tokyo 2020 olympics

Sumo scare? Riders say horses might be spooked by statue

20 Comments
By JAKE SEINER

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No. I studied equestrianism in college and learned how sensitive horses are. Almost anything can set them off: put their food bowl in a different position and they'll panic. And what the hell does sumo have to do with equestrianism?

11 ( +13 / -2 )

@ Laguna - I have no clue, but I also don’t have a clue about most things going on with the Olympics or the absent minded government.

6 ( +8 / -2 )

"And what the hell does sumo have to do with equestrianism?"

The host city is in Japan? Sumo is a Japanese sport. So when the viewers see the picture they know its in Japan. Does it make sense. Look at the other the picture. Do you see the Geisha rail? It is Japanese right?

-10 ( +2 / -12 )

So many wonderful things about JAPAN! - This is not one of them.

Why turn the already challenging sport of humans athletically working in tandem with such powerful yet beautiful animals into a “side-show circus”?

7 ( +8 / -1 )

‘Lost in Translation’? Perhaps someone said Japanese equestrian course rails & ‘bunker’ and Organizers heard “bunka” ? - These ‘stereotypical’ caricatures & tropes of Japanese ‘culture’ look like they may be the unused ‘leftovers’ from the diminished Opening Ceremonies?

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Sorry, @crashcourse 9:18am but most people across the world know for, at least, the last 8 years that Tokyo’s Olympic Games are being staged in the ‘host city’ of Tokyo, JAPAN.

- “The host city is in Japan? Sumo is a Japanese sport. So when the viewers see the picture they know its in Japan. Do you see the Geisha rail? It is Japanese right?

3 ( +3 / -0 )

“*Does it make sense? Look at the other the picture.*” - You’re right *@Laguna 8:43am: **“what the hell does sumo have to do with equestrianism?*"

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Horses are evolutionary-designed herbivores, with their large eyes aside their heads to always be looking for potential, carnivorous predators, their eyes affixed toward the front of their heads. The crouching sumo with arms outstretched indicate a potential, pouncing threat and the oversized Geisha’s eye can be even more unsettling.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Perhaps the Japanese equestrians have been training and desensitizing their mounts for the last 8 years with such flamboyant and gaudily-colored distractions to exploit the ‘home field’ advantage ??

Then again, nothing much be the IOCLDPJOC organizers over the last 18 months has indicated any significant foresight and well-thought out strategies.
4 ( +4 / -0 )

orry, @crashcourse 9:18am but most people across the world know for, at least, the last 8 years that Tokyo’s Olympic Games are being staged in the ‘host city’ of Tokyo, JAPAN.

and will they remember it a year from now? When people look at picture a few years from now, and they see the sumo picture. They will know it was in Japan.

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

Lost in Translation’? Perhaps someone said Japanese equestrian course rails & ‘bunker’ and Organizers heard “bunka” ? -

or maybe they wanted to introduce Japanese culture via the event. Does the make sense? Instead of a plain rail, why not use it to introduce Japanese culture?

The Japan bashing never stops.

-11 ( +0 / -11 )

Yes I agree, I was raised around horses and it doesn't take that much to spook a horse sometimes, horses are extremely sensitive to their surroundings, I think the riders have a good point.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

"Japan has really held a poor Olympics. A shame really."

Japan has held the best Olympics given the challenges of Covid. It has been a great Olympics. I am sorry that people like can't see that.

-10 ( +0 / -10 )

"I think the riders have a good point."

yeah right and here is what they said:

"Whatever the cause, it's not surprising to Olympic veterans that there's drama around the park. The Games have a reputation among riders for flashy course design, including an oddly shaped jump at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 that caused similar consternation.

“To be honest, you expect it in the Olympic Games," Brash said.

And that's OK with them.

“You know it’s going to be colorful coming here,” he added. "You know it’s going to be decorative. And it’s beautiful, you know? It’s fantastic. That’s what makes it a championship. If it was just plain old jumps, it’d be just like any other week.”

Enough said.

Learn to read and think , Japan bashers.

-8 ( +0 / -8 )

Japan and Sumo statue, nothing strange there.

I will miss this Olympics, oh well, Beijing 2022.

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

Thomas Goodtime

I don't think so, and I don't think the world thinks so too.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Give the horses a rest, they have done enough for mankind already. Why can't we have NASCAR or F1/2/3 as an Olympic sport instead?

Automobiles have replaced horses in transportation, so to reflect the changed circumstances since Olympics were restarted there should be a category for NASCAR (both cars and trucks) and F1/2/3 among other things.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

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