Uchidate sits on sumo council

TOKYO, Japan - Makiko Uchidate (C, background), a playwright, observes sumo wrestlers as they go through their paces Dec. 25 at the Sumo Stadium in Ryogoku, Tokyo, in her capacity as a member of the Yokozuna Deliberation Council. Uchidate is the first woman to serve on the council, which oversees the promotion of wrestlers to sumo's highest rank.