Sumo: Kotozakura making extra efforts to retain ozeki rank

Kotozakura, who will enter the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in March as a demotion-threatened "kadoban" ozeki, has stepped up his training earlier than usual to retain sumo's second-highest rank.Kotozakura visited Tokyo's Tokitsukaze stable Wednesday for a second straight day to train, winning 19 of his 22 practice bouts against wrestlers such as Daieisho and Nishikigi.It is unusual for Kotozakura to go to another stable for training before the pre-tournament rankings are released."If I train a lot now, I'll be able to pace myself shortly before the tournament," said the 27-year-old, who be…READ FULL ARTICLE