It’s long been said that one can get lost inside Dizengoff Center, the Tel Aviv mall famous for its winding staircases and confusing multi-level maze that can take hours to escape. But can you get so lost that you suddenly find yourself standing in front of a sumo ring—or at least a mock version of one? Can you dive so deep into the bowels of this legendary shopping center that you’re swept straight into Tokyo?
Yes, if you ask Ilana Kratysh, 35, a former Olympic wrestler and three-time European silver medalist in freestyle wrestling. She is one of the leaders of Israel’s Association for the Promotion and Development of Sumo, one of the country’s most niche—and therefore most intriguing—sports organizations. Now, she shines one of the brightest spotlights ever aimed at Israeli sumo.
An exhibition sumo wrestling match, Dizengoff Center, Tel Aviv
(Video : Oz Moalem)
The setting—a mall, as part of a commercial campaign branded as “Japan Month”—was more circus-like than competitive, but nitpicking hardly seemed necessary.
Kratysh is not only a former freestyle wrestling champion; she is also a European silver medalist in sumo. “I was the first Israeli sumo wrestler to win a medal,” she said proudly, as behind her, two women busied themselves wrapping athletic tape around their fingers in preparation for the match. Soon, they would don the traditional mawashi belts—over their pants; this wasn’t really Japan—and join six male wrestlers in an exhibition that, if not likely to flood local community centers with signups for sumo classes, at least broadened horizons and sparked curiosity.
Hundreds watched, eyes wide with fascination. The very word “sumo” carried an exotic allure, amplified by a sport most had never even realized was practiced in Israel. The salt scattered by wrestlers against the evil eye, the ritualistic warm-up moves, the respectful bow to an opponent—it all felt foreign yet accessible at the same time, a life lesson waiting to be adopted.
Sumo, in smaller sizes
Though Israeli sumo wrestlers don’t come close to the massive weights of their Japanese counterparts, they still treat the sport with all the seriousness one can muster from more than 9,000 kilometers away from Tokyo’s Ryogoku district, the traditional heart of sumo.
One of them is 24-year-old Sagiv Haylo, whom Ilana Kratysh proudly calls the best sumo wrestler Israel has to offer.
For Haylo, sumo was a natural step in a life steeped in martial arts. He had already wrestled, already competed in judo, so the next challenge was sumo—the ancient contest where victory comes by forcing an opponent out of the ring or down to the ground. He began three years ago, training under Nikolai Kozhuhov, who immigrated to Israel a few years ago and has since become the central figure in the latest incarnation of Israeli sumo (an association for the sport first existed in the late 20th century).
“If you do judo, the whole world of Japan is fascinating,” Haylo explained. “This is one of the most fun things I’ve ever done. Beyond improving me in every other area, it also made me stronger mentally. Sometimes a bout lasts only a second, so you have to be 100 percent ready.”
Despite Japan’s undisputed dominance in the sport, non-Japanese wrestlers have occasionally risen to prominence. Haylo has no illusions—at his age, he is already too old to dream of a professional career in Japan. Still, he hopes to train there, at least briefly, as a way to sharpen his skills for European and world championships.
Haylo is the yokozuna of Israeli sumo, his superiority evident in the exhibition matches where he took center stage. He sent every opponent who dared face him tumbling out of the ring—sometimes with sharp chest slaps, other times with sheer shoving power, and when necessary, with a dramatic throw to the mat.
The children in the crowd responded with awe, their wide eyes fixed on him as if he were a real-life superhero. Cries of “oooh!” echoed around the mall. In their young eyes, he must have looked like one of the greatest figures imaginable.
Touching people
When the show ended, everyone returned to their lives. Parents resumed the search for new ways to keep their children entertained. The children drifted back into a world of imagination, now a little richer than before. And the wrestlers turned to different dreams — above all, how to turn what still lingers at the flexible edges of a hobby into something more professional.
“The positive reinforcement from the audience was unforgettable,” said Kratysh, summing up an evening that surpassed even her most optimistic expectations. “Many of the children wanted to participate, and there was an enormous sense of appreciation for the senior athletes. Once again, we were reminded that sumo has the power to touch people of all ages.
“We are full of hope that we will continue to grow, to reach more and more audiences, and to bring many others to discover and connect with this unique sport. We would be very glad if in the future we could secure funding for a world championship or the support of a sponsor, which would allow our athletes to keep developing and achieve impressive results internationally.”