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The original Kokugikan in Ry艒goku in 1909. Photo by, Unknown Author-

Top 10 Facts about Ryogoku Kukogikan National Sumo Stadium

Ryogoku is also known as Kokugikan arena or the sumo hall. This stadium is an indoor sporting arena which is located in Yokohama of Sumida one of the 23 wards of Tokyo in Japan. 

The Ryogoku is also the third building that is associated with Kokugikan in Tokyo. The stadium is mainly used for wrestling tournaments and this includes Hatsu which takes place in January and the Nutsu in May and September.

The place houses a museum about sumo which was built in 1984 before the sumo wrestling venue.  The places hold up to 13,000 people as it plays the host to the largest sumo calendar.

1. The Ryogoku Sumo Tournaments

Kensh艒 banners parade around the dohy艒 before the last bout of a tournament day. Photo by, Yves Picq-

This is a wrestling game played by two opponents. In this game, there are two ways for one to win the game. The first way is to get your opponent out of the ring and the second one is to get your opponent to fall.

 According to the rules of the game whoever steps out of the game first loses and if any part of their body other than their feet touches the ground they lose.

The game is fun to watch because the players try different technics every time. In addition weight gain is so important for sumo wrestlers.

2. Ryogoku sumo museum

The museum was opened in September 1954. It is located on the first floor of the Ryogoku kokugikan building.  In  January 1985 the museum was moved to its present location which is Kokugikan.

The main purpose of the museum was to create, preserve and keep the culture and history of the sumo wrestlers.  There are a collection of artifacts such as the banzuke which is used in the ranking of the sumo wrestlers in a particular tournament. 

In the sumo museum, there are woodblock prints and also the former sumo warrior鈥檚 ceremonial clothes which are available at this museum. This museum also functions as a research center, used for studying purposes and also for reviewing the history of Japanese culture.

3. The famous sumo statue

The statue of the renowned wrestlers is lining the street of Kokugikan stadium.  At this place, a lot of people take pictures doing the sumo wrestler poses while others compare the size of their hands with that of the sumo wrestler.

Hence there is a sumo鈥檚 hand imprint on the base statues.  Isn鈥檛 that the coolest thing to do? In addition to this, also the riders believed that the statue scared their horses during the individual show jumping. The statue was always swapped with the cherry tree before the start competition

4. The sumo stables(heya)

Kokugikan and (Ry艒goku Bridge) in 1935.Photo by ,Unknown Author-

Sumo stables are known as heya in Japanese. They pronounce it as sumo _beya. Sumo stables are the organizations where the sumo wrestlers train and live.

All professional wrestlers or trainees belong to one of the five sumo groups. In the year 2019, it was confirmed that there were 45 heyas, which vary in size.

 The largest has 30 and the smallest 2. In most stables, there is a network of scouts who are either former wrestlers, friends, head coaches, or even supporters who look out for any potential or promising wrestler during the local sumo.also called the judo competition. 

The age of 15 or 16 is when most of the wrestlers are recruited that is straight from junior high school. A wrestler is required to stay in the same heya that is stable till the end of their career which means there is no transfer.

Though there are exceptions in some cases the wrestler is allowed to transfer if their coach has been transferred to another heya, if their coach has died or if the stable has been shut down but only in the same ichimon that is a group.

Heya or stable are set out or formed by the Okayama that is the elders of the Japanese sumo association. Every stable that is founded is always named after its founder.

The founder of the stable is supposed to take responsibility for the heya. At the age of  65 years, the Okayata retires and the heya is passed to the next elder and the name of the stables is generally changed after the new ownership.

According to stable rules wrestlers of the same stable are not allowed to fight each other unless in playoffs this is because they are assumed to be brothers.

 Most of the heyas allow visitors to watch their morning training which they call Keiko free of charge through the rules vary from stable to stable.

5. The Ryogoku most popular sumo hall

The Kokugikan (sumo hall) at Ryogoku, Tokyo. Edo-Museum in the Background. (Western view, coordinates 35掳41’49″N, 139掳47’36″E). Photo by, Steve Cadman –

Sumo wrestling is the most known sport in Japan though a lot of people around the country have not experienced the fun of watching the wrestlers fight since they are always televised.

Experiencing the powerful energy of the wrestlers clashing in person is the most amazing thing therefore if you want to experience it Ryogoku sumo hall is the place. Sumo hall is a structural building that is considered to be the holy center of sumo wrestlers the place itself can accommodate up to 11000 seated.

The arena or this hall is not only used by the sumo wrestlers but also other events take place there such as yoga festivals, concerts, and also for Olympic boxing. The arena has a traditional boxing style when it comes to seating this is because all the spectators are not allowed to wear shoes that is they sit on cushions instead of chairs.

6. The presence of Edo-Tokyo museum

 This is located just opposite the sumo hall. Its main purpose is to preserve and showcase the cultural legacy and also the heritage of Edo which is said to be the former name of modern-day Tokyo.

In 1993 the museum was renovated after a traditional rise storehouse (Kura) which was so popular during the Edo period which was back in (1603_1868) that had led to the boasting of the Edo castle the museum.

The museum contains an expensive collection of replica figures, buildings, dioramas a library and so many more. The presences of these items make it a place that brings life or other meaning to the rich history of Edo throughout the centuries.

Furthermore edo museum has been the most visited place  both locally and internationally

Therefore we can conclude by saying that Ryogoku is not a place for having fun but also a place where learners can research more about the Japanese sumo wrestlers鈥� culture. The place is more reserved and hence any person who is interested in knowing or learning more about sumo and then