Sumō Princess without a mask / マスクなし相撲姫。
This lady is famous in the sumō world for three things:
1) Due to the pandemic, sumō tournaments have been running with very few spectators. She stands out a lot in international TV broadcasts because she is always sitting in the same place during ALL 15 days that the tournaments last. Obviously, she doesn’t take her mask off, so no one knows who exactly she is or how she looks behind her mask.
2) There is a traditional Japanese posture called seiza (正座) that consists of sitting on top of your ankles and heels, with your foot’s insteps on the ground, and your back completely straight. It is a really uncomfortable (but sophisticated) posture, and it results in loss of blood circulation and muscular pain. I, for example, can sit in seiza for about 20 minutes before giving up; I have seen television shows where celebrities compete to see who can last the longest in seiza, and they go up to one hour. But this lady does it for more than three hours straight without a break! That’s why she’s called the “posture” in “Posture Princess”.
3) The ticket for the seat she occupies in the front row cost $ 200 (per day!). She also draws our attention for her really nice haute couture attires and refined purses, so viewers have been speculating since last year that besides being a high-society lady with a strict education and upbringing from a wealthy family, she may be someone close or related to a rikishi (sumō competitor). That’s why she’s called the “princess” in “Posture Princess”.
WACOCA JAPAN: People, Life, Style.