A record 21 of the 70 wrestlers lined up for the top two divisions of the sacred dohyo in January's New Year sumo tournament are foreigners, with a Georgian and a Mongolian being the latest star imports.

The Hawaiian wrestler Takamiyama was the first non- Japanese to reach the top level of the ancient sport in 1967, and by 2004 there were still only 10 foreign wrestlers.

But today the two yokozuna grand champions are Mongolians, and eastern Europeans are increasingly barging out their Japanese opponents.

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"There are no young homegrown wrestlers coming through because a lot of kids don't want to make the effort or can take the discipline," said Fred Varcoe, a journalist who has covered sumo for 20 years. "And if the crowds don't have a local hero to cheer in the tournaments, they don't bother going."

Many Japanese also believe the sport has been tarnished by the behavior of its grand champion, Asashoryu, who has just returned from a four-month suspension for playing in a charity football match after pulling out of a sumo tournament through injury.

To sumo's more conservative fans, he lacks the dignity and humility befitting the sport's top stars. He told a packed press conference in Tokyo on Friday: "I would like to apologize from the bottom of my heart for the concern and trouble I have caused my fans.

"My time away has helped me regain focus and bring my emotions under control. I realized I had to change the way I think.

"The punishment was a big shock to me but it was my fault. From now on I will do my best to live up to the responsibility of being a yokozuna."

Sumo's image was further tarnished in June. A 17-year-old wrestler was beaten to death by his stablemates for trying to leave because the training was too tough.

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH