"The swish of feet on clay and sand has a soothing, rhythmic feel, as wrestlers at a sumo stable in Tokyo propel themselves across the ring, their bodies low, eyes fixed on an imaginary foe. But by the time their morning training ends an hour later, all but one of the rikishi are bathed in sweat, gulping lungfuls of air, their strength waning with every shove."
"It's not good to be too fixated on [promotion] But I wake up every day wanting to get stronger, to climb another rank higher, he told international media, including the Guardian, after a morning training session at the Ajigawa stable in the capital's eastern suburbs this week. Wanting to become stronger and to attain a higher rank is my motivation. The simple fact is that you can't progress without a struggle."
Danylo Yavhusishyn, known in sumo as Aonishiki, arrived in Japan four years ago as a teenage refugee from the war in Ukraine unable to speak Japanese and separated from his family. He trains at Ajigawa stable in Tokyo, guiding stablemates and performing morning rituals at a miniature Shinto shrine. He reached ozeki, the sport's second-highest rank, in record time after debuting in July 2023 despite weighing 140kg, light by sumo standards. He won his second consecutive tournament this month and is on course to become the first European yokozuna. He emphasizes daily hard work, strength, and struggle as motivation.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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