The preparation before the charge
Shikiri is the process before a bout in which the wrestlers face each other at the starting lines, crouch, rise, return to their corners, and prepare again. Top-division wrestlers also rinse their mouths and throw salt during this period.
The repeated approaches are not failed starts. They are part of the allotted preparation time. The ringside timekeeper signals when that time has expired, after which the wrestlers make their final approach.
The bout itself begins through mutual readiness at the tachiai. If one wrestler starts without proper readiness, the gyoji can stop the action and reset it as a matta. Watching shikiri can reveal confidence, breathing, preferred stance, and how each wrestler wants to approach the opening contact.