[sumo] Fwd: [Sumo news] - UK - citizen Tarasenko - new recruit to enter Nagoya

[Jeff A]

Moti

Two Great articles.
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: Thu, Jul 9, 2026 at 11:37 AM
Subject: [Sumo news] - UK - citizen Tarasenko - new recruit to enter Nagoya
To: Sumo Newsletter2 <sumo-newsletter2 at googlegroups.com>


At the Nagoya basho, a 17-year-old from the UK (Latvian/Estonian origin)
will make his debut. Nicholas Tarasenko of Minato beya will be known as
"Eisei." Blessed with a physique of 1.87 meters and weighing 125 kilograms,
he passed the Kyokai's interview, which also tests his Japanese language
skills, less than a year after arriving in Japan. He is the first
British-born rikishi in 36 years, since former Jonidan Hidenokuni, and aims
for the top, saying, "In the future, I want to become a Yokozuna and let
more people in my home country know about sumo." In mid-June, during
morning practice at his heya, Tarasenko was repeatedly practicing "moushiai
keiko" while appealing to his senior heyamates to have a bout against him,
saying "Gotchan desu" (thank you). Although he was thrown to the ground
many times, there were also moments when he grabbed his opponents' mawashi
with both hands and powerfully pushed them out of the dohyo, as Minato
Oyakata said, "Technically he still has a long way to go, but he has the
physical strength and motivation. He will definitely become strong,"
expressing his expectations.

Born in Hull, in northeastern England, he grew up watching sumo on
television from a young age, influenced by his sumo-loving father. He was
fascinated by the diverse winning techniques and aspired to become a
rikishi. The turning point that made his dream come true was his first
visit to Japan in May 2024. After watching a sumo tournament at Ryogoku
Kokugikan, he was brought by an acquaintance of his father to the
senshuraku party of Minato beya, where he directly told the Oyakata, "I
want to become a rikishi." Despite the rule that "each heya can only have
one foreign-born rikishi," Minato highly valued Tarasenko's diligent
attitude during a summer training experience. The following June, he was
accepted as a trainee. He is a rare example of a foreign-born rikishi who
"worked his way up from junior high school."

To take the new recruit examination, the first hurdle to becoming a
rikishi, one must pass an interview conducted in Japanese by the Kyokai
Tarasenko studied diligently using flashcards and other materials, and in
April of this year, he successfully passed on his second attempt. The
following month, he passed the new recruit examination, which verifies
suitability in terms of physique and athletic ability. The Oyakata's wife,
Miura Makoto (55), recalls, "He's quite talkative, so he gradually became
able to speak Japanese."It's been a little over a year since he started
living in a foreign country and adjusting to the unfamiliar communal life.
"I'm having fun being able to do sumo," he says, and he even rides the
train by himself. His first sumo match will be in Maezumo, and Tarasenko is
determined to "do my own style of sumo, using thrusts and pushes to prevent
my opponent from getting a hold of my mawashi."

Foreign-born rikishi: "One per stable" 28 from 7 countries. According to
the Kyokai, of the 588 rikishi belonging to the Kyokai (excluding those not
ranked), 28 are foreign-born from 7 countries. At the Nagoya basho, they
account for 11 out of 42 rikishi in Makuuchi. The first foreign-born
rikishi is said to be Hiraga (highest rank: Jonidan), a second-generation
Japanese-American from Los Angeles, USA, who made his debut in 1934. After
the war, at the 1972 Nagoya tournament, Takamiyama, from Hawaii, USA,
became the first foreigner to win the yusho, and after that, rikishi from
Hawaii such as Konishiki and Akebono built an era.

Since the 2000s, Mongolian rikishi such as Asashouryuu and Hakuhou have
flourished, and rikishi from Europe, such as Kotooushuu from Bulgaria, have
also risen to prominence. From 2006 to 2015, foreign-born rikishi won the
yusho in succession, and currently, Yokozuna Houshouryuu from Mongolia and
Aonishiki from Ukraine are lighting up the dohyo. The Kyokai has, in
principle, allowed only one foreign-born rikishi per heya since 2002, and
since 2010 has made it even stricter to include those who have acquired
Japanese citizenship in the foreign rikishi quota. The Kyokai's public
relations department states that this is "to properly teach Japanese
culture and traditions during communal living in sumo heyas."




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