In 1980, the plaintiffs sued the central government, the Kumamoto local government and the chemicals' manufacturer, Chisso Corp.
Hashimoto, from Kanagawa prefecture, adjoining Tokyo, is to stay at a hospital in Tokyo because of his high blood pressure while Tanaka will return to his hometown in Kumamoto prefecture in southern Japan, an embassy official said.
But sumo continued as a local entertainment, and until a few years ago, a group of 15 women in a small fishing town in the southern prefecture of Kumamoto performed sumo wrestling matches at regional festivals.