[sumo] Fwd: [Sumo news] - Oonosato's injury-should we be worried?

[Jeff A]

Uh-oh!

Moti

Best regards,
Jeffrey Anderson
Gaijingai
For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these:
It might have been.
- John Greenleaf Whittier


---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Moti Dichne <niramiai at gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Dec 14, 2025 at 3:05 AM
Subject: [Sumo news] - Oonosato's injury-should we be worried?
To: Sumo Newsletter2 <sumo-newsletter2 at googlegroups.com>


Yokozuna Oonosato unexpectedly dropped out of contention for the yusho in
Kyushu after injuring his left shoulder. This year's tournament schedule
for sumo came to an end with the Kyushu tournament in November, and the
winter jungyo is currently underway. One of the rikishi absent from the
winter jungyo is Yokozuna Oonosato. He was tied for the lead in the yusho
race at the end of Day 13  with two losses, but injured his left shoulder
in his match against Sekiwake Aonishiki that same day. After losing to
Ozeki Kotozakura the following day, he submitted a medical certificate
stating that he had a dislocated left acromioclavicular joint and needed
one month of rest, and withdrew from the final day of the tournament.
Unexpectedly dropping out of contention for the yusho, Oonosato also has
been out from day one of the winter jungyo, which began on November 30th
after the tournament, to focus on recovery. Many fans are praying for a
speedy recovery, but it may be a troublesome injury that will not be easy
to recover from.

A former rikishi points out that it's a nasty injury. Former Komusubi
Gagamaru, who was active from Kyushu 2005 to Kyushu 2020, expressed concern
about Oonosato's injury. On December 11, he posted a video on his official
YouTube channel, "GAGA CHANNEL," in which he discussed a topic that had
been bothering him during the Kyushu tournament. In the video, he said, "A
dislocation (like Oonosato's) is worse than a broken bone. Even if it
recovers, it becomes a habit and is prone to popping out of place. Also,
with something like a shoulder, you can't hold it in place with tape. You
can somehow bandage your fingers or wrist, but shoulders are tricky. Once
it becomes a habit, it can pop out even while you're practicing or
sleeping. There's no surgery, and there's nothing anyone can do to help.
So, everyone can only pray."

Regarding his decision to sit out on the final day in Kyushu, Gagamaru
declared, "In my opinion, it was the right decision. If he dislocates it
again, it could lead to retirement. It would be a serious problem." This
suggests that the injury has a high risk of worsening and recurrence.

Is it possible to take it easy and sit out the Hatsu Basho? Simply put, the
aforementioned medical certificate indicates that Oonosato's symptoms are
expected to subside somewhat by late December. However, it's unclear how
much of his condition and fighting ability he will be able to regain in the
roughly two weeks leading up to Hatsu Basho. It's unclear at this stage
whether Oonosato will be able to compete in the Hatsu Basho, but if he's
not fully recovered, sitting out the tournament is a realistic option.
While this will undoubtedly be emotionally difficult, it's far better than
forcing himself to compete and making the situation worse.

Furthermore, Oonosato has won 11 or more matches in three consecutive
tournaments since his debut as a new Yokozuna in the 2025 Nagoya
tournament, and won his first Yokozuna yusho in the September basho. Since
he has consistently produced good results since his promotion, it is
unlikely that the Yokozuna Deliberation Council will be too harsh on him
even if he takes a break. Everything will depend on how well he recovers,
but we can only hope that Oonosato makes the best decision in order to
remain a stable Yokozuna for the next five to ten years.

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