A sumo wrestling Australian teenager has been banned from sumo wrestling after she ran away from a sumo school in Japan.
Samantha Stacey, 16, was offered a place at Tottoki Johoku High School in Japan after she won a gold medal in the Sumo Wrestling World Championships in Estonia in 2008.
“I was so excited about gaining a place. But it was horrible,” Samantha told the Daily Mail.
“Because I was low-ranking, I had to get up at five and prepare breakfast for the other students.
“No-one spoke English and I didn’t understand what was going on in lessons.
“I felt constantly sick from all the food we had to eat.”
Samantha claims she was force-fed greasy porridge with eggs and meat and that her sumo teachers screamed at her until she finished up to five bowls in one sitting. The teenager was told to snack on beans covered in oil before lunch, which consisted of more meat and rice.
The Queensland teenager put on around 20kg during her stay, bringing her weight up to almost 150kg.
After six months, Samantha couldn’t stand it any more and asked her parents to bring her home. She packed up her clothes and took them to a tournament where her dad met her and took her home.
However, on returning to Australia, she was banned from wrestling by the Australian Sumo Federation.
“My heart is broken,” Samantha said.
“I love sumo so much and now I won’t be able to wrestle again.”
