This has been a week, so far, of surprises. Or perhaps they are not quite surprises and might reasonably have been predicted.

Firstly, at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, the sole Yokozuna, Terunofuji, has defied the odds and leads the tourney 8-0 at the present. Now yokozuna should be winning most of these competitions, but Terunofuji has been carrying injuries and has withdrawn or sat out a number of them. He always comes onto the dohyo with heavily strapped legs. But thus far, he has been wrestling at the seeming height of his powers. We can only hope that he stays fit.

Secondly, the breaking news today shouted that Joe Biden has withdrawn from the  Presidential race. Some might have called this inevitable, given the pressure from both Party and media that he has had to weather. Had he stayed, he would likely have limped to the election and been thrashed by Trump. Now there is some chance of  building a different momentum, or stemming losses in Congress.

I wish Mr Biden well after a long life of public service. He deserves a happy retirement.