It is the time of the year when many people get nervous about winning and losing. Students are cramming hard to pass entrance exams to get into the high schools and colleges of their dreams. Their families and friends watch their words so as not to demoralize them, going out of their way to avoid using phrases such as suberu (slip), ochiru (fall) and korobu (tumble). Food companies market limited editions of special snacks and sweets, using puns and special packaging to style them as "good luck" charms for exam-takers.
So when I recently received an offer from the government of the rather obscure city of Usa, Oita Prefecture, in Japan's southern Kyushu region, to visit the city and experience how kachi (victory) oriented the city is, I thought it might be worth investigating its claims.
One of the first places I was taken to upon descending at Oita Airport was Futaba no Sato ([0978] 33-5255; www.futabayama.jp/futabanosato), a museum dedicated to the late sumo champion Futabayama Sadaji (1912-1968), who was born and raised in Usa. Museum director Fumitoshi Shingai passionately recalled episode after episode surrounding the legendary wrestler, whose winning streak — 69 consecutive bouts between 1936 and 1938 — is yet to be broken to this day.