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Only a handful of competitions can keep viewers enthralled through an extended period of ceremony before the initial score is even determined.

Yet the intricate traditions unfolding in a small clay ring - largely unaltered for hundreds of years - accomplished exactly that.

Discover the Prestigious Rikishi Event

This five-day event at the Royal Albert Hall features 40 of the very best sumo wrestlers showcasing a sport whose initial documentation dates back to 23BC.

London's Victorian concert venue has been utterly transformed, complete with a elaborate suspended canopy hanging above the ring.

Ancient Traditions Meet Current Innovations

It is here the wrestlers, known as sumo professionals, perform their shiko exercises to banish negative energies, and where they applaud to attract the divine beings.

Above all this ancient ceremony, a giant, revolving LED screen - which wouldn't look out of place at an NBA match - offers the audience all the statistics and footage they could want.

Global Fans Embrace Sumo

For an enthusiastic follower, it was a "chance online clip" that first drew her interest a couple of years ago.

This was quickly followed by the discovery of dedicated YouTube channels for sumo stables, where wrestlers live and train, rising before dawn to train, followed by a high protein stew and then an midday rest - all in the service of gaining weight.

Traveling from the North, Different Experience

Another couple discovered sumo through a more traditional route: a visit to the country six years ago.

"We approached it as a very touristy activity, but we actually developed passion for the sport," says Julia.

"Subsequently, we tried to locate groups, information, just to learn more about it," the other fan explains.

Unique Chance

Visiting the homeland is generally the primary approach to see a elite competition.

This week's event marks only the second occasion the tournament has come to London - the initial occasion was in 1991.

Even traveling to Asia isn't a guarantee of obtaining admission, with the past period seeing fully attended competitions.

Live Observation

For many attendees, the UK competition represents the initial opportunity they have experienced the sport directly - and it lives up to the hype.

"Observing directly, you get a feeling of velocity and the strength which you don't get on TV," says Caspar Eliot. "They are so big."

The Matches

To achieve victory, one wrestler needs to move the other man from the dohyō or to the floor using physical force.

The most use one of dual approaches to accomplish this, often in instantaneous actions - shoving, or wrestling.

Either way, the sound of the two athletes colliding in the opening second of the match resounds around the auditorium.

Front Row Positions

The cushions right next to the competition area are of course highly prized - but also, potentially hazardous.

During one specific contest, a large wrestler went plummeting into the crowd - perhaps making those in less expensive positions experience comfort.

Internal Challenges

Of course, the size of the wrestlers is one of the initial aspects most people imagine when they contemplate wrestling.

The hall's organizers revealed they "needed to find and acquire reinforced furniture which can withstand 200kg in weight."

But sumo - for all its successful competitions - is not without its challenges behind the scenes.

Coming Obstacles

Perhaps the strict life of a professional athlete doesn't look as appealing as it once might have.

Its popularity among youth in Japan is also being competed with by alternative competitions, while Japan's declining population will create further complications.

International Network

Not that any of this has troubled spectators in London.

"Witnessing these ritual and ceremony that goes with sumo is particularly meaningful," an attendee explains. "Now, seeing it live, you feel like you are more part of it."

For other enthusiastic fans, the intensity "produced unforgettable moments" - as did meeting the like-minded individuals.

"Getting out of a very niche online community and being able to observe numerous sumo fans live and being able to converse with other people who are similarly enthusiastic as we are - it was worth every penny."