The Compliance committee and mainstream media may have filed the Shikihide scandal under "Move along, nothing to see here", but the story keeps rolling. The problem is - only on sensationalist rags, and outraged twitter accounts.
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#ShikihidoiOkamisan
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#ShikihidoiOkamisan
More stories leak. There is even this screenshot from the heya's LINE group, where the Okamisan informs that to protect against privacy violations, phone calls on the heya's line will be recorded.
(Maybe I'm not parsing this right, it sounds like a contradiction in terms)
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(Maybe I'm not parsing this right, it sounds like a contradiction in terms)
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There is also a story (grain of salt!) about a supporter party, in which a supporter's gift was misplaced, and the Okamisan had everybody present - rikishi, parents and tanimachi - strip searched, until it turned out the gift was just carelessly set aside.
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They quote a rikishi from another heya who relates that he heard the Shikihide rikishi are allowed to practice only 3 times a week, and that during honbasho one of them complained to him that he didn't get any practice at all.
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They quote Shikihide rikishi who say that contrary to what was published in mainstream media, the trouble didn't start this year, with oyakata's illness and COVID, but as early as 2015.
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The rikishi have been planning the getaway for a while - after the compliance committee has been set up following the Harumafuji incident. And the recent story of Nakagawa beya also lent them courage.
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And they are not satisfied with the way things turned out. Some of them honestly want to improve their sumo and not be part of "the weakest heya". They say they don't mind if it's under another oyakata and if they are torn from their friends.
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Personally, I predict this will end in a wave of intai. The question is when, as currently it's not a good time to go out and look for a job as an unskilled laborer.
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