Baruto, whose cheerful disposition and quirky sense of humor has won him an increasing number of fans, becomes the eighth foreign-born ozeki and second European wrestler after Bulgarian grappler Kotooshu to attain the rank.
Read more about his life story in this article. Also be sure to check out this interview.
In case you are wondering about what this promotion actually means, the above figure includes some details. Baruto will get a pay raise, be allowed to ride a car up to the entrance of the Kokugikan, get first class airplane tickets instead of business class tickets, and his name will be written in a larger font on the sumo ranking charts.
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