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Endoh bests Ichinojo in keiko session

A day before the release of the Hatsu basho banzuke, Sekiwake Ichinojo paid a visit to hiramaku rikishi, Endoh, for a dose of de-geiko. With both stables located outside of Tokyo proper (Endoh's Oitekaze-beya is located in Saitama Prefecture), it seemed a natural fit since Ichinojo only needed to drive 30 minutes to the stable. The two ended up sparring 14 time with Endoh coming out on top 9-5 generating headlines throughout the Japanese media.

During the practice session, Endoh was vigilant in keeping his foe away from the left outer grip as he attacked Ichinojo straight on and bested him for the most part in yotsu-zumo. After the session, Endoh looked pleased with his performance as he commented, "I didn't want to use trickery to get the wins, and so I focused on getting stronger while attacking straight up. I don't really get the chance to spar with such big rikishi, so I'm glad for the experience." When asked about Ichinojo's size, Endoh replied, "He was huge, and it goes without saying that he's heavy. Yesterday, I was watching a show on television about the worlds largest beasts, and they featured the polar bear. After watching that show, the moment I saw Ichinojo and his white skin I thought, 'Hey, I saw you on TV last night.'"

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