In sumo, a mawashi is the belt that the rikishi (or sumo wrestler) wears during training or in competition. Upper ranked professional wrestlers wear a kesho-mawashi (see below) as part of the ring entry ceremony or dohyo-iri.

Mawashi

For top ranked professional rikishi it is made of silk and comes in a variety of colors. It is approximately 30 feet in length when unwrapped, about two feet wide and weighs between eight and eleven pounds. It is wrapped several times around the rikishi and fastened in the back by a large knot. A series of matching colour, stiffened silk fronds, called sagari are inserted into the front of the mawashi. If these fall out during competion the gyoji (or referee) will throw them from the ring at the first opportunity.

Sometimes a rikishi may wear his mawashi in such a way as to give him some advantage over his opponent. He may wear it loosely to make it more difficult to be thrown or he may wrap it tightly and splash a little water on it to help prevent his opponent from getting a good grip on it.

Many rikishi are superstitious and they will change the color of their mawashi to change their luck. Sometimes a poor performance will cause them to change colors for the next tournament in an attempt to change their luck for the better.

The rikishi only wear the silk mawashi during competetive bouts either during ranking tournaments or touring displays. During training a heavy cotton mawashi is worn. For senior rikishi in the top two divisions (the so-called sekitori) this belt is coloured white, and it is worn with one end distinctively looped at the front. Sagari are not worn during training.

Rikishi ranked in the lower divisions wear a black cotton mawashi both for training in and in competition. In competition cotton sagari are inserted into the belt, but these are not stiffened.

Amateur sumo wrestlers are expected to wear a white cotton mawashi, without the looping accorded to the senior professional's training garb.

Kesho-Mawashi

Sekitori also wear a second ceremonial kesho mawashi during their ring entering cermony. The silk 'belt' opens out at one end into a large apron which is usually heavily embroidered and with thick tassles at the bottom. The kesho mawashi may advertise the produce of a sponsor of the rikishi or be a gift from one of the rikishi's support groups. Popular rikishi may have been gifted many of these kesho mawashi.

Yokozuna have matching sets of three kesho-mawashi, with two being worn by his wrestler assistants during his ring entrance ceremony.