The Changing Face of Sumo Wrestling
James Whitlow Delano / Redux for TIME
Souvenir Stand
The new face of sumo is reflected on bath towels for sale at the Nagoyo Basho, in July. In addition to the Estonian Baruto, the towels display two highly ranked wrestlers from Mongolia. "The foreigners are trying very hard, so they
deserve to win," says Koji Mizuno, a 67-year-old Nagoya spectator. "But as a Japanese watching my national sport, I do feel a bit forlorn that there aren't more strong Japanese wrestlers."
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