IFS and sumó
AmateurSumo.com

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Contact IFS by email in Japanese.

A brief introduction to the International Sumó Federation and to the sport of sumó

Sumó is a one-to-one sport like judo or wrestling. The rules are easy to understand and the outcome of a bout is clear. As a result, the sport is rapidly gaining in popularity throughout the world.

Sumó traces its origins back to ancient times in which references can be found in the historical chronicles of countries such as China and India and in the wall paintings of ancient Greece. According to historians, the highest accolades of the ancient Olympiads were reserved for the winners of a contest similar to sumó. Sumó would thus appear to have been a well-loved sport throughout the known world in ancient times.

Sumó first makes its appearance in Japanese mythology as a kind of "trial of strength." Gradually sumó came to be practiced throughout Japan as a dedicatory form of Shinto ritual and in so doing achieved its full expression as an event closely bound up with the national spirit of Japan.

Sumó is thought to be typically Japanese but similar forms of competition are found in countries of the former Soviet Union and in North and South Korea.

Thanks to our repeated efforts to generate further interest in sumó, the sport has came to be known throughout the world and in turn is rapidly gaining a much higher
international profile.

In 1980, the Japan Sumó Federation held the First All-Japan Amateur Sumó Championships in which we invited teams from overseas to compete. As a result, this was the first international amateur sumó tournament to be held anywhere in the world.

From that point on, the number of foreign teams participating in this event increased each year and, in July 1983, Japan and Brazil established what was is be the forerunner of the present-day International Sumó Federation (IFS).

As the number of countries competing increased, in 1985 we changed the name of the above event to the International Sumó Championships. In 1989, we held the 10th Anniversary of the International Sumó Championships in Sao Paolo.

On December 10, 1992, to mark the establishment of the IFS, we changed the name of the championships once again, this time to the World Sumó Championships. The first World Sumó Championships to be held under the aegis of the IFS was attended by a total of 73 competitors from 25 different countries and territories. Thereafter, the
World Sumó Championships have been held annually and the number of participating countries has continued to rise.

The World Sumó Championships are made up of an individual competition and a country- or territory-based team competition. Each competition is divided into three specific weight divisions and also an unlimited weight division: the lightweight, middleweight, heavyweight and open weight divisions.

In 1995, five Continental Sumó Federations were set up. each of these federations now holds its own Continental Sumó Federation Championship in which individual competitors and national teams play off for the right to participate in the World Sumó Championships.

The IFS currently has 84 member countries and territories all of which are keen to see sumó recognized as an Olympic event.

The IFS is doing its best to encourage the more widespread involvement of young
people in the sport by, for example, welcoming foreign competitors into training camps run by Japanese university sumó clubs under the aegis of the Japanese National Sumó Federation and by sending competitors and advisors to major tournaments held outside Japan.