Japan’s top sumo wrestler tests positive for coronavirus

The Mongolian-born grand champion lost his sense of smell before taking a test

Mongolian-born grand sumo champion Yokozuna Hakuho has contracted Covid-19 (Getty)

Japan’s highest-ranked sumo wrestler Hakuho has tested positive for coronavirus.

The Japan Sumo Association (JSA) confirmed the Mongolian-born grand champion swiftly took a test after losing his sense of smell.

Hakuho contracting Covid-19 comes as Japan enters a state of emergency both in and around Tokyo following a sharp rise in cases.

Sumo has continued despite the pandemic, with Hakuho preparing for the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament, which is set to start in the capital on Sunday. 

READ MORE: Japan faces race against time with 2020 Olympics just 200 days away

Hakuho is the longest-serving yokozuna and the JSA has confirmed that other wrestlers will now be tested as a matter of urgency to discover if the virus has spread within the stable.

The 35-year-old competed last year as the sport continued throughout the pandemic.

But the sport was left in mourning after Shobushi, real name is Kiyotaka Suetake, died aged 28 last May from organ failure as a result of being infected by Covid-19 a month earlier.

Japan has recorded approximately 250,000 cases at the time of writing, with 3,509 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The state of emergency has cast doubt on the Olympics later this year, which were postponed from last year, with less than 200 days remaining.

Yoshihide Suga has vowed to stage the Games in defiance to the virus, stating: "[It would be] proof that people have overcome the coronavirus."

Suga also said that a vaccine approval would be speeded up by a month so that vaccinations could begin in February instead of March.