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Heavy Accusations In the Sumo Ring

Most Americans figure that the wild antics on TV wrestling shows are fake. But what about sumo, the dignified ancient Japanese form of wrestling between two gigantic guys in loincloths? According to Keisuke Itai, a retired wrestler, sumo is also full of big, fat cheaters! In his day, he says, 80% of the matches were fixed and faked. "Match fixing was matter-of-fact among wrestlers," says Itai.

A sumo wrestler must win at least half his matches during a tournament in order to maintain his ranking. Itai says a wrestler who had enough wins would sometimes purposely lose the remaining matches. Another wrestler could buy a victory for about $2,000.

Itai backs up his charges with evidence: tapes of sumo officials discussing the cheating. Sumo fans want answers. Says Kousuke Kuroiwa, 16, a student in Tokyo: "I don't want cheap games to be played by wrestlers I look up to."

Next: Kidd's Big Adventure