10, Future of Rugby in Japan

Rugby in Japan

week 10

     The World Cup of rugby will be held in Japan in 2019. You may know this. If you don't know, I want you know. The World Cup of rugby gets big box-office proceeds. It gets thirdly as a world event. The event with the largest box-office proceeds is the Olympic, and the second largest is the World Cup of soccer. Japanese people may be surprised at the fact that rugby is popular sport in the world. People all over the world may be surprised like Japanese at unpopularity of rugby in Japan. When the rugby World Cup is held, people all over the world pay attention to Japan than Japanese expectation. In order to make the event a success, many Japanese people take an interest in rugby the event. Moreover, this is the very first World Cup in Asia, Japan want to make success by any means. JRFU calls the whole country "One for all. All for one."

     Who do you think play an active part 5 years later? Now, many high school players play rugby. In 5 years later, they will be the main members of the team of Japan. There is the U-18 team of Japan with seven people. Last year, they participated in Asian U-18 championship. Both men's team and women's team participated in as Japan's national team. The tournament was held in Nanjing in August. Such expedition has been invaluable for high school rugby players. The expedition to the foreign countries is rare. And playing with the players who does not usually play together stimulates. In result, men's team won a bronze medal and women's team won a gold medal. A captain of men's team said that the biggest experience for them is to have been able to get a medal, and he was able to realize the difficulty and importance of making a team one. He wanted to spend the coming rugby life by this experience. A captain of women's team said that Asian U-18 championship is the biggest event ever she have taken part in, so she was able to inter change with many overseas players not only rugby players. And through this event, she wanted to go to Olympic more and more. I think that we can hope for their future success. Thinking only so, I come to look forward to five years later.


     Until this time, I said about rugby through ten times of blog. Surely it is only you to have read ten times of all the blogs. I am sorry that my writing is hard to read.
     Thank you for reading my blog till the last.      

(JRFU official site)
       

9. Amateur Rugby Team in Japan

Rugby in Japan

Week 9

    The Top League is a professional league of the rugby. Of course, there is amateur league of the rugby in Japan. It is so called the league of the member of society. Many club teams belong to this league. For example, Tsukubarians. You may think that this team is in Tsukuba. Members of this team practice every week at rugby ground of University of Tsukuba. I am a student of University of Tsukuba, so I can take a look at practice of this team. Indeed, I belonged to this team. Here, I want to introduce Tsukubarians. In 1977, University of Tsukuba rugby club alumnus played a key role and established a team. There are members more than 200 from an infant to a member of society in this club. The team has about 20 team sponsors. In results, the team won the East Japan club championship once and is always in the high rank of East Japan Top club league. I can say that this team is strong. 

      Moreover, this team manages closely rooted to the local community. Professional team of the Top League aim at making a team of the local community too. But players of these teams must training every day, so they con not have much time with the local people. There are many cases that these players gather from various areas. On the other hand, players of amateur teams work weekdays and practice on Saturday and Sunday. And players of these teams gather from the area which the team is. Necessarily, the team and the local connection become strong. I think that this is a good point of amateur teams.    

      In Japan, most of the rugby players of the elementary schoolchild belong to club team. Elementary schools in Japan don't have own team of rugby. Public elementary schools never have a team. Many schools have own soccer team, so children are able to join the club team willingly and easily. Even if there is a rugby club team near, children don't know that. When it is worse, some children don't know what rugby is at all. In fact, there were such children when I was in elementary school. But they knew that through myself. In what kind of method, it is good that rugby is recognized among people. In 2019, World Cup will be held in Japan. I want all Japanese to know about rugby at least by 2019.

(TSUKUBARIANS official site)
          

8. Events hosted by JRFU

Rugby In Japan
Week8

     Do you know a game called all-star game in Top League? You maybe watch every year an all-star game in professional baseball. Indeed, there is an all-star game in Top League. In 2013, this game was held on March 3. In this game, two teams are decided whether players were expert or they were young. These teams' name were "Top League Senior Heart Team" and "Top League Young Star Team". Whether the date of their birth distributed a team in after April 2, 1985 or in the past. This game was held in Kimiidera Park land sports stadium in Wakayama. This game was a charity match. The charity match has held for 5 years. A part of the game profit is made use of for contribution to society activity. For example, reconstructing of the quake-hit areas, supporting of the person with a disability and spread   rugby to a young generation. Incidentally, an all-star game in 2012 was held in Sendai. 

     In 2012,  the Young Star Team beat the Senior Heart Team. But the Senior Heart Team beat the Young Star Team. Watching the game, I knew that there was new discovery. Rugby players need not only physical strength but also experience and proficiency. If you focus on the point, you will enjoy watching games more.


     Indeed, there is an all-star game in Kanto college league. In 2013, "The Resistance Selection Team" beat "Kanto League Selection Team". I am sorry but, I do not know well about how are these teams decided. I can merely say that players of the university student play regardless of which university they belong to. This game in 2013 was held at Titibunomiya rugby stadium. I think that rugby game viewers tended to be old. In recently, however, many young people are interested in rugby, especially college rugby. In fact, many young people came and watched the all-star game. If young people come to be interested in rugby, rugby wii become one of the popular sports. 


      By the way, I want you be interested in high school rugby, too. Do you know the National High School Rugby Championships? This championships are held every winter at Hanazono rugby stadium in Osaka. Representative team of each prefecture come to Hanazono and play. In 2014, Tokaidai Gyousei high school won the match. This championships has charms different from adult players. I recommend you watching rugby games of all age.  


(JRFU official site, Japan East Rugby Football Union official site, HIGHSCHOOL-RUGBY.COM)

     

       

Amiri Baraka

Amiri Baraka

    Do you know Amiri Baraka? He is American writer of poetry. His former name is Leroi Jones. He had written a lot of books and taught at a number of universities. For example, State University of New York at Buffalo and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Baraka's poetry and writing strongly said about a conflict of extreme critically. He is African-American. In this community, critics call him one of the most respected and most widely published Black writers in his generation. He brought big influence. His short term as Poet Laureate of New Jersey(2002-2003) brought his work a concentration of negative opinions from critics, politicians and the general citizen. Then he wrote "Somebody Blew Up America", and controversy happened over a public reading of this poem. Other critics explained his explession of violence, misogyny, racism and homophobia as evidence of psychological projection. 

   By the way, do you know why I say about Amiri Baraka?  

Indeed, he died yesterday(1/9, 2014) at Beth Israel Medical Center in Newark. The cause of death was not mentioned. But it is reported that Baraka had a long  with conflict diabetes. I didn't know about him before hearing this news. I want to know more about Amiri Baraka.

Do you want to know Amiri Baraka?