
We all know how big sumo is in Japan. You may not realize that it is actually big in other countries as well. Meet Samantha-Jane Stacy. She’s not your ordinary school girl. Her 8th grade Australian classmates have affectionately named her “Sammy Sumo”. At age 14, she hopes to be the youngest ever to compete in the World Sumo Championships this month in Estonia. She weighs in at an impressive 20 stones (280 pounds), and she is still as nimble as any child athlete.
Like many sumo wrestlers, Samantha eats a very healthy diet which consists mostly of Weetbix and lasagna. She does not try to put on weight. Samantha says,
I’m naturally a big girl. I don’t have to eat anything extra. I have a medical condition that does not allow me to lose the weight. A side effect of that means I look obese. But I do have a healthy diet.
She became interested in the sport after reasearching and watching videos on the internet. Her brother Blake Stacey is her trainer, and also a sumo wrestler. He recently competed in this year’s Oceania Championships. Samantha is excited to head to Estonia to represent Australia with her 4 other teammates, however she’s really nervous about the 32-hour flight there. I wish her the best of luck. For a video by an Australian news channel, check out MSN.
Daily Mail via Japundit.