Sumo scare? Riders say horses might be spooked by statue at Tokyo Olympics

KAMIYOGA, Japan (AP) — Riders say that a life-sized sumo wrestler positioned next to an obstacle on the Olympic equestrian course may have distracted several horses in qualifying for the individual jumping final.

A few pairings pulled up short of the barrier, accumulating enough penalty points to prevent entry into Wednesday’s finals.

The statue is positioned to the left of a jump placed in the corner of the arena.

Hunched over and seemingly ready to attack, the wrestler is facing away from approaching riders, meaning that when they complete a sharp turn to take on the jump, the first thing horse and human see is the wedgie created by the wrestler’s mawashi.