Kotozakura
Moti Dichne
Ozeki Kotozakura who withdrew on day 14 from Aki due to a right knee injury and also missed the London Koen in October, has decided to enter the Kyushu basho. His Oyakata and father Sadogatake revealed this today after keiko at his heya lodgings in in Fukuoka City, the day before the torikumi-making shinpan meeting to decide the bouts for the first and second days. He trained wearing a large support on his right knee in addition to his old left knee injury. He worked up a sweat by lending his chest to the younger rikishi. When asked if he would be participating, Sadogatake replied, "As you can see." When asked, "Does that mean he will be participating?" he immediately replied, "Yes." Kotozakura injured his right knee during his bout against Yokozuna Houshouryuu on the 13th day of the last basho. On the 14th day, he submitted a medical certificate to the Kyokai stating that he had "damaged the medial collateral ligament in his right knee and was expected to be fully recovered in three weeks," and was forced to withdraw from the tournament. He then underwent treatment ( regenerative medicine ) and is now able to compete. Sadogatake Oyakata spoke on his behalf, saying, "The regenerative medicine was a perfect fit. After two sessions it felt like the ligament was back to normal." He continued, "Personally, I think he will be ready in time," and believed he would not only be able to compete, but would also perform as befitting an Ozeki.
After keiko Kotozakura also spoke to the press, jokingly saying, "I'm not participating (laughing)," and looked cheerful He didn't explicitly declare his participation, saying, "Until you see the match-ups announced tomorrow (the 7th), you won't know what's going to happen. You'll have to wait until tomorrow. I haven't said whether I'll participate or not. I'll leave that to your imagination." However, his words and actions made it clear that he had decided to participate. Until the day before, the 5th, he had been doing sumo every day, honing his sumo instincts. Last year, at the Kyushu tournament, he achieved his long-awaited first yusho with a record of 14 wins and 1 loss. While this tournament is considered lucky for him, he remains calm, saying, "I feel the same no matter where I'm at," and isn't particularly conscious of it or relying on good fortune. He maintained a composed expression, as if he was prepared to participate, saying, "I'll just do what I can."