Japan Sumo Association's thinking is very Superficial.

朝青龍(Asashoryu) who is an excellent, great sumo wrestling champion has retired.

I don't think that he had not fault at all.
But, I think that an old-fashioned, hard constitution of Japan Sumo Association is a cause to have made retire from Asashoryu.

I feel sorry for Asashoryu.

This was reported to the newspaper of Japan as follows.

Sumo association should take strict action against Asashoryu.

Yokozuna Asashoryu has come under fire again over a scandal. The top-ranking sumo wrestler hit an acquaintance in the predawn hours of Jan. 16 while he was drunk, leaving the victim with serious injuries that are expected to take a month to heal. The incident occurred during the January tournament, which he won.

A spokesman for Asashoryu initially explained that the wrestler assaulted his personal manager and did not inflict any injury. Takasago, master of the stable to which Asashoryu belongs, apparently provided a similar explanation to Japan Sumo Association Chairman Musashigawa.

However, it turned out after the tournament that the yokozuna assaulted an ordinary citizen, not an insider, and left the victim with severe injuries. It may develop into a crime case. If Asashoryu provided a false explanation in a bid to cover up the fact that he injured an ordinary citizen, the incident would be far more vicious. It appears unlikely that stablemaster Takasago was actively involved in the cover-up, but he cannot evade responsibility for the case as the wrestler's boss.

The incident reportedly occurred at around 4 a.m. One cannot help being astonished at the fact that the yokozuna was out drinking during a tournament. The incident has raised questions about whether he was regularly drinking late even during tournaments, his relations with the victim and why a false report was filed with the Japan Sumo Association.

 

Three years ago, Asashoryu was hit with an unprecedentedly strict punitive measure as a yokozuna. He was suspended from two consecutive tournaments and slapped with a 30 percent pay cut after it came to light that he had skipped a summer regional tour and returned to Mongolia on the pretext of receiving treatment of his injuries but actually played soccer in his home country. Stablemaster Takasago also got a pay cut for his poor supervision of the wrestler and declined to be re-elected a member of the association's board the following year.

Asashoryu has since been involved in a series of scandals that have raised questions about his qualifications as a yokozuna.

"The association is too lenient toward Asashoryu," says scriptwriter Makiko Uchidate, who stepped down as a member of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council on Jan. 25 and has been a longtime critic of Asashoryu.

"As a yokozuna, I will do my best to contribute to the development of sumo," Asashoryu told a messenger who visited him to notify that he would be promoted to the top rank of sumo seven years ago.

One cannot help but wonder whether the yokozuna and his boss who listened to his message forgot his resolution.

The campaign for the biennial election of the Japan Sumo Association board is under way. Board members were elected without a vote in the past three elections. However, voting will be held for the first time since 2002 because 11 candidates are vying for its 10 seats. The new board's ability to deal with the incident will be tested immediately after its inauguration on Monday.

 

Japan Sumo Association needs to learn lesson from departure of Asashoryu

Sumo Yokozuna Asashoryu, who secured 25 tournament wins during his career, the third highest number for a wrestler in the sport's top division, retired on Thursday.

The grappler's move was triggered by an incident during the January Grand Sumo Tournament, in which he allegedly assaulted a waiter -- an unforgivable act for a yokozuna. The Japan Sumo Association summoned Asashoryu and his stablemaster Takasago to a meeting of the board of directors on Thursday and questioned them over the incident.

The board recently held its first election in eight years, and it was expected that the new administration would severely punish the yokozuna over the incident, and possibly even sack him. It is unheard of for an active yokozuna to be fired, and such an incident would blemish the tradition-bound history of the sumo association, not to mention Asashoryu's own name. It can be concluded that by resigning before any action was taken, Asashoryu was able to end the issue with an amicable settlement.

But the sumo association must not be allowed to heave a sigh of relief now that the problem yokozuka has gone. There must be an investigation into the reason why one of the most popular and successful wrestlers left the clay mound in this way, and the association must establish measures to prevent any recurrence of such a turn of events.

There is no need to go back and explain the scandals that surrounded Asashoryu, starting with his game of soccer in Mongolia after he skipped a regional tour on the pretext of receiving treatment for injuries. Each time a problem surfaced, it was Asashoryu's stablemaster Takasago who bore the brunt of the criticism. In the world of sumo, which is governed by the rule that a pupil is the responsibility of the stablemaster, the spotlight was placed on Takasago's lack of leadership. Needless to say, Takasago indeed bore heavy responsibility, but so did the executives of the Japan Sumo Association.

It was the board of directors that recommended Asashoryu ascend to the rank of yokozuna seven years ago, in spite of a Yokozuna Deliberation Council decision that the move was "premature." But each time a scandal erupted, the responsibility fell on the shoulders of Takasago alone, while the association executives took a back seat. It can also be said that the association's board, failing to provide appropriate instruction at an early stage, went easy on the "monster yokozuna," allowing him to become arrogant.

When Asashoryu was questioned over his "dignity as a yokozuna," was it too heavy a burden for Takasago, a former wrestler of the lower ozeki rank, to teach him? One cannot help feeling that the sumo association as a whole, including former yokozuna wresters, fully grasped the weight of raising up a yokozuna service as the face of sumo.

Asashoryu's exciting sumo techniques, in which he displayed speed and fighting spirit, drew many fans. He supported Heisei Era sumo following the retirement of the popular Yokozuna Takanohana, and achieved the notable feat in 2005 of dominating all six tournaments that year. Following the rise of compatriot Hakuho to sumo's top rank, the two yokozuna sustained sumo's popularity. With one of those top wrestlers no longer in the ring, sumo's popularity will undoubtedly be affected.

Learning a lesson from the problems surrounding Asashoryu, the association needs to put in more effort than ever into the education of its wrestlers. Without such an effort, sumo is not qualified to be called a "national sport."

 

横綱：白鳳[Yokozuna, Hakuhou] He is from Mongolia.

大関：琴欧州[Ozeki, Kotooushu] He is from Bulgaria.

Japan Sumo Association has some faction.

The faction's unity is very hard, and they always suppress act of betrayal.
They terribly dislike the person who tries to change old common sense.

A free sumo wrestling champion like Asashoryu might change the sumo wrestling of Japan.
If the number of sumo wrestlers like him increases, the sumo wrestlers' controls by Japan Sumo Association will become difficult.

It is not attractive to the sumo wrestler who doesn't have individuality though the rule is certainly important.
So that , there are many sumo fans which dislike Asashoryu. However, there are many sumo fans which love Asashoryu.

 

 

"横綱の品格[Grand champion sumo wrestler's dignity and grace] " on Japanese sensibility.

The Japanese demand dignity and grace from the sumo wrestling champion.
This " 品格(hinkaku)[Dignity and grace] " might be a peculiar Japanese sense.

If the person grew up in Japan, it will be able to be understood.
But, it might be very difficult for the foreigner to understand it easily.

The foreigner comes to the country where the language, the custom, and food, etc. are quite different, and they study the language first and should train a painful sumo wrestling every day.

And, Japanese force "A peculiar dignity and grace of Japan" on them as soon as becoming a sumo wrestling champion.

When the foreign-born sumo wrestler takes a thoughtless action on the sense of Japan, Japanese people  criticizes them at once.
(Their great achievement and contribution to the sumo wrestling are disregarded.)

Japan Sumo Association should change.
The Japanese should change, too.

And, I think that Japan Sumo Association and people in Japan should have the generosity for the foreigner sumo wrestler.

 

Finally, this is a video of the retirement press conference of Asashoryu.
I watched this press conference on television.
The attitude that Asashoryu is manly was more remarkable than journalists who repeated a stupid question.

By Hararie

 

 

 

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There is a big golf boom in Japan, and one of the reasons is that there is many young and attractive female golf players.

Well, it's not only female players that have been attracting golf fans in Japan.

石川遼[Ryo Ishikawa]: He is only a 18-year-old high-school student.

He began to play golf at the age of six.

In his junior high-school days, he has always come around the top in nationwide tournaments.

The person supporting him is his father.
They has a relationship of mutual trust.

Ryo Ishikawa	Kataumi Ishikawa

In 2007, soon after he entered high school, he played in a professional golf tournament as an amateur and won the tournament.

In January 2008, he became the youngest-ever professional in Japanese golf history at the age of 16.
Then, at the end of 2008, he became the youngest player to earn total prize money of more than 100 million yen.

A few months later, in April 2009, he received a special invitation from the Masters Tournament in the U.S. Although he missed the cut, he was the youngest Japanese to participate in the Masters.

 

At the end of June, he won another golf tournament and became the youngest player to qualify for the British Open which starts in July.

After breaking all kinds of "youngest-ever" records, Ishikawa is now 18 and a senior in high school.
Naturally, people are now interested in what he's going to do after graduation.
Will he enter university and try to balance study with golf, or will he just devote himself to golf?

After all, he said recently. "I don't go to the college."

We are interested in how good he's going to look as he grows up!

 

This is a video of the Japan championship:Mizuno open YOMIURI classics that he won.

 

Other videos concerning Ryo Ishikawa are here.

Official homepage of Ryo Ishikawa

 

By Hararie

 

 

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I was very busy with own work for the past about two months, and I was very tired.
It's too tired I have a lot of things to do.(My job is still hard.)

My husband looked worried, and he said to me.

"How about going out of a trip for a change?"

I wavered, but I received his proposal.
It is because his proposal was an overnight trip.

We decided to go to the place where the scenery of autumn is beautiful because it was October.

Japan has much "the sights with the beautiful scene of autumn."

We decided to go to "十和田湖(Towada-ko)[Lake Towada]" in Aomori Prefecture.

Lake Towada [Towada-ko]:
Lake Towada[towada-ko] is the largest caldera lake in Honshu(the main island of Japan)- island, Japan.
Located on the border between Aomori and Akita prefectures, it lies 400 meters (1,800 ft) above sea level and is 327.0m (1,073 ft) depth, and is drained by the Oirase river.
With a surface area of 62.2 km, Towada is Japan's 12th largest lake, its bright blue color due to its depth.
The lake is the one of popular tourist destinations in Japan.

The place in Lake Towadako:

The high-season is in autumn, with its resplendent red and yellow foliage, but the lush greenery of spring and summer rank high too.

Since "a long promenade" is located in Oirase Stream in Towada-ko, you can enjoy a hike.

On the beach of Lake Towada, there is a statue named Otome-no-zou. Otome is a maiden in Japanese. This was made by Koutaro Takamura, a famous Japanese poet and sculptor who lived in the 19th century.

Because this statue is very famous, a lot of tourists take the photograph.

Please look at the here about "How to get to and around Lake Towada."

People who enjoy Towada-ko[Lake Towada].

Towada-ko is a very beautiful, and very large lake.
And, various shops are located in Towada-ko.

"ひめます(HIME-MASU) [a kokanee (salmon)]" is sold in front of this store.

This HIME-MASU is broiled by charcoal.
The food broiled by charcoal is very delicious.

 

The food that these girls are eating is "Soft ice cream."

 

This is the folkcraft shop.
Various folkcraft of Aomori prefecture and Akitai prefecture sold here.

 

These are pictures of NEBUTA of Aomori Prefecture.

And, this is the food shop.

Many kinds of "Food that you can eat while walking" is sold in this shop.
I wrote the number(sign) to these foods.

No.	Name & Pronunciation &Explanation
A	きりたんぽ ( KIRITANPO ): KIRITANPO-NABE soup is the most famous of local Akita cuisine.
B	おとめ餅 (OTOME-MOCHI): Food to which rice cake is baked with soy sauce.
C	ポテトドッグ (POTETO-DOGGU): Potato dog. "A potato-dog" is a food that was made from potato.
D	ジャンボフランク (JANBO-FRANKU): Jumbo Frank. "Jumbo Frank" is a very large sausage.
E	焼きとうもろこし (YAKI-TOUMOROKOSHI): Food to which corn is baked with soy sauce.
F	鶏唐揚げ (TORI-KARAAGE): A Japanese style fried chicken
G	ソーセージドッグ (SOUSEIJI-DOGGU): Sausage dog. Probably, this is a "hot dog."
H	いか一夜干し (IKA-ICHIYA-BOSHI): The squid is dried a little, and It is grilled. We sprinkle soy sauce, when eating it.

These are "DEMISE-food" often sold outside of Towada-ko.

 

...Now, do you know what is this?

These are "Bicycle that runs on water."

This is called the "swan boat."
These are paddle boat of "Bicycle type" that doesn't need the electric power though it is swan and dinosaur's shape.

 

This is a terminal of "Swan boat" of Towadako.

Tourists ride on this swan boat and enjoy the beauty of a lake.
Incidentally the charge of this swan boat is 1000 yen[about 12 dollars] in 20 minutes.

 

There is "Pleasure boat" in Towadako, too.

 

You will be able to enjoy "the grand scenery of Towada-ko" different from a swan boat.

The charge of the pleasure boat is 1400 yen[about 16 dollars].
Child's charge is adult half the price.

 

Hotel where we stayed.

We stayed at a small hotel "湖畔荘(Kohan-sou)."

Though that was an old hotel, it was a very simple and pretty hotel.

 

Various tools of Japan.

This is our guest room.

The room of such a style is called "和室(WASHITSU)[the Japanese-style room] ."

The floor of WASHITSU is always covered with the "畳(TATAMI)."

That is, WASHITSU and TATAMI are pairs.

 

And, the table in this room is called "座卓( ZATAKU) [Japanese-style low table]."

 

"Round thing on a ZATAKU" - This is "a set for making tea."

There is "Japanese tea-leaf" in A.
This is called the "茶筒( CHADUTSU)[tea canister]."

B is "the pot for making tea" called a "急須( KYUUSU)."

C is cup for green tea.
This is called "湯呑み(YUNOMI)[Tea cup]".

D is called a "つまようじ / 爪楊枝(TSUMA-YOUJI)[toothpick]."

As for the character "toothpick", both a hiragana and kanji are used.

• つまようじ( in hiragana)
• 爪楊枝( in kanji)

Tsumayouji: a toothpick.
Interestingly, the kanji is made up of 爪=fingernail, 楊= willow tree, and 枝=branch/twig. So it's basically a bit of willow used instead of your fingernail. I wish they'd tell that to the old guys who deliberately let the pinky fingernail (and only the pinky) grow long so they can use it to pick their teeth. Seriously.

E is a saucer of the cup.
This is called "茶托(CHATAKU)."

F is a container to throw away "weak and flavorless green tea" and "Green tea which remained into the teapot".
This is called "茶こぼし(CHA-KOBOSHI)."

G is the sweets called "お茶菓子(OCHA-GASHI)[tea biscuits]."

 

Next, this is a dresser called "鏡台(KYOUDAIi)."
This is dresser of a considerably old type in Japan.
It is very unusual.

 

Next, That is storage space like the closet that is called "押入れ/ 押し入れ(OSHI-IRE)."

In Oshi-ire, "布団(HUTON)" is contained.

In a WASHITSU[Japanese-style room], HUTON is usually used as bedding.

A HUTON is something to put down on TATAMI.
HUTON is put down like this.

Since the staff of a hotel puts down the bedding of a Japanese-style room, so there is no need for you to worry.

Incidentally, you are able to specify "the time when HUTON is put down."
The staff of a hotel will come to greet you, soon after you go into the guest room of a hotel.

The staff of a hotel will ask you "time of a meal", and "the time of HUTON."

Probably, it is poor English like me. (Bitter smile with me.)

 

Well, this is the one like nightclothes that are called "ゆかた/浴衣(YUKATA)".

The shape looks just like "KIMONO."

A blue YUKATA is for men, and a red YUKATA is for women.

The one like a blackish KIMONO is called "羽織(HAORI)[Haori coat]".
It's a thing that is put on on a YUKATA.

 

This photograph is me.
I got drunk a little because I had drunk beer for about two hours.

Please refer to the video for the method of putting on the hotel clothes.

 

The YUKATA and towels are here.

In the hotel of the sightseeing spot of Japan, most of guests wear the yukata of a hotel and spend time.
Japanese people has "Custom of putting on the yukata at once when arrived at the guest room at the hotel."

 

The public bath of hotel in Japan.

After they change into a yukata, they go to "大浴場(DAI-YOKUJOU)[the public bath] immediately and take a bath.

This is an entrance of the public bath.

Japanese public bath has an entrance for males, and an entrance for women.

Because I am a woman, I go into the women's public bath.

I'm Sorry.
Because I had got drunk, this photograph is indistinct.

"御倉の湯(OGURA NO YU)" is a name of this bath.

The public bath of the hotel in the sightseeing spot and the hot spring in Japan mostly has a name.
Incidentally, the name of the bath for males is "中山の湯(NAKAYAMA NO YU)."

 

Now, I opened this door.

The door in the front is a rest room.
And, the other side of the curtain is a changing room.

 

When you take off your YUKATA, could you put YUKATA in this basket?
Moreover, please conceal your undergarment by YUKATA.
It is etiquette of the public bath of Japan.

I opened the glass door of the bath.

By chance, nobody was there.
(Therefore, I was able to take this photograph.)

 

This is a place for you to wash the body.

Shampoo, conditioner, and soap.
The hotel in most Japan is fully equipped with these.

 

This is a powder room.

Moisturizer, milky lotion, hairbrush, and hair drier etc.
The hotel in Japan is preparing these all.

 

Dinner of hotel in Japan.

Well, when a little time has passed since it took a bath, it is time of the dinner.

The hotel in Japan, everyone eats dinner in the dining room or the guestroom.
As for eating dinner in the guest room, the hotel charge often rises.

In the hotel where we had stayed, it was a system of "Dinner that all hotel guests eat in the guest room."

This was dinner at that night.
It was very gorgeous.

To speak frankly, because these were not the dishes which I am eating usually, there was a dish which I do not like.

But, I was very happy.

 

In the hotel in Japan, dinner and breakfast are included in the charge.

This trip was one night stay, but I was very refreshed.

Thank you for reading to the last.

 

by　Hararie

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The 30-year-old Ichihashi, who had been on the run since police found the body of Lindsay Ann Hawker, 22, was arrested on suspicion of abandonment of a body, after being spotted at a ferry terminal in the western city of Osaka Tuesday.

Man resembling fugitive wanted over Briton's killing underwent plastic surgery

--This is quotation from Japan's website news.

Suspect wanted over slaying of Briton was probably laying low in Osaka: investigators
Wanted: Tatsuya Ichihashi
Wanted: Tatsuya Ichihashi

ICHIKAWA, Chiba -- A 30-year-old fugitive wanted in connection with the March 2007 killing of a 22-year-old British English teacher was probably laying low in Osaka Prefecture, investigative sources have told the Mainichi.

Tatsuya Ichihashi is wanted in connection with the killing of British woman Lindsay Ann Hawker, whose body was found buried in a bathtub on the balcony of his home in Ichikawa.

Investigators said that when a man resembling Ichihashi underwent cosmetic surgery in Nagoya, he gave the name and address of a man who was actually living in Osaka Prefecture, without misspelling any of the information, leading police to suspect he had been hiding in the area. The investigative headquarters at Gyotoku Police Station in Chiba Prefecture has dispatched officers to search for the 30-year-old.

Investigators said the man believed to be Ichihashi visited a medical institution in Nagoya on Oct. 24, and had surgery on his nose. Three days later, the institution contacted police, telling them they had seen a man resembling Ichihashi.

When investigators obtained a photograph taken after the surgery, they found that not only the nose but also the eyelids and lips of the man were different from those in a photo of Ichihashi that police have distributed, with one investigator describing it as the "face of a different person." Investigators suspect Ichihashi underwent surgery several times. They are considering releasing the photograph of the suspect and calling for information from the public.

Based on the fact that the surgery was paid for in cash and due to reports that the man resembling Ichihashi tried to receive cosmetic surgery in Fukuoka, investigators suspect that someone has been supplying Ichihashi with funds to remain on the lam.

The man who underwent surgery in Nagoya was due to return to have stitches removed, and investigators obtained cooperation from Aichi Prefectural Police in keeping watch for him, but he did not show up.

Meanwhile, in an interview with the Mainichi, the victim's 56-year-old father, Bill Hawker, said it was clear that Ichihashi had no intention of reflecting on the crime or turning himself in, and added that his whole family was angered. He called for investigative authorities to release information on the cosmetic surgery and have people who saw anyone resembling the man to provide information.

Bill Hawker said he learned about the cosmetic surgery in the predawn hours of Wednesday (Wednesday morning Japanese time), when he was contacted by a news organization. He said he hadn't received any confirmed information from the embassy or other sources, but said he was overcome by shock. He asked why the most sought-after person in Japan could keep escaping, and why medical institutions allowed him to undergo surgery, adding that just thinking about it made him angry.

Fugitive Ichihashi may have had plans to flee Japan
A picture of fugitive Tatsuya Ichihashi while out bowling with coworkers in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture, April 11, 2009. (Courtesy of a former coworker)
A picture of fugitive Tatsuya Ichihashi while out bowling with coworkers in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture, April 11, 2009. (Courtesy of a former coworker)

Fugitive Tatsuya Ichihashi may have planned to flee the country, it's been discovered, after police found a passport application form in his room at a construction firm dormitory.

"I've been stuck inside so long, I want to go and see the world," he told a coworker at the firm in Osaka Prefecture, where he worked under a false identity. Ichihashi also asked him for help in applying for a passport.

Ichihashi, 30, worked at a construction firm in Ibaraki, Osaka Prefecture, as a day laborer, specializing in installing home solar panels. Typical working hours were 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., six days a week, for around 10,000 yen a day.

He was known as a hard worker. "I'm going to save up around a million yen and take my parents to a hot spring or something," he once told his coworker.

"Dai-chan," as he was nicknamed, also had some strange habits, however. He never took off his hat, even while eating; always bathed alone, and had an aversion to being photographed, even hiding behind another person in a photo taken while bowling earlier this year.

There were also more serious incidents: Ichihashi once lost his temper after he was reprimanded by a superior at work, grabbing his collar before he was calmed down by a coworker.

Ichihashi burst into tears, saying "Sorry," after he was warned that he could beat others to death.

Finally, he left the company on Oct. 11, telling people he was going on a trip. He left behind some comics, an English-Japanese dictionary, a comb and several hand mirrors.

(Mainichi Japan) November 10, 2009

Tatsuya Ichihashi was arrested by the police at the Osaka Minami harbor ferry platform in Suminoe-ku, Osaka-shi on the night of November 10.

He sacrificed the one human being's life.
It is never allowed.
I desire his death penalty.

I pray for her repose.

by　Hararie