Competitors throw weight around at Wooden

EDWARD LIN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Jaclyn
Feuerschwenger from New Jersey won the women’s competition
in the sumo tournament held at the John Wooden Center.

By Scott Schultz
Daily Bruin Senior staff

Some of the competitors in the USA Sumo Open were larger than
Bob Toledo’s offensive linemen. But the literal big man on
campus simply presided over the dohyo in the Wooden Center on
Saturday.

The exhibition emphasized educating the public on the rituals
and rules of sumo wrestling as well as providing an international
goodwill competition.

The tournament, organized by the California Sumo Association,
attracted combatants from over five countries, including Japanese
university champions. The tournament also had a women’s
competition.

The biggest attraction was the legendary 625-pound sumo champion
Konishiki who, though retired, is considered in Japan as popular as
Michael Jordan in the United States. Konishiki spoke on behalf of
the sport, which he hopes will become more widely accepted by
American sports fans.

“The sport is about the respect that we have for everyone
around us and our opponents at the same time,” Konishiki
said. “It’s not a “˜dunk-in-your-face’ game.
It’s a clean and down-to-earth sport.”

In an unexpected moment of comedic performance, Konishiki
explained the rules of the sport while the Japanese champions, in
full regalia, demonstrated sumo etiquette such as no eye gouging,
no kicking and no hitting below the belt.

“This isn’t the WWF,” he joked to the laughing
audience as the wrestlers poked and pummeled each other like the
Three Stooges.

Andrew Freund, president of the CSA, was excited by the turnout
for the first of what he hopes will become an annual event. He was
especially pleased by the fact that entire families enjoyed the
sumo wrestling which is a treasured part of Japanese culture.

“I can’t believe there are so many supporters of
sumo,” Freund said. “It was really great to see
grandparents, parents and children watching together.”

In the tournament, wrestlers in every weight class (light,
middle, heavy and all-weight) faced off against each other once. At
the end of this format, the wrestler with the best overall record
was deemed the winner.

Freund was encouraged by the performances of the members from
the CSA club team, especially UCLA third-year cognitive science
student Andy Isaacson. Isaacson, who has only been training in Sumo
since spring quarter, pulled off the upset of the night when he
forced Yuko Mitsunaga of Japan, the winner of the all-weight
division, from the circle.

“That’s almost unheard of,” Freund said.
“These Japanese guys train four to five hours a day, six days
a week for years.”

In the true spirit of sumo humility, Isaacson was excited, but
restrained in his celebration.

“It was pretty incredible,” he said. “I
definitely didn’t see that one coming. I may have not gotten
anywhere in the tournament, but I beat the champ.”

Konishiki was impressed with the dohyo debuts by the CSA club
wrestlers and would like to see the sport eventually become an
NCAA-sanctioned sport. However, he knows that it will take time for
the sport to catch on in America.

“I think it’s going to be an Olympic sport before it
comes to the NCAA because of the popularity of sumo in
Europe,” Konishiki said. “It could get popular here as
long as we have the right people to teach it.”