 In February 1998 he failed to be re-elected to the Sumo Association's Board of Directors, and citing the lack of support from his fellow "oyakata" in the Takasago "ichimon" or group of stables, he decided to leave the organisation several years before the mandatory retirement age.However, he still often appears on television as a sumo analyst for NHK.In 2002, he performed his "kanreki dohyō-iri" or '60th year ring entrance ceremony' to commemorate his years as "yokozuna".