JSA forgoes appeal, Sokokurai to return in July

JSA forgoes appeal, Sokokurai to return in July

TOKYO, Japan - Sumo wrestler Sokokurai (L) shakes hands with his stablemaster Arashio in Tokyo on April 3, 2013, after the Japan Sumo Association decided not to appeal a court ruling that orders the body to reinstate Sokokurai, whom the body had expelled in 2011 over match fixing. Sokokurai will make his comeback at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament in July as a No. 15 maegashira.

Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

SHIME, Japan - Chinese sumo wrestler Sokokurai of the Arashio stable is held aloft by fellow wrestlers near the stable's temporary lodging in Shime, Fukuoka Prefecture, on Dec. 2, 2009. The 25-year-old, who hails from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is the second Chinese wrestler to fight in the second-tier juryo division, following Osaka-born Chinese national Kiyonohana in the 1970s.

Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

ONOJO, Japan - Chinese sumo wrestler Sokokurai of the Arashio stable smiles during a news conference in Shime, Fukuoka Prefecture, on Dec. 2, 2009. After posting a 5-2 mark in the third-tier makushita division of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament, the 25-year-old became the second Chinese wrestler to fight in the second-tier juryo division, following Osaka-born Chinese national Kiyonohana in the 1970s.

Ex-sumo wrestler from Inner Mongolia

Ex-sumo wrestler from Inner Mongolia

Sumo stablemaster Arashio, who is from China's Inner Mongolia, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Oct. 13, 2020. The former sumo wrestler whose ring name was Sokokurai criticized the Chinese government after it started requiring schools in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to use textbooks in Chinese from the start of the school year in September instead of Mongolian-language textbooks.

Ex-sumo wrestler from Inner Mongolia

Ex-sumo wrestler from Inner Mongolia

Sumo stablemaster Arashio, who is from China's Inner Mongolia, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Oct. 13, 2020. The former sumo wrestler whose ring name was Sokokurai criticized the Chinese government after it started requiring schools in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to use textbooks in Chinese from the start of the school year in September instead of Mongolian-language textbooks.

(CORRECTED) Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

(CORRECTED) Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

SHIME, Japan - Chinese sumo wrestler Sokokurai of the Arashio stable is held aloft by fellow wrestlers near the stable's temporary lodging in Shime, Fukuoka Prefecture, on Dec. 2, 2009. The 25-year-old, who hails from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is the second Chinese wrestler to fight in the second-tier juryo division, following Osaka-born Chinese national Kiyonohana in the 1970s. (Kyodo)

(CORRECTED) Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

(CORRECTED) Sokokurai becomes 2nd Chinese sumo wrestler

ONOJO, Japan - Chinese sumo wrestler Sokokurai smiles during a news conference at the Arashio stable in Fukuoka Prefecture on Dec. 2, 2009. After posting a 5-2 mark in the third-tier makushita division of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament, the 25-year old became the second Chinese wrestler to fight in the second-tier juryo division, following Osaka-born Chinese national Kiyonohana in the 1970s. (Kyodo)