Every week I find piles of great videos. Some are interesting, some are strange, others are just fun. Every week I’ll post my weekly video recommendation here, for your enjoyment. Although not specifically English study videos, all of them can be useful to you in your English studies. Don’t understand something you see or hear? Don’t sweat it- it takes years of study to be able to understand everything a native speaker says. I’ve been studying Japanese since 2007 and I can only understand about 20% of the dialogue in Japanese movies and dramas. So pat yourself on the back if you can understand even 10% after only a few years of study. I recommend you watch each video 3 times- the 1st time just to get the general idea of the video, the 2nd time try to get more detail out of the dialogue, the 3rd time to really bring it all together. Good luck!
This week’s video is about a new rikishi (wrestler) who has started training at a sumo beya (stable). His ring name is Osunaarashi (sandstorm), an apt name for the first ever wrestler hailing from Africa, and Egypt in particular. His real name is Abdelrahman Ahmed Shaalan and along with being the first African, he is also the first Arab sumo wrestler. This makes his training particularly tough as he has religious routines that must be slipped in with his daily sumo routine as well as dietary laws to watch. If you would like to read more about this new wrestler and the challenges he will face, there is a great article from The Jakarta News you can read HERE. This week’s video follows NHK World news announcer Hiro Morita as he spends the day with the wrestlers at the Otake Stable, including an interview with Mr. Shaalan. Students- Mr. Shaalan speaks with a heavy Egyptian accent, so try your best to understand him. If necessary, listen to his interview a few times to gain an understanding of another version of English! Note also that Hiro Morita is one of the 3 main sumo announcers, and that he has a very clear, strong voice. Check it out!
Sandstorm! What a cool name for a sumo wrestler.
Sumo needs more foreign interest to survive! Good for him.