Inflation-hit sumo wrestlers demand pay raise

TOKYO —

Petroleum from the Middle East is by no means the only oil whose prices have risen sharply. Take “bintsuke-abura,” the oil used by sumo wrestlers to shape their topknots. A 15-gram container, Nikkan Sports (July 2) reports, has risen from 685 to 735 yen.

And that’s just the beginning. Such food items as cheese, margarine, cooking oils, mayonnaise, eggs and others, consumed in vast quantities by the sumo stables, have risen in price from between 18 to 27%. And at about 180 yen per liter, gasoline for the cars used to drive upper-ranked grapplers to and from their matches is also at an all-time high.

“We want a raise,” thundered Mongolian yokozuna (grand champion) Asashoryu, while his colleagues, Japanese and foreign alike, nodded in agreement. The Rikishi-kai (wrestlers’ association), which convened July 1 at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium ahead of the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, which begins July 13, says it needs more money to enable the sumotori to support themselves in the manner in which they are accustomed.

The Japan Sumo Association last raised wrestlers’ salaries by 3% in 2001.

The Rikishi-kai is composed of 70 grapplers in professional sumo’s two top divisions. The remaining 589 in four lower divisions do not draw salaries.

“Despite higher prices for gasoline and other costs, our salaries have remained the same. We’d like to have them upped by about 10%,” Asashoryu was quoted as saying. He added the Japan Sumo Association should also foot the bill for transportation to the tournaments outside Tokyo, which is currently borne by the wrestlers’ stables.

As sumo’s top money-earner, Asashoryu’s annual salary and allowances from the Association are estimated at 60 million yen. According to Nikkan Sports, a grand champion receives a combined base monthly salary plus allowance totalling 2.82 million yen, as opposed to 2.34 million for an ozeki (champion), 1.3 million for a grappler in the top-ranked Makunouchi division and 1.03 million yen for a member of the second-tier Juryo division. The Sumo Association also pays a small special allowance to top-ranked “sanyaku” wrestlers for each of the six annual tournaments.

Top-division wrestlers have other sources of income, including prizes from winning matches, gifts from supporters, earnings from commercial endorsements and so on.

The Sumo Association appears to be on a sound financial footing. It reported a profit of 1.05 billion yen on its operations in 2007, despite several major scandals, including the suspension of Asashoryu for malingering, accusations of bout-fixing by a weekly magazine and attempts to cover up the death of a 17-year-old apprentice wrestler due to mistreatment.

More recently, the association came under fire after revelations it had accumulated 7.3 billion yen in deferred assets—an amount considered excessive for a “zaidan hojin,” a sports foundation sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

Latest 15 of 23 Total Comments Show All

chardk1 at 02:01 PM JST - 3rd July

Asashoryu makes the news for the wrong reasons a lot, but this is not his fault. As the yokozuna with longest tenure he has to speak up for the wrestlers.
Loki520 at 06:02 PM JST - 3rd July

Here's the most telling statement... "...in the manner in which they are accustomed"

Hey bub... The ENTIRE world is changing the manner in which they live due to prices, etc... What makes your pork-pushing tush any different from anyone else? What, EXACTLY, do you bring to the economic table of the "everyman" except entertainment? Which, I feel the need to tell you, is usually one of the FIRST things to ger reduced/eliminated by those making adjustments to their finances.
Bovinus at 07:40 PM JST - 3rd July

Here, here Loki520. Everyone is facing rising costs. Just buy a smaller car (or walk), use your air con less etc etc.

If sumo wrestlers get a pay rise that means ticket prices will rise and normal people pay. That's yet another cost for the average guy in the street.

We have an economic system based on oil and the oil is running out. We can't expect to be given handouts based on this for the obvious reason that handouts come from somewhere, namely ourselves, and our tax money. Everyone getting a payrise or tax break is meaningless.
Badsey at 08:55 PM JST - 3rd July

we don't want a sumo sized riot, but it would make for a great video game.

As anyone can clearly see these people are on hard times (food-wise). Either Tokyo gets a few more buffets, raises the 100Y menu offerings or Sumo will need to move to the U.S. (where they will blend in quite nicely but put the all-you-can-eats put of business)

I say just pay them = easiest choice and I don't like hungry angry fat people.
lipscombe at 12:04 AM JST - 4th July

I knew they were greedy sods but thought it was just for the grub. even the wage for a low ranking sumo, 1 million a month, is 3 times more than many whole families have to live on.

support themselves in the manner in which they are accustomed

no, try a little taste of reality instead.
Tatanka at 07:04 AM JST - 4th July

I'm not sure Sumo wrestler's salary is that high considering you have to destroy your health to get there. Diabetes and pulmonary afflictions waiting of you upon retirement. I read that Konishiki had a gastric bypass to lose weight...
Zen_Builder at 07:20 AM JST - 4th July

I agree don't think that they are all that well paid, compared to other pro-athletes.

Also they retire earlier than other pro-athletes.
jinjapan at 09:44 AM JST - 4th July

compare the rest of the world's professional athletes or entertainers, as some have suggested, & you will see they are well underpaid. they have 6- 15 day tournaments a year. not to mention all the exhibitions throughout the year & strenuous workouts daily. only a 3% pay increase in 7 years? come on!! this guys may look fat & lazy, but they work their butts off. when sumo is in your area next time, go to a stable & watch a practice session. then see how you feel.
hakujinsensei at 10:40 AM JST - 4th July

Well, those boys chose their careers, they can always change if they feel underpaid. The natural economic pressures will solve the situation. The stable owners will exert as much pressure as possible to keep their costs down, however their fat wallets are filled on the back of the rikishi so in the end, they will cave.
lipscombe at 11:08 AM JST - 4th July

only a 3% pay increase in 7 years? since a very large percentage of Japan have been taking pay cuts over the past 7 years they should think themselves very lucky
realist at 10:53 PM JST - 5th July

yeah - it must cost them a small fortune every day to fill those obese stomachs . .
akaguma at 07:25 AM JST - 7th July

a boy's gotta have his chanko nabe and eat it
RepublicofTexas at 10:35 PM JST - 7th July

Maybe before demanding a pay raise they should show the public they deserve one by cracking down on the cruel behavior that goes on in the stables (like that one guy being beaten to death a while ago).
telecasterplayer at 08:53 AM JST - 13th July

Terebiko,

I don't think he is saying "I" want a raise. He is saying "we" want a raise. He doesn't need the extra money, but lower wrestlers, and perhaps sumo stables, do. I'm sure the Japanese press is making him out to be money hungry, recently they always put him in a bad light. I see it differently. He is the ranking Yokozuna, so he is trying to use his position to help the other guys.

EXACTLY. It's incumbent on the guys at the top to use their influence to help those down the line. People come to the matches to see the Sumo-Ka, no one pays to see a bunch of accountants who wouldn't have those jobs without the athletes.
okapake at 04:39 AM JST - 14th July

2.8M yen is 26K USD for the yokozunas. 1M yen is 9.5K USD for the Juryo division. This is per month according to the article. That's big money! Do they contribute to their stables upkeep? Or are the stables subsidized by the sumo association. And the 1B yen of the profit of the association last year is kinda crazy!