Musashimaru's injured left wrist forces retirement
By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer
In the tranquil neighborhood where he has lived in Tokyo, it is said that when the 6-foot-3, 521-pound sumo star Fiamalu Penitani walks, you can feel the vibrations.
Associated Press
And so it will be with his retirement from the ring, which will have the historical repercussions of ending a nearly 40-year streak in which Hawai'i has been represented in the sport of emperors.
Musashimaru, right, who started his sumo career in 1991, attained yokozuna (grand champion) status in 1999.
The former Wai'anae High football player, who has competed under the ring name of Musashimaru since joining Japan's national sport at age 18, competed in his last match Friday at age 32, ending a string of performers from Hawai'i that began with Maui's Jesse (Takamiyama) Kuhaulua in 1964.
In the end, Musashimaru, who rose to the highest rank of yokozuna and became the most decorated of all the Hawai'i sumotori with 12 championships — sixth best all-time — succumbed to a chronic wrist injury which has forced him to either sit out or drop out of every tournament since last November.
He was 3-4 in the current 15-day Kyushu Basho in Fukuoka, Japan, before deciding to retire.
"I couldn't maintain the responsibility that a grand champion has," Musashimaru said today at a press conference. "That was the main reason I decided to retire.
"The cause was my wrist," added Musashimaru. "The injury left me with virtually no power in my left shoulder."
Born in Samoa and raised in Hawai'i from elementary school age, Musashimaru gained popularity in Japan for his combination of a quiet, almost shy demeanor and a powerful, trusting brand of sumo.
His facial resemblance to one of Japan's most revered historical figures, Saigo Takamori, helped win him quick recognition even before he climbed the ranks in near-record pace.
Musashimaru was among the sport's most consistent performers, with a string of 55 tournaments with a winning record.
Although yokozuna, or grand champion, is the one rank in sumo from which there traditionally is no demotion, the burden of its exalted status compels those who can no longer uphold its level to retire.
"I had really hoped he could come through with a 9-6 or 10-5 this time so he could keep it going," said Kuhaulua, who operates his own sumo stable "But the problem is that when you're injured, it is hard to train properly and you lose your edge," he told The Advertiser.
"It is too bad for sumo," said Hiroshi Suzuki, a Tokyo businessman. "The Hawai'i sumotori worked very hard and became popular."
"I'm sorry to see it (the streak) end after all these (years)," said Kats Miho, a retired Honolulu attorney and long-time sumo fan who helped the 442nd Veterans Club promote sumo in Hawai'i. "Our boys did some great things over there."
Indeed, for the past 35 years at least one Hawai'i sumotori has held a ranking in the sport's top division, an unbroken line from Kuhaulua to Salevaa (Konishiki) Atisanoe, Chad (Akebono) Rowan, George (Yamato) Kalima and Penitani.
But after seeing more than 30 athletes from Hawai'i try their hand in Japan, no new ones have taken up the challenge in nearly a decade.
A large part of the reason is a change in rules. After the so-called "Gaijin (foreigner) Invasion" of the late 1980s and early 1990s that saw a record number of aliens climb to prominence in the centuries-old sport led by Akebono as the first foreign-born yokozuna, the Japan Sumo Association began tightening its rules.
Currently there are just over 40 foreigners among the more than 800 active sumotori. One is from America, but the majority are from Mongolia.
New recruits must pass examinations in Japanese language and customs. In addition, a rule for the past year has limited the stables to no more than one foreigner.
Meanwhile, back in Hawai'i, the sport loses its local anchor.
"It is only natural that since we identify with the Hawai'i wrestlers there is going to be some loss of interest," said Dennis Ogawa, president of the Nippon Golden Network, which airs sumo matches to 17,000 households in Hawai'i. But Ogawa said, "there's always going to be a core of sumo fans."
Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
