With its oversized stars and elaborate rituals, this 2000-year-old sport is fascinating to observe. Even if you have no understanding of the rules, it is hard not to be entertained by the wrestlers' dramatic grunts and the high-pitched shouts from the hyperactive referee. There are six 15-day-long Grand Sumo Tournaments held in Japan every year; half of them are in Tokyo (January, May and September) and the others are in Osaka (March), Nagoya (July) and Fukuoka (November). Sumo pulls in massive crowds, but it is often possible for tourists to pick up last-minute tickets on the mornings of competitions. A sumo match involves two well-fed opponents facing each other in a ring that is just 15-feet in diametre. Before the tussle starts, the wrestlers stomp their legs, claps their thighs, throw salt into the ring to purify it and attempt to stare down their opponent. A match rarely lasts longer than six seconds, with the loser the first one to touch the ground outside the circle or inside the circle with any part of his body other than the soles of his feet.