England’s not a place that normally springs to mind when thinking of sumo, but over the past few decades, that green and pleasant land has produced several figures who have made significant contributions to Japan’s national sport.
The first ever European rikishi was English of course, and while Nathan Strange’s sumo career may only have lasted a few months, he helped open the door for other wrestlers from that part of the world.
Fighting under a ring name (Hidenokuni) that used the same kanji characters as those found in Great Britain, Strange was inspired to go to Japan after watching sumo on Channel 4 — a British domestic broadcaster that aired the sport for several years starting in the late 1980s.