Ryogoku Sumo Town

Ryogoku Sumo Town

Ryogoku in Tokyo, Japan is considered as the sumo town of the metropolis. A sumo territory, it is filled with a large number of sumo stables, sumo stadiums and numerous sites related to sumo. Because of this reason it is also known as Ryogoku-Sumo Town.

Ryogoku has been the center for sumo wrestling and other sumo related activities for nearly 300 years. During the beginning of the 20th century, sumo matches were usually held in the numerous shrines and temples of the country. The first proper hall for sumo tournaments was constructed over here in the year 1909.

Ryogoku is home to the Kokugikan. This is a sumo stadium, which has been a venue for a large number of sumo tournaments since 1985. It is in fact, the fourth permanent sumo stadium in Tokyo. Located near the Ryogoku Station, it can accommodate nearly 10000 people. The stadium plays host to three annual sumo tournaments of the country. The matches are held in the months of January, May and September. Tickets can be purchased in advance from travel agents or from the stadium counter.

When coming for a visit to this place, you can pay a visit to the Sumo Museum or Sumo Hakubutsukan. It is located near the sumo stadium and houses a number of articles related to sumo. The museum is a long narrow room, which one can enter either from the courtyard or from the arena. The museum is filled with costumes of sumo referees, woodblock prints, paintings, sculptures, statues, photographs, ancient memorabilia and other articles. One can get to see the kesho-mawashi. These are ornamental bells, which are worn during the ring-entering ceremony. Admission to this museum is free. The museums is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. However, during the tournaments, only those with tickets are allowed to enter the museum.

Another attraction of the Ryogoku-sumo Town is the sumo stables. The Sumo Stables or Sumo Beya, in Japanese, is a training school for sumo wrestlers. It is like a boarding school where the sumo wrestlers stay and get trained. There are a total of 54 such schools in Tokyo, with the majority being located in Ryogoku. The training session starts from the early hours of the morning. Visitors can come over here and see the wrestlers getting trained for the tournaments. However, many of the sumo-beya's do not appreciate visitors.

A visit to Ryogoku also implies a visit to the numerous chanko restaurants. Chanko nabe is the staple diet of the summon wrestlers. The dish is made of vegetables, seafood or meat. It is a hot pot dish, which one can try out in the restaurants found in this town. Apart from these, the tourist can take a look at the Monument in Ekoin Temple, where served as a venue for a large number of sumo tournaments.

Traveling to Ryogoku-sumo Town is easy. One simply has to take the JR Sobu Line or the Subway Oedo Line and come directly to Ryogoku Station. Once over here, you can walk around the town and take a look at the numerous attractions found in this place.

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