The Grand Sumo Tournament returns to London's Royal Albert Hall - can you still get tickets? How to watch on TV
The Grand Sumo Tournament returns to Royal Albert Halls today (October 15) - here’s how to get involved in the action.
The iconic London venue has been transformed into a temple of Sumo as the biggest stars of the Japanese sport touch down in the capital. The floor of the Royal Albert Halls has been decorated with a traditional soil and sand sumo ring (dohyō), with the concert hall also given a traditional Shinto shrine roof.
The Royal Albert Halls last hosted the event 34 years ago, when it became the first venue outside of Japan to host The Grand Sumo Tournament. Royal Albert Hall’s chief executive, James Ainscough OBE previously said: “The fact they’ve chosen to come back when they could have gone to any capital city around the world is quite an honour, particularly for us here at the Royal Albert Hall.
“To find something like Sumo, which isn’t just a sport but is a cultural moment, has a great tradition and ritual attached to it, it makes it even more interesting. We’ve had wrestling and boxing here at the Royal Albert Hall for well over 100 years, but Sumo is a completely different level and nature of sport and that’s why it’s such a fascinating thing to bring here.”
Around 40 of Japan’s top wrestlers will take part in matches across five days of the tournament, bringing tradition and ceremony to UK audiences once again. A few stars of the sporet have already been spotted on London, making the most of their time in the UK before taking to the ring.
Japanese sumo wrestler Onosato Daiki, who became the quickest opponent of the modern era to reach the yokozuna (grand champion) rank earlier this year, will be one of the stars taking to the ring, alongside fellow yokozuna Hoshoryu Tomokatsu. Onosato told Sky Sports: “I'm happy that sumo is back after so many years," Onosato said. "I hope I can show the UK fans how fantastic sumo is.”
Hoshoryu, from Mongolia, added: "Being a yokozuna has a lot of responsibility. We have to show everyone an example of what a yokozuna is - and that's very difficult. My uncle was a yokozuna - and I'm happy to follow in his footsteps. But I came here to London as a yokozuna which he didn't, so I'm even happier.”
When is The Grand Sumo Tournament?
The Grand Sumo Tournament takes place from Wednesday, October 15 until Sunday, October 19. There will be events hosted at 7.30pm Wednesday - Saturday, while Sunday’s programme of matches will begin at 2pm.
Are there still tickets available for The Grand Sumo Tournament at the Royal Albert Halls?
Most match days at The Grand Sumo Tournament are sold out. You can check for last-minute tickets on the Royal Albert Hall website.
Is The Grand Sumo Tournament on TV?
For those who have not been able to grab tickets to see the matches in person can still get in on the action. Matches will be available to watch across the world, including in the UK and Japan.