NATORI, Miyagi Prefecture--A couple of sumo heavyweights put on a special display at a ceremony here Aug. 12 to mourn victims of the earthquake and tsunami disaster five years ago.
The two yokozuna, Hakuho and Harumafuji, enacted the "dohyo-iri" ring-entering ritual in front of a memorial statue for the victims of the towering tidal waves generated by the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, that devastated the Yuriage district.
About 1,000 local residents attended, and each time the yokozuna stamped their feet on the ground during the ritual the crowd erupted in shouts of "yoisho." The ritual is normally performed each day by yokozuna during a grand sumo tournament.
The sumo wrestlers had come to nearby Sendai to take part in a traveling sumo exhibition that started the same day.
A 69-year-old man who watched the yokozuna up-close for the first time said, "This is such a gratifying gesture for not only the victims, but also the local residents."
After the ritual, Hakuho said, "The dohyo-iri denotes the sweeping away of bad spirits. I feel it will become a good memory for me."
The Yuriage district was one of the hardest hit by the tsunami, and more than 700 residents perished. The memorial statue stands 8.4 meters high, the same height as the tsunami that hit.