Sumo JT on Yokozuna prospect Aonishiki showing calm well beyond his age

Aonishiki is 21 years old. Twenty-one.
It's a fact that is hard to avoid coming back to, as the Ukrainian native not only continues to shatter records inside the ring, but also comports himself with maturity and poise far beyond his years outside of it. The latest example of that came on Wednesday, when Ajigawa stable opened its doors to a group of international journalists. Ostensibly there to watch training and interview sumo's newest superstar about his meteoric rise to ōzeki , and possible promotion to yokozuna, it was clear that Aonishiki's back story, rather than his sumo exploits, was the main attraction for most.

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One eye-opening reply came when he was quizzed about what has been the most challenging part of his journey so far. The Vinnytsia native replied, "When I arrived in Japan, I didn't speak the language, so when I joined sumo, learning Japanese, rather than the training, was the hardest point." That was a stunning answer, given that Aonishiki's mastery of the language arguably outstrips even his rapid rise to dominance inside the ring. Former yokozuna Kakuryu is perhaps the only other foreign-born rikishi with the ability to express themselves so eloquently in Japanese, and even hwasn't't as fluent as quickly as Aonishiki.

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