- Sumo Ball
Infobox Gladiators Event
Event_Name = Sumo Ball|
|thumb
width = 320px
c
in the 2008 revival|
Int. Year =1996
origin_country= flag|United Kingdom
Used In = flag|United Kingdom
flag|Australia
Last_Used = present
num_cont = 1
num_glad = 1
timelim = 30 secondsSumo Ball is an event played in several incarnations of the television series "Gladiators". In this event, contender and Gladiator are stood on a podium with a giant sumo ball between them. Participants must use the sumo ball to push their opponent off.
Rules
On the whistle, participants must push against the sumo ball in an attempt to remove their opponent from the platform. The sumo ball itself is 2.2 metres in diameter and weighs approximately 75 kilograms whilst the platform is 5.2 metres in diameter.
The event lasts 30 seconds and contenders receive 10 points for pushing the Gladiator off and 5 points for staying on for thirty seconds.
On both sides of the sumo ball are rope handles. Both participants must keep ahold of these handles. Letting go results in disqualification. Participants are not allowed to sit down during any part of the event or allow their hands to touch the platform. Once a participant is removed from the platform, the game ends, even if they do not fall to the crash mats.
International differences
Currently there are no differences between the UK and Australian versions of the event. Sweden also played this event.
Event History
UK
Years active: 1996-1998
Sumo Ball was the only new event for the fifth (1996) series. During the 1997 celebrity special, two contenders were allowed to face one Gladiator.
A contender loss in this event was marked by the song 'Another one bits the dust' by Queen.
Sumo Ball will not be returning for the first series of the 2008 revival.
Australia
Years active: 2008-
Sumo Ball was one of three new events for the first Australian revival series.
When Sumo Ball was first played, Gladiator Amazon thought she won the round and let go off the rope. Eventually, she removed the challenger off the platform but was disqualified for letting go off the rope. Bill Harrigan called foul and gave her a yellow card and Amazon commented on stage that as far as she was concerned, a foul was a bird and that "Bill had something against me since day one". Then when Bill Harrigan walked towards her, she walked away. This gave Amazon a red card (the first in Australia) and didn't appear for the rest of the episode.
References
* [http://www.gladiatorszone.co.uk/events/sumoball.php Gladiators Zone- Sumo ball]
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