Sumos chow down, throw down in Chinatown during area tour

OAKLAND — They came, they lumbered, they tossed Oakland City Councilmember Henry Chang around willy-nilly, like so many orcs juggling a wee hobbit. No overhead twirling, though. Hey, Chang has his limits.

"You can pick me up, but don't throw me down!" a grinning Chang pleaded Friday in Oakland's Chinatown, where the three big, thong-clad, goose-bumped sumos (it was really cold out there) wandered around, promoting ticket sales for the upcoming World Sumo Challenge at the Oakland Arena on June 17.

Earlier in the day, the three Mitsubishi Monteros — sorry, sumos — had been in Japan- towns in San Jose and San Francisco. Their itineraries seemed to indicate they would tour the areas and end up at a restaurant every time. "They all did a lot of eating today," said Jennifer Cooke, Oakland Arena marketing manager who was taking the big boys on their Bay Area tour.

Oakland doesn't really have aJapantown, so Chinatown filled the bill. Besides, where do the sumo wrestlers go? All together now: Anywhere they want.

People in Chinatown were thrilled. Carl Chan, president of the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, said it was "quite an honor" to have them here. "And it will be quite a surprise for shopkeepers when we visit some stores," Chan said. "I hope we can squeeze in the door."

Indeed, the sumos were thronged and practically had to oshi-dashi (a traditional sumo "push" move) people out of the way.

Just don't get fresh, or they'll tzuki-dashi (a traditional sumo "slap" move) you. That was only for those who ogled their mawashis.

Now, it's not every fellow who can carry off a mawashi.

To wear the traditional loin cover, it helps to be, shall we say, ample. Tree trunks for legs are good. Hamhocks for arms. And the confidence to wear a big, thick thong, little rubber sandals and nothing else.

"That's called a mawashi they're wearing, eh? I'd call that more of a ma-OUCH-i," said one male observer in the crowd gathered at the Pacific Renaissance Plaza. "That can't be very comfortable."

All three sumos have numerous medals in the sport. Levan Altunashvilli — even his name is heavy — is 6 feet tall and 350 pounds. He was born in Tbilisi, Georgia, but now lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., with his wife and two kids. He's also an international arm wrestling champion, so we avoided shaking his hand.

Kamikiiwa, also known as Wayne Vierra Jr., is 6-foot-1 and 330 pounds. He lives in Hawaii with his wife and two kids. He has been a sumo since he was 15. Kaleo Suzuki was born in Hawaii but now lives in Japan, and is semi-retired from the sport.

Despite their evident heft, these three are mid-size sumos. A sumo can weigh anywhere from a puny 200 pounds to a beefy 600. "I'm a beautiful 245," Kaleo said. "When I was wrestling at my full weight, I was 345." He puffed up his chest just a bit.

So Kaleo, with so much pressure in Hollywood for actresses to stay thin, is there a burden on sumos to stay fat? To binge and then binge some more?

"No," Kaleo said. "It's true they say bigger is better. But if your body can't handle the weight, you shouldn't force yourself."

The sport of sumo wrestling has gotten really big internationally, but interest has dwindled in Japan. "The kids are all playing baseball there," Kamikiiwa said.

"The mainland is not too educated about sumo," Kaleo added. "People make fun, but you can turn that into energy and get people to know about the sport. They mostly think it's just big fat guys banging into each other."

At which point, two big fat guys banged into each other.

In a brief demonstration, Kaleo and Kamikiiwa squatted on the ground, facing each other about five feet apart. Fists on the ground. Eyes locked. Then they rose, leaned in toward each other and slammed chests with a big smacking sound, like when you belly-flop in a swimming pool.

The crowd applauded and cheered. "They're really amazing athletes, once you learn more about the sport," Cooke said. "Wayne can even do the splits."

So sumos, what's your favorite thing to eat?

"Everything," they all eagerly growled in unison, which made a small reporter a little nervous. After all, they hadn't eaten in, like, minutes.

"It's better to ask us what we don't eat," Levan said.

The event is part of the World Sumo League Mega Tour and will feature many of the world's best sumo wrestlers from Japan, Mongolia, Poland, Germany, Bulgaria, the United States, Norway, Great Britain, the Republic of Georgia, The Netherlands, Ukraine and Hungary.

For ticket information, visit http://www.ticketmaster.com.