Nadeshiko Japan were hailed after their overwhelming 5-2 defeat in the Women's World Cup final by the elites of Japan's most traditional sport on Monday.
Training for the upcoming Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, yokozuna Hakuho lauded the women's national team, which fell short of retaining the World Cup title it won in 2011 in the final against the United States, the new champion on Sunday in Vancouver.
"Amidst that pressure, they did well to battle into the final. Rather than, 'Too bad,' I want to say they fought hard," said Hakuho, whose 34 grand tournament championships are the most in history.
Hakuho, who has had one seven-tournament winning streak and another of six in his historic career, said the difficulty to repeat as champion is not something to sniff at.
"It's something that only those who have been there can know," he said.
His longtime rival and sometime nemesis, ozeki Kisenosato, perhaps knows even more what it means to be unable to deliver with the weight of a nation's expectations on your shoulders. The ozeki has been put forward as a candidate for promotion to sumo's highest rank of yokozuna. Seeking to become the sport's only Japanese yokozuna, Kisenosato has failed to rise to the challenge both times.
"I understand all too well how Nadeshiko players must feel," he said.