North American sumo champion Hideo Su'a and runner-up Sione Pulotu fighting for the Newport Black Ships championship. They're fresh from the North American Championships.
Newport was really really hot today and sitting out in the sun watching the sumo demo and matches was pretty grueling. By the late afternoon I noticed Su'a was developing a sunburn. These guys are well-matched and have come in 1 and 2 in several competitions. Su'a is the first American to go to a Japanese college on a sumo scholarship. He was elected captain in his senior year. Too bad he'll be too old when sumo gets to be an Olympic sport in 2008.
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I rooted for Sione in this match because Su'a was already leading in wins and I wanted more matches. As you can see in the photo, Sione won just getting Su'a's foot outside the ring. Sumo is a game of quickness and strategy as much as power. You look for the opponent's center of gravity and get him off it. Little guys can beat big guys. Su'a is considerably lighter than Pulotu, yet he ended up today's winner. Not that he's a little guy, but he is the smaller of the two. Size is not everything.
After taking in all the sumo there was to see today, we grabbed a light supper and went to the Festival of Drums at the Tennis Hall of Fame. This year's festival featured four taiko groups: New England Taiko, Burlington Taiko, Soh Daiko, and San Francisco Taiko Dojo. Taiko drumming is part music and part performance art. Watching the drummers dance and do martial arts moves along with energetic drumming is amazing. Some of the drummers strike the drum, do a somersault and strike the drum again without losing the beat.
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