Basho Simplified: A Sumo Discussion
Jun 28, 2026 · 1 hr 25 min · 10 segments
In Part 2 of our story on Chiyonofuji, we explore the remarkable career of one of sumo's greatest Yokozuna. From years of dominance at the sport's highest level to the legacy he left behind, we look…
Have you been drinking?
Surprisingly, no, not today.
Um, if, um, eventually, uh, Chiyonoyama, who was a distant cousin of Takanohana, I didn't know that before, scouted Chiyonofuji to the Kokonoe stable, as we know.
And Kitanofuji, who was a member of the stable at the time, once said of Chiyonofuji when he first joined the stable, that he was impressed by his sharp eyes.
So, and Kitanofuji saw some of his own character wi- within him, and so he started calling him Okami when he got to the heya.
Um, but-
Do we know what that means?
I think it's some loose translation to, of wolf, but the, but that didn't sound good, s- so he switched it to Urufu, which I think is a more kind of exact translation.
And Chiyonofuji, like, barely made the grade for his, uh, jonokuchi debut.
He was only 80 kilograms.
And top wrestlers like Takanohana would often train at Kokonoe before tournaments, so you kind of weren't left with any doubt that he was getting some solid development as a wrestler, like brushing shoulders with so many guys.
But by his own admiss- admission, Chiyonofuji wasn't immediately the star pupil that you might have expected him to be, especially when it comes to his attitude.
In his own words, he took it very lightly.
His goal was to get to a certain position and then maintain it.
So once he got there, he didn't have to work very hard, and he very rarely thought about what was gonna come in the future.
And had he trained a bit harder, had he maybe not taken up smoking at the same time, he probably wouldn't have stalled as much in the rankings as he did.
I mean, we've, we've cited injuries as being a reason why he stalled, but I think maybe the attitude and the smoking was probably a contributing fu- factor to that as well.
And you've got to remember-
Do you know what that sound...
Sorry.
No, no.
Go, you crack on.
I was gonna say, do you know what that sounds like to me? Um-
What?
Have you been drinking?
Surprisingly, no, not today.
Um, if, um, eventually, uh, Chiyonoyama, who was a distant cousin of Takanohana, I didn't know that before, scouted Chiyonofuji to the Kokonoe stable, as we know.
And Kitanofuji, who was a member of the stable at the time, once said of Chiyonofuji when he first joined the stable, that he was impressed by his sharp eyes.
So, and Kitanofuji saw some of his own character wi- within him, and so he started calling him Okami when he got to the heya.
Um, but-
Do we know what that means?
I think it's some loose translation to, of wolf, but the, but that didn't sound good, s- so he switched it to Urufu, which I think is a more kind of exact translation.
And Chiyonofuji, like, barely made the grade for his, uh, jonokuchi debut.
He was only 80 kilograms.
And top wrestlers like Takanohana would often train at Kokonoe before tournaments, so you kind of weren't left with any doubt that he was getting some solid development as a wrestler, like brushing shoulders with so many guys.
But by his own admiss- admission, Chiyonofuji wasn't immediately the star pupil that you might have expected him to be, especially when it comes to his attitude.
In his own words, he took it very lightly.
His goal was to get to a certain position and then maintain it.
So once he got there, he didn't have to work very hard, and he very rarely thought about what was gonna come in the future.
And had he trained a bit harder, had he maybe not taken up smoking at the same time, he probably wouldn't have stalled as much in the rankings as he did.
I mean, we've, we've cited injuries as being a reason why he stalled, but I think maybe the attitude and the smoking was probably a contributing fu- factor to that as well.
And you've got to remember-
Do you know what that sound...
Sorry.
No, no.
Go, you crack on.
I was gonna say, do you know what that sounds like to me? Um-
What?
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