Last weekend I went to see the Tachikawa Festival. They had a children’s sumo tournament which was surprisingly entertaining. Even the elementary school kids, some as young as six were able to do some pretty fancy throws. The other cool thing was that there were no ten minute salt-throwing rituals to sit through before every match. The Tachikawa festival is held on the fourth weekend in August and the sumo tournament is held on Saturday. There are mikoshi (portable shrines) on both days.
By the way, you might want to click on the photo to see it full size so you can appreciate the strangely serene look on the face of the kid who’s being manhandled out of the ring.
