Photo= Yokozuna Hakuho powerfully performs the Shiranui-style Dohyo-iri (middle)

The sixty-ninth Yokozuna Hakuho performed a ring-entering ritual in the "Shiranui" style at Kamigamo Shrine, Kita Ward, Kyoto, on February 26. The Shiranui style is one of the traditional styles with physically demanding movements performed by the grand champion. Each time he powerfully stamped the ground with his feet, many spectators shouted "Yoisho" cheerfully.

The ceremony was held as a part of "Shikinen Sengu," or rebuilding a shrine once every 21 years, and associated with a traditional ritual praying for huge harvests. In 1940, the then Yokozuna Futabayama and other sumo wrestlers dedicated the ring-entering ceremony to Kamigamo Shrine. The performance this year followed Yokozuna Kakuryu's in 2015, which was done for the first time in 75 years, and Yokozuna Harumafuji's in 2016.

At around 1:30 p.m., accompanied by Ishiura as a sword bearer and Daishomaru as a herald, Yokozuna Hakuho passed through a Torii gate and proceeded in front of the "Tatesuna," or conical sand hills to which divine spirits are drawn. He majestically performed the Shiranui-style ring-entry, spreading his arms outward and then gradually lifting them, exciting the approximately 400 spectators.