Professional athletes have a duty to serve as positive role models. It is because athletes of Japanese traditional sports, such as sumo are expected to behave well as a positive role model. For example, Asasyoryu needed to behave as yokoduna, the highest rank of sumo competition, but he did not behave nicely so that sumo association had to retire him.
Japanese traditional sports, such as sumo and judo require the athletes to serve as positive role models. It is because these sports are national sports and Japanese people wish the athletes to have the high status. Therefore, when Asashoryu caused a social problem of beating a man, the sumo association had to make him quit sumo. This decision was based on the rules of sumo association.
Since long time ago, in Japanese society, professional athletes of sacred sports needed to behave well as positive role models. However, Asashoryu did not behave the way that people expected. He was a strong sumo player, but he repeatedly caused problems and his news was on TV. It was because he was a foreign wrestler, he did not follow former customs of sumo.
In conclusion, professional athletes have a duty to serve as positive role models. It is because people expect the athletes to behave well as positive role models. When these athletes do not follow the tradition of the sports, it causes problems.