Sumo: JSA to take action if Asashoryu attacked man: chief

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TOKYO, Feb. 1 Kyodo -
Japan Sumo Association Chairman Musashigawa said Monday the governing body has
to penalize Asashoryu if recent media reports about his drunken rampage were
true.
''We need to know what really happened,'' Musashigawa said. ''If Asashoryu did
attack the man, we have to impose a strict punishment on him.''
The Mongolian-born grand champion was reported by weekly magazine ''Friday''
last week to have been ''wrecked'' before slugging an acquaintance, who was
originally believed to have been his manager, outside a nightclub in downtown
Nishiazabu in the early hours of Jan. 16.
Another tabloid-style magazine, Shukan Shincho, then reported that the man
attacked in the incident and left with injuries that included a broken nose,
was actually in charge of a dance club where the yokozuna had been drinking.
Asashoryu's stablemaster Takasago said last weekend that the yokozuna and the
man have reached an amicable settlement and he was ready to submit written
statements of verification to the JSA board.
Takasago, however, did not show up at Monday's board meeting.
''You contradict yourself if you lie to cover up a lie. We just can't trust
Takasago on this issue,'' said Jun Yoshino, an outside member of the board and
a former police executive.
Earlier in the day, a closely watched JSA board election, the first of its kind
in eight years, saw reform-minded former grand champion Takanohana join the
10-man decision-making body.
The new board immediately held a meeting and decided to set up a committee to
tackle the Asashoryu issue.
Asashoryu ranks third on the all-time list with 25 Emperor's Cup titles,
including one at the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament that ended Jan. 24.
Out of the ring, the 29-year-old has a history of being a trouble maker.
In a 2003 bout, Asashoryu was disqualified for yanking the hair of compatriot
Kyokushuzan, a no-no in sumo. He picked a fight with Kyokushuzan in the locker
room afterward and was later accused of smashing the wing mirror of the same
wrestler's car.
In 2007, Asashoryu received a two-tournament ban after it was revealed that he
had played hooky from a summer regional tour by feigning the degree of his
injuries while later taking part in a soccer match in his native Mongolia.
''The JSA feels responsible for a series of scandals involving sumo wrestlers.
The elected board members will work hard to prevent any recurrence of such an
incident,'' Musashigawa said.
Japan's ancient sport has been rocked to the core by numerous scandals in
recent years, including drug offenses, a death threat and a six-year prison
term meted out to a stablemaster over physical abuse leading to the death of a
17-year-old wrestler.
==Kyodo