Tournaments

• Hatsu basho
  Honbasho
  A is an official professional sumo tournament. There are six held each year, a system established in 1958. Only honbasho results matter in determining promotion and relegation for rikishi ....
  
  , Ryogoku Kokugikan
  Ryogoku Kokugikan
  , also known as Sumo Hall, is an indoor sporting arena located in the Ryōgoku neighborhood of Sumida, one of the 23 wards of Tokyo in Japan, next to the Edo-Tokyo Museum. It is the third building built in Tokyo associated with the name kokugikan. The current building was opened in 1985 and has a...
  
  , Tokyo
  Tokyo
  , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
  
  , 10 January - 24 January
• Haru basho, Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka
  Osaka
  is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
  
  , 14 March - 28 March
• Natsu basho, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, 9 May - 23 May
• Nagoya basho, Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium
  Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium
  The is an all purpose gymnasium in Aichi, Japan, built in 1964. Located on the site of the secondary enclosure of Nagoya Castle, it is host to numerous concerts and events...
  
  , Nagoya, 9 July - 23 July
• Aki basho, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, 12 September - 26 September
• Kyushu basho, Fukuoka International Centre, Kyushu
  Kyushu
  is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
  
  , 7 November - 21 November

January

• At the Hatsu basho,the yusho
  Yusho
  A Yūshō is a tournament championship in sumo. It is awarded in each of the six annual honbasho or official tournaments, to the wrestler who wins the most number of bouts. Yūshō are awarded in all six professional sumo divisions...
  
   or tournament championship is decided in a final day showdown between Wakanohana
  Wakanohana Masaru
  is a former sumo wrestler from Tokyo, Japan. As an active wrestler he was known as Wakanohana III Masaru , and his rise through the ranks alongside his younger brother Takanohana Koji saw a boom in sumo's popularity in the early 1990s...
  
  , still searching for his first yusho as a yokozuna, and sekiwake Chiyotaikai, who is one win behind him on 12-2. Chiyotaikai defeats Wakanohana in their regulation match, and in the subsequent playoff for the championship he wins a rematch after the first bout is judged
  Shimpan
  are the judges of a professional sumo bout. In a sumo honbasho tournament five shimpan sit around the ring to observe which wrestler wins the matchup. When judging tournament bouts they wear formal Japanese dress of otokomono, haori with mon, and hakama...
  
   too close to call, despite the referee
  Gyoji
  A Gyōji is a referee in professional sumo wrestling in Japan.Gyōji usually enter the sumo world as teenagers and remain employees of the Sumo Association until they retire aged 65.-Responsibilities:...
  
   originally awarding the bout to Wakanohana. Shortly after the tournament Chiyotaikai is promoted to ozeki, the first new holder of sumo's second highest rank since Musashimaru and Takanonami were promoted five years earlier. Akebono misses his second tournament in a row with a herniated disk in his lower back. His fellow yokozuna Takanohana turns in a mediocre 8-7 score. Special prizes are awarded to Chiyotaikai for Outstanding Performance and Fighting Spirit (shared with colleague Chiyotenzan) and Akinoshima for Technique. The juryo championship is won for the second time in a row by Miyabiyama. Former komusubi Asahiyutaka retires.

February

• Asahiyutaka takes over the running of Tatsunami stable
  Tatsunami stable
  is a stable of sumo wrestlers, and the head stable of the Tatsunami ichimon or group.-History:The stable is one of the most prestigious in sumo. It was originally founded in 1876 by Onigazaki, but the current incarnation dates from 1915...
  
   from his father-in-law, former sekiwake Annenyama, who has reached the mandatory elder
  Toshiyori
  A toshiyori is a sumo elder of the Japan Sumo Association. Also known as oyakata, former wrestlers who reached a sufficiently high rank are the only people eligible...
  
   retirement age of 65.
• Akebono has his first practice session since November 1998.

March

• Musashimaru wins his fourth top division championship with a 13-2 score. He has little competition from his top ranked rivals, as Takanohana, Wakanohana and Chiyotaikai all withdraw midway through injury, while Akebono is missing altogether. Takanonami is runner-up on 12-3. Makuuchi debutant Miyabiyama wins the fighting spirit prize, as does Chiyotenzan for the second time in just his second top division tournament. Veteran Akinoshima wins eleven bouts and the Outstanding Performance Prize. Mitoizumi is demoted from makuuchi for the first time since 1987. Daizen wins the juryo yusho with a 12-3 score and returns to the top division at the age of 34. Towanoyama wins the makushita championship. Former maegashira Toyonoumi and Tatsuhikari retire.

May

• Musashimaru wins his second championship in a row with a 13-2 record, to become the second foreign yokozuna. He defeats fellow Hawaiian Akebono on the final day, who after losing his first two bouts comes through with a respectable 11-4 score on his comeback. Runner-up to Musashimaru is Kaio
  Kaio Hiroyuki
  Kaiō Hiroyuki is a former professional sumo wrestler from Nōgata, Fukuoka, Japan.He made his debut in 1988, reaching the top makuuchi division in 1993. He held the second highest rank of ōzeki or champion for eleven years from 2000 to 2011, and is the longest-serving ozeki of all time in terms of...
  
   on 12-3, who wins the Fighting Spirit Prize. Chiyotenzan wins his third straight sansho, for Outstanding Performance, shared with Tosanoumi. Wakanosato  wins the Technique prize. Takanohana sits the tournament out, recovering from an injured shoulder, while his brother Wakanohana is forced to withdraw for the second tournament in a row with a leg sprain. Otsukasa wins the juryo championship.
• Musashimaru's promotion is confirmed, although he embarrasses himself by being unable to phrase his official acceptance correctly. It is the first time since May 1991 that four yokozuna are active at the same time.

July

• The Nagoya basho fails to attract a sell-out crowd for the first time in ten years on the second day.
• Sekiwake Dejima
  Dejima Takeharu
  Dejima Takeharu is a former sumo wrestler from Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan. A former amateur champion, he made his professional debut in 1996, reaching the top makuuchi division the following year...
  
   wins his first yusho, defeating Akebono in a playoff after both men finish on 13-2. Akebono is denied his first championship in over two years. Dejima's Musashigawa stable
  Musashigawa stable
  Fujishima stable is a heya or stable of sumo wrestlers, one of the Dewanoumi group of stables. It was set up on 29 August 1981 by Musashigawa Oyakata, the former yokozuna Mienoumi, who branched off from Dewanoumi stable...
  
  mate Musashimaru finishes on 12-3 in his debut tournament as a yokozuna. Wakanohana is out injured, while Takanohana can only manage 9-6 in his comeback. Dejima is awarded all three special prizes and after the tournament is promoted to ozeki. Tosanoumi also receives a share of the Fighting Spirit prize for his eleven wins at komusubi rank. Kinkaiyama wins the juryo title. Veteran Tochinowaka, at 37 the oldest man in the top division, announces his retirement. Former komusubi Kotoinazuma also retires. In makushita, Daishoho retires to seek treatment for pancreatic cancer.

September

• Musashimaru needs only twelve wins to secure his first championship as a yokozuna. Takanohana, Takanonami and Akebono all withdraw early, while Wakanohana, clearly unfit, becomes the first yokozuna since Onokuni in 1989 to fight a full 15 days and fail to make his majority of wins. 32 year old Akinoshima is runner-up on 11-4 and wins his fourth Technique Prize and eighth Fighting Spirit Award. This gives him a total of 19 special prizes, one more than the record of 18 previously held by Kotonishiki. Tochiazuma receives the Outstanding Performance Award. Hayateumi wins the juryo yusho. Former maegashira Tokitsunada, and juryo veteran Zenshinyama, announce their retirements.

November

• Musashimaru wins his fourth yusho of the year by defeating Takanohana on the final day to finish on 12-3. Takanohana is runner-up with Kaio on 11-4. Kaio receives the Fighting Spirit prize. Sekiwake Tochiazuma and komusubi Tosanoumi each score ten and win special prizes, for Technique and Outstanding Performance respectively. Takanonami is demoted from the ozeki rank after managing only a 6-9 score on his comeback. In the juryo division, the lightweight Mainoumi, known as the "Department Store of Techniques", announces his retirement. Oginishiki wins the yusho.

Deaths

• 28 July: Former juryo Dairyu, aged 54, of cirrhosis of the liver.
• 3 Oct: Former juryo Haji (also known as Saganoumi), aged 53, in a car accident. He was also a professional baseball player.
• 11 Nov: Former maegashira Otayama, aged 75.
• 4 Dec: Former komusubi Daishoho, aged 32, of cancer.