Babies cry in Japanese competition - 19th May 2023

In Japan, there's a special competition. It's the 'Crying Baby Sumo' competition. The babies have to cry, so it's noisy. They wear sumo clothes. The parents hold the babies and wait.

Shigemi Fuji organises this competition in Tokyo.

Shigemi Fuji: "Some people may get surprised to see this event and think it's terrible that we make babies cry. But in Japan, we believe babies who cry powerfully also grow up healthily. This kind of event takes place in many places in Japan."

Usually, parents don't hold their children. Before it was sumo wrestlers. But Covid-19 changed that.

This father, Rintaro Okamura, has an 8-month old baby. He's excited about the competition.

Rintaro Okamura: "We heard about the event this year. We're happy that we can take part in it this year. Although she doesn't usually cry so much, I want her to cry today and win a bout."

This competition happens across Japan in temples. The rules are different. Sometimes, the first baby to cry is the winner. In others, it's the last baby!

Here in Tokyo, the first child to cry wins. The staff wear masks on their faces. They want to make the babies cry. The referee wears a special uniform. He holds a fan.

For parents, hearing their baby cry is a good thing. It can show a child is healthy. This mother, Hisae Watanabe, feels this way.

Hisae Watanabe: "We can tell a baby's health condition by listening to the way they cry. Today, she may get nervous and not cry so much, but I want to hear her healthy crying."