Mita injury progress

[Moti Dichne]

Former Juryo and current West Makushita 41 Mita (24), who has been absent from bashos since the third day of the Kyushu basho in November last year due to a serious right knee injury, may be making a comeback in Natsu . Initially, he was aiming to return in the Nagoya basho in July, but his Oyakata, Futagoyama revealed, "His recovery is very fast, and if all goes well, he will be ready for the Natsu basho. This will depend on whether the doctors and trainers give the go-ahead and whether I determine that he is okay. He even had surgery, so I won't rush him back," explaining that he will carefully consider whether he can participate in the Summer basho. He is currently undergoing rehabilitation in Fukuoka City. Futagoyama Oyakata said, "He's already working hard. He's following a menu designed by a professional trainer. He's incorporating elements of sumo, and has resumed shiko. He's incredibly motivated, so he's doing keiko in the morning, afternoon, and even into the evening. I think he'll come back with more muscle than he had before the injury," he explained, describing the rehabilitation that began at the end of February as going very smoothly. The resumption of basic exercises such as shiko was originally planned for March, so overall, the return is progressing ahead of schedule. "He's determined to persevere and do his best once again. But we absolutely won't rush him back to compete in a basho. If he can make it in time for May, wins and losses don't matter; it's okay if he has a losing record, as long as he can regain some of his sumo instincts." While showing his parental concern for avoiding a recurrence of the injury, Futagoyama Oyakata happily explained the smooth progress and expressed his hopes for the future.