Ozeki Aonishiki

[Moti Dichne]

Aonishiki who will compete as a new Ozeki in Hatsu , trained at his Ajigawa beya in Tokyo's Koto Ward on the 26th. Looking ahead to the new year, he expressed his desire to be promoted to Yokozuna, saying, "My goal remains the same. I aim to reach the top." While he has not resumed doing sumo yet, he worked up a sweat doing shiko and suriashi  He will continue training until the 30th of this year, and is scheduled to start training again on January 3rd. While he is concerned about his hoarse voice, he remains calm, saying, "I'll try to get it in good condition by the time of the tournament." He entered this year's Hatsu basho in January as at Juryo and has risen to the top with astonishing speed. He appeared live on television on the 25th, drawing increasing attention. The 21-year-old rising star from Ukraine said , "It's good to be busy. I consider speaking to the media a part of my job. It was a great experience." Elementary and junior high school students from Aomori Prefecture, the hometown of his Oyakata Ajigawa (former Sekiwake Aminishiki), participated in training as well. The new Ozeki even lent them his chest in butsugari. "I hope this will be a good memory for them and that they will use this experience to do well in their tournaments," he said, cheering them on.