author

 
Menu
Search
 
April 01, 2025
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Twitter

@JohnGunningISJ

John Gunning
SUMO
Mar 7, 2019
Hakuho, other challengers ready to chase spring glory
The Osaka Basho, which gets underway on Sunday, is arguably the most wide-open tournament sumo has seen in years.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Feb 27, 2019
Terutsuyoshi adds flair to makuuchi division
It's late February, which means all 650 or so wrestlers of the Japan Sumo Association have decamped to Kansai and are deep in preparation for the upcoming Spring Tournament.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Feb 20, 2019
Sumo in Heisei Era defined by dominant foreign yokozuna
The upcoming Spring Grand Sumo Tournament marks the end of an era.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Feb 13, 2019
Wrestlers put aside differences to promote U.S. sumo
Kelly Gneiting is a religious fundamentalist.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Feb 6, 2019
European sumo overcomes schism to build popularity
What do Baruto, Dejima, Kotomitsuki and Goeido have in common besides being ozeki who have won championships?
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jan 30, 2019
Tamawashi put on thrilling show during run to first title
Just prior to the 2018 September Tournament, while sitting in a sweltering Ryogoku Kokugikan and watching the Yokozuna Deliberation Council practice session, I grabbed a quick selfie with a couple of rikishi standing over my right shoulder.
SUMO
Jan 27, 2019
Sumo 101: Special prizes
The Emperor's Cup isn't the only prize awarded on the final day of a sumo tournament.
SUMO
Jan 26, 2019
Sumo 101: Tickets
Sumo tickets go on sale roughly about six weeks before the start of every tournament.
Japan Times
SUMO
Jan 25, 2019
Sumo 101: Sumo's birthplace
Ryogoku is the center of the sumo world.
Japan Times
SUMO
Jan 24, 2019
Sumo 101: Koenkai
On the surface sumo generates income the same way as most other sports —through ticket sales, merchandising and sponsorships.
Japan Times
SUMO
Jan 23, 2019
Sumo 101: Trading cards
With a sport as ancient as sumo, trading cards aren't the first things that spring to mind when you think of memorabilia.
SUMO
Jan 22, 2019
Sumo 101: Keshō-mawashi
One of the first orders of business for a rikishi promoted to sumo's second-highest division (jūryō) is getting a keshō-mawashi (ceremonial apron-style belt).
SUMO
Jan 21, 2019
Sumo 101: Pre- and post-bout rituals
From once they are called to mount the dohyo, makuuchi division wrestlers have four minutes to prepare for their bout.
SUMO
Jan 20, 2019
Sumo 101: Akeni
Sekitori (wrestlers in the top two divisions) have a lot of accouterments.
Japan Times
SUMO
Jan 19, 2019
Sumo 101: Championship portraits
One of the most striking features of Ryogoku Kokugikan is the ring of giant portraits hanging from the rafters.
SUMO
Jan 18, 2019
Sumo 101: A wrestler's typical tournament day
The six annual honbasho (tournaments) are the fulcrum around which the sumo world turns.
SUMO
Jan 17, 2019
Sumo 101: Retirement ceremonies
Now that Kisenosato has retired, one of the first orders of business for him will be arranging a retirement ceremony.
SUMO
Jan 16, 2019
Sumo 101: Stable locations and layout
The majority of sumo stables are concentrated in a couple of locations not far from Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan.
Japan Times
SUMO
Jan 16, 2019
Despite injuries, Kisenosato embodied rikishi ideals
Kisenosato's retirement, while both inevitable and expected, casts a pall over the ongoing tournament.
SUMO
Jan 15, 2019
Sumo 101: Banzuke
All professional sumo wrestlers are listed on a 58x44 cm sheet of paper that is released about two weeks before the start of each tournament.
Japan's biggest beef bowl chain Sukiya to shut nearly 2,000 stores after rat and bug contamination
Zensho Holdings, operator of fast-food chain Sukiya, said it will close all of its stores in Japan, except for a small number in shopping centers, between Monday and Friday following recent contamination incidents.
Alert raised for volcano in southwestern Japan
Shinmoedake, a volcano located between Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures, in November 2019
Japan considers all possible options as Trump threatens new auto tariffs
Subaru cars awaiting export at a port in Yokohama on Thursday.
Nankai Trough earthquake could kill 298,000 people, government says
Residents participate in an evacuation drill held with West Japan Railway in Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture, in January 2024 to prepare for a Nankai Trough earthquake and a possible tsunami following the quake.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
Tokyo tech failures lean into misfortune, mistakes and missteps
Tsuyoshi Domoto in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward on March 28. As an entrepreneur, Domoto experienced plenty of setbacks but maintains a positive attitude and continues to pursue his dreams.
Who among the opposition would join the ruling coalition?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba enters his office in Tokyo on Friday.
Traveling the Three-Star Road, the tourist route made from thin air
Scenes like this snow-covered bridge leading to the village of Shirakawa-go are what make the Three-Star Road worth traveling — its name notwithstanding.
Recent spate of wildfires in Japan and South Korea linked to climate change
Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire in Andong, South Korea, on Tuesday.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone. 
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Yamagata’s Zao Onsen Ski Resort is a classic beauty
Yamagata’s Zao Onsen Ski Resort is a classic beauty

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER