Pay of two yokozuna cut following assault case

Japan’s sumo authority decided yesterday to cut the pay of two yokozuna – or grand champions – who failed to stop a brutal assault by a fellow champion on a junior wrestler. The Japan Sumo Association announced that yokozuna Hakuho and Kakuryu would not receive a salary in January. Hakuho will also forfeit half his pay in February. The two Mongolians failed to restrain their compatriot Harumafuji, also a yokozuna. Harumafuji reportedly flew into a rage last October after a tournament, when a lowerranked Mongolian wrestler tried to use his phone while Hakuho was speaking to him. Harumafuji retired last month to take responsibility for the incident, which left the junior wrestler with a fractured skull. Police and prosecutors are investigating the case.