Watch: Sumo referee KO'd by wrestlers

Like every elite sumo tournament in Japan, the New Year Grand Sumo (aka the Hatsubasho) in Tokyo is known for very large men throwing things: primarily salt to the ground (pre-bout ritual) and opponents outside the ring (the ultimate goal).

Now we can add "referee" to the list of tossed items. As you can see in the video, an unfortunate gyoji (referee) got in the way of Kaito Baruto (who weighs at 410 pounds) and Wakakoyu Masaya (a svelte 370 pounds) during their bout on Wednesday.

According to Kyodo, gyoji Shozaburo Kimura was knocked unconscious before being carted out of the arena on a stretcher. He suffered a concussion.

While we've seen this countless times to unsuspecting boxing referees (like this memorable one in Japan), it may be unprecedented in sumo.

"This has never happened before in sumo," said Yokozuna Hakuho, who was seeking his third consecutive title at the event. "I guess things like this can happen."