Torikumi Was(Re: Reactions of Musashimaru Retirement

[EMAIL PROTECTED]  (Sue Moe) wrote in message news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...

> I never knew exactly how the match-ups were determined, 
> but I guess this means that Asashoryu knows that he will
> not be competing on Day 15 and will get an automatic win
> ("% win by default" in Kobayashi Toshiharu's posts)? Will 
> people show up if they know that the only yokozuna won't
> even be competing?
> 
> Using my baseball analogies again, is this like giving a couple
> of Cy Young pitchers the day off because one team has clinched 
> the pennant = empty seats?

Though I am a member of SABR, I don't think I can find any analogy to
baseball.
Match-ups or Torikumi are determined by the committee members assigned
by the Kyokai directors.

Other than the first two days and last day, the match-ups are
determined one day before around noon.   A gyojo announced each
match-up on the dohyo by reading a white piece of paper with the two
rikishi's names and throwing it away.

On the last day, to make the last match-ups more meaningful, they will
wait till around 5 PM or so to announce them as they want to match two
rikishis of similar records.

If there are two yokozunas, they will meet on the last day. Asashoryu
is alluding to it in his comment. Now Asashoryu will likely meet an
Ozeki, likely Chiyotaikai, the first East Ozeki on the banzuke (as the
highest ranked Ozeki).

 
> Does sumo ever have give-aways or promotions to attract fans 
> (like American baseball)?  Cap Day, Pen Day, Bobblehead Doll 
> Day (do they have any sumotori bobbleheads?), maybe a little 
> souvenir packet of shio salt with the Kyokia logo or the logo
> of that basho's arena (collect the whole set!), ... .  
> 
> (American baseball teams used to have Bat Day until a few years
> ago. Fans got into fights and beat each other with the bats so now
> they try to limit give aways to non-weaponry.)

As they are suffering from declining attendance, in the last basho
they have given away Takamisakari pictures as well as setting up a
Chanko stand (Chanko is the soup with vegetables, fish and meat that
rikishis regularly eat).

 
> As an offshoot, is the entire match schedule set ahead of time
> so that every fighter knows every opponent for all 15 days?  For
> a given basho, there is no such thing as "winner of bout number 
> 1-Day 1 faces loser of bout number 20-Day 1 on Day 2" kind
> of stuff?

No this does not happen.  However the first two days is the exception
as they are announced a couple of days before the basho starts. 
Normally a Yokozuna will face a Komusubi and East Maegashira 10 ranked
rikishi will likely face West Maegashira 10 ranked rikishi.