Baseball is considered Japan's national sport. It was introduced to the country by visiting Americans in the 19th century. The Nippon Professional Baseball league is Japan's largest professional sports league. Martial arts such as judo, karate and modern kendō are also widely practiced and enjoyed by spectators in the country. Association football has gained wide popularity since the founding of the Japan Professional Football League in 1992. Other popular sports include figure skating, golf and racing, especially auto racing.
History
Pre-Edo period
Painting of an ancient Sumo competition, Heian or Kamakura period
Sumo shows an important side of traditional Japanese sport, a religious occasion as well as a sporting event. Many sumo rituals are closely associated with Shinto belief. It is believed that some of ancient sumo matches were a purely religious event with a predetermined outcome as an offering to kami. Some matches are done as divination. For example, if a fisherman and farmer held a match and the fisherman won, a good catch was predicted for the year.
The Kamakura period was a starting point for many martial arts. Kyūdō became popular as kyujutsu, literally bow skill, as a pastime for samurai. Yabusame also started as a sport in this period, but is now considered a sacred ceremony. Hunting also became a popular sport and dogs were used to aid a hunt. Hunting was also called Inuoimono, literally dog chasing
Edo period
In the Edo period, sports became a popular way to spend time. The only problem was that they were often accompanied by gambling. A notice to punish playing and betting on sumo without an authorization was repeatedly posted to little effect. Kyūdō was encouraged by shogun and daimyo as a pastime and contests as well as record making attempts were held. On April 26, 1686, a samurai named Wasa Daihachiro competing in the Tōshiya made an unsurpassed record of shooting 13,053 arrows and hitting the mark 8,133 times over a 24 hour period. This is even more remarkable when one considers the shooting range for this attempt, a 120 meter long corridor with a ceiling of only 2.2 meters. In the Olympic games, archers shoot over a distance of only 70 meters. Martial arts like jujutsu were popular but schools avoided inter-school matches and only internal matches were held.
After Meiji Restoration
Judoka in Okinawa
After the Meiji Restoration, various kinds of Western sports were introduced into Japan. Playing sports was adopted as a school activity and matches between universities became popular. During the 1870s, track and field events, baseball, football, rugby union, cricket and ice skating were introduced. In 1911, an Austrian gave skiing instruction to the Japanese army. In those days, Western sports were played by few people, but through the educational system they spread throughout the country. Western sports were initially stressed as a form of mental discipline, but Japanese have now come to enjoy them as recreational activities.[1] Professional sports, the most famous being baseball which continues even today, started in late 1920s but a persistent rumors of bribes and a general attitude that sports should be for players or as a hobby persisted. Until after World War II when airing of sporting event on radio and television became common, matches between schools attracted a larger crowd.
There were also some minor sports like pingpong and fencing. They are not national sports, but are also mildly popular. Baseball and professional wrestling were staples of early television, and boxing and sumo were aired periodically. Initially, running live sport games were viewed with skepticism as it was believed that fans would rather stay at home if they could watch for free. But, as it actually increased interest and sold more merchandise, airing of sports on television became popular.
Judo has been recognized as an official event in the Olympic Games since the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. It is also one of the four main forms of amateur competitive wrestling practiced internationally today. Keirin racing has also become an Olympic Games event since the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
Motorsport has become quite popular in Japan especially during the latter third of the 20th century. Japanese car manufacturers use the many motorsports series as a form of marketing; the classic "race on Sunday sell on Monday" philosophy. Another factor that contributes to the popularity of motorsports is the use of cars as a form of personal expression. With cars costing less than homes in Japan, many youth spend a lot on their cars and consequently get involved in both amateur racing, both legal (on track) and illegal (street racing). Many Japanese racing drivers come from this background to find success in many racing series both in Japan and around the world. Drifting is a relatively new form of motorsport that is distinctly Japanese and is now being exported abroad.
School and Sport
National High School Baseball Championship at Koshien Stadium
There are opportunities to play various sports for all age, and school plays an important role in community. Kindergarten and lower elementary school students can play in a private sport club that can be joined for a moderate fee. Most martial arts can be started as little as 4 or 5 years old. When a student starts 5th grade, school offers free after-school activities for its students to participate. Middle and high schools also encourage their students to join school sport clubs.
Prefectural and national-wide level contests and tournaments are held every winter and summer for all sports. Some of the tournaments, such as National High School Baseball Championship have an inordinate level of popularity among fans as much as professional sports.
Facilities
There are 239,660 facilities for various sport activities in Japan.[3] 62.2% of these facilities were built for under secondary education, 3.8% are university's and college's facilities, 23.6% are public facilities, 3.5% are built by private companies for their employees and 7.0% are other uses.
The most common facilities are gymnasium (21.8%), multipurpose sports stadium (20.7%), outdoor swimming pool (14.1%), outdoor tennis court (9.3%), baseball and softball ground (4.5%).
International competition
2006 Olympic Champion Shizuka Arakawa skates at the 2009 Japan Open.
The second Monday of October is a national holiday of Japan, Health and Sports Day. This date, originally October 10, commemorates the opening day of the 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo. The event was documented in Tokyo Olympiad by filmmaker, Kon Ichikawa. Japan has hosted many international competitions including the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, 2002 FIFA World Cup, and the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic.
Japan's figure skating team at the 2009 World Team Trophy, including athletes from all disciplines of skating.
The 2019 Rugby World Cup, or 'RWC 2019' will be hosted by Japan. This was announced by RWCL Chairman Bernard Lapasett in Irish capital Dublin [4] at a special IRB meeting on 28 July 2009, along with the host of the 2015 Rugby World Cup, England.
Many major figure skating events are regularly held in Japan. The Grand Prix event, the NHK Trophy, has been held in various cities throughout Japan every year since 1979. Japan has also been host of the World Figure Skating Championships and ISU Grand Prix Final numerous times. In 2009, it held the first ISU World Team Trophy in Tokyo, a event set to take place every two years. Figure skating is also a commercial success in Japan, and made-for-television competitions and ice shows like the Japan Open are broadcast across the nation. Along with countries such as the United States, Canada, and Russia, Japan is widely considered to be a leading country in the sport.
Popular Sports
Many sports were imported and became popular. It is hard to find a sport that is not played in Japan. Some new sports were invented by changing elements of imported sports. Japanese board games include a form of Chess, known as Shogi. A board game called Go is also widely popular in the country.
Football
Association football is one of the most popular sports in Japan. The Japan Football Association (JFA), is the governing body of Japanese football. The JFA organises the men's, women's, and futsal national teams.
Football was introduced to Japan during the Meiji period by O-yatoi gaikokujin, foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government, along with many other foreign sports, like baseball. The first Japanese football club is considered to be Tokyo Shūkyū-dan, founded in 1917, which is now competing in the Tokyo Prefectural amateur league.
In the 1920s, football associations were organized and regional tournaments began in universities and high schools, especially in Tokyo. In the 1930s, the Japan national football team was organized and had a 3 - 3 tie with China for their first title at the Far Eastern Championship Games. The Japan national team also competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, the team had a first victory in an Olympic game with a 3 - 2 win over powerful Sweden.
The Japanese national football team is very successful at an international level, and has competed in the 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010 FIFA World Cups. Their best result was Round 2 in 2002 and 2010. The Japanese national team has also competed in six AFC Asian Cups, with the team being the Champions in 1992, 2000, 2004 and 2011 AFC Asian Cups. The team's highest ranking was 9th in the world in February 1998. Japan has competed in many other footballing events including the Confederations Cup, the East Asian Football Championship, and the Copa América.
The national team's colours are blue and white, Japan's main colours in most international sporting competitions.
Baseball
Baseball is one of the most popular sports in Japan. It was introduced to Japan in 1872 by Horace Wilson, who taught at the Kaisei School in Tokyo. The first baseball team was called the Shimbashi Athletic Club and was established in 1878. Baseball has been a popular sport ever since. It is called 野球 (やきゅう; yakyū) in Japanese, combining the characters for fielding and ball. Hiroshi Hiraoka, who was in United States studying engineering, introduced the game to his co-workers at Japan’s national railways in 1878. He and his co-workers created the first baseball team, the Shimbashi Athletic Club, and dominated other teams which popped up in Japan. However it wasn’t until the team from Tokyo University started playing that the sport took hold in Japanese culture. In 1896 the team defeated an American team from the Yokohama Country and Athletic Club, 29 to 4. It was the first recorded international baseball game in Asia. After that victory, several other universities in Japan adopted the sport and it quickly spread throughout Japan. Since then teams from Japan have traveled to learn from their American counterparts. Waseda University was one of the first teams to cross the ocean to improve their skills. In 1905 the team traveled to the United States where it played college teams from around the country. Other universities in Japan made similar trips, and U.S. teams traveled to Japan to play.
In 1913 and in 1922, American baseball stars visited Japan and played against university teams. They also held clinics on technique. Herb Hunter, a retired major league player, made eight trips to Japan from 1922 to 1932 to organize games and coaching clinics.
Baseball is also played in Japan's junior and senior high schools. Each year in March and August, two tournaments are held at Koshien Stadium for senior high school teams that win a prefecture tournament. In Japan, high school baseball (高校野球: kōkō yakyū) generally refers to the 2 annual baseball tournaments played by high schools nationwide culminating at a final showdown at Hanshin Kōshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Japan. They are organized by the Japan High School Baseball Federation in association with Mainichi Shimbun for the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament in the spring (also known as "Spring Kōshien") and Asahi Shimbun for the National High School Baseball Championship in the summer (also known as "Summer Kōshien").
These nationwide tournaments enjoy widespread popularity, arguably equal to or greater than professional baseball. Qualifying tournaments are often televised locally and each game of the final stage at Kōshien is televised nationally on NHK. The tournaments have become a national tradition, and large numbers of frenzied students and parents travel from hometowns to cheer for their local team. It is a common sight to see players walking off the field in tears after being eliminated from the tournament by a loss.
Rugby union
Rugby union is a popular Sport in Japan. The Japanese national rugby union team is controlled by the Japan Rugby Football Union, of which the national team has been to every Rugby World Cup since 1987. The only time when Japan won a match in the Rugby World Cup, was against Zimbabwe in 1991, of which that was one of Japan's first wins for its national team. The Japanese rugby team has been playing internationals since the 1930s. 'See Japan women's national rugby union team
History
The first recorded instance of Rugby being played in Japan was in 1874, when British sailors staged a game in Yokohama. The Sport was introduced to students at Keio university in 1899 by Professor Edward Bramwell Clarke and Tanaka Ginnosuke. Japan's first international match took place on 31 January 1932 when a trade delegation from Canada brought the Canada national rugby union team, who were also playing their first game. The Japanese won 9 - 8.
See Rugby union in Japan and Japan national rugby union team for more information on History of Japanese rugby.
Boxing
Cover of the first issue of Boxing Magazine in June 1956.
When Matthew Perry landed at Shimoda, Shizuoka, in 1854 soon after the Convention of Kanagawa, American sailors often played the sparring matches on board with their fists wrapped in the thin leathers. It was the first boxing conveyed to Japan. In addition, ōzeki Tsunekichi Koyanagi (小柳 常吉?) whom the Shogunate side summoned, a wrestler and a boxer both from the United States fought in different martial arts matches in front of Perry, and Koyanagi won against them. The first exhibition match named "Western Professional Sumo" (西洋大相撲?) was held in Tsukiji, Tokyo in 1887, then the first boxing gym Meriken Training Institute (メリケン練習所?) was established in Ishikawachō, Yokohama, Kanagawa by James Hōjō (ジェームス 北條?) and Toranosuke Saitō (齋藤 虎之助?) in 1896. After the first tutorial book Bōgeki Jizai Seiyō Kentōjutsu (防撃自在西洋拳闘術?) was issued in 1900, the other boxing gym International Jūken Club (国際柔拳倶楽部?) was opened in Mikage, Kobe by Kenji Kanō (嘉納 健治?) in 1909. However those were not genuine.[7][8] After learning boxing in San Francisco, California, the United States since 1906 as a professional boxer who was nicknamed "four-round king", Yūjirō Watanabe (渡辺 勇次郎?, aka "Father of Japanese Boxing") established Nippon Kentō Club (日本拳闘倶楽部?) in Shimomeguro, Meguro, Tokyo, on December 25, 1921. Sadayuki Ogino (荻野 貞行?, aka "Mother of Japanese Boxing") from Rikkyo University began boxing under Watanabe's management. Ogino (junior featherweight) and Kinzaburō Yokoyama (横山 金三郎?, featherweight) were recognized as the first Japanese champions by Nippon Kentō Club in 1922. In the first Japanese title matches for professional boxers held in April 1924, Fuji Okamoto in the flyweight division and Kintarō Usuda in the lightweight division became titleholders.
Simultaneously with National Student Kentō Federation (全国学生拳闘連盟?) whose president was Yūjirō Watanabe, the All-Japan Amateur Federation (全日本アマチュア連盟?) was established in July 1926. The first Japan championships for amateur boxers was held by Dai Nippon Kentōkai (大日本拳闘会?) in 1927. Fuji Okamoto in the bantamweight division and Kintarō Usuda in the welterweight division participated in the 1928 Summer Olympics. All-Japan Professional Kentō Association (全日本プロフェッショナル拳闘協会?) founded in February 1931, to perform the establishment of championships and the development of professional boxers, repeated division and dissolution to become the current Japan Pro Boxing Associations (日本プロボクシング協会?, abbreviated as JPBA). Tsuneo Horiguchi (堀口 恒男?, aka Piston Horiguchi, Saint Fist; 拳聖) from Waseda University played an active part in those days. Although Japan's boxing was interrupted by the Pacific War, the first Japan championships after the war was held in 1947. Then the Japan Boxing Commission was founded in order to prepare Yoshio Shirai's world title match. Its establishment was presented at the Tokyo Kaikan on April 21, 1952. Munehide Tanabe (田邊 宗英?, often written as 田辺 宗英) from Waseda University who was the founding president of Teiken Boxing Gym and the president of the Korakuen Stadium, was elected as its first commissioner. Shirai defeated the champion Dado Marino via a unanimous decision in the flyweight division on May 19 of that year, while being watched by 45,000 spectators at the Korakuen Stadium, to become the Japan's first world champion.The Japan Boxing Commission has joined the NBA (the current WBA) since January 7, 1954. In June 1956, the Boxing Magazine, the Japan's oldest surviving boxing journal, was launched by the Baseball Magazine Sha.
The Japan boxing commission set up the Japanese heavyweight title once in 1957, but that division did not last long because there were few heavyweight boxers in Japan at that time. Therefore they have recognized the titles and ratings only in thirteen weight divisions from minimumweight to middleweight for over fifty years. Although they added four weight divisions i.e. super middleweight, light heavyweight, cruiserweight and heavyweight, from September 2009, so far the ratings of those divisions are not settled yet.
As of October 2011, Japan produced sixty-eight male world champions and twelve female world champions. Japan's male world champions rarely risk their titles outside of Japan. The only fourteen champions did it, and the only three among them successfully defended their titles (Jiro Watanabe in South Korea in 1985, a Korean expatriate Masamori Tokuyama in South Korea in 2001, Toshiaki Nishioka in Mexico in 2009, and also Nishioka in the United States in 2011). That is because Japan's professional boxing has given priority to holding the fights in their own country to get paid television broadcast rights fees. Consequently, Japan's champions still remain internationally unrecognized.[23] However, as the boxing programs' audience ratings dropped, television stations are no longer aggressive in its production. The broadcast rights fees have decreased under the economic downturn.
Figure Skating
Currently all four reigning World Champion singles skaters are from Japan. Figure skating events in Japan are well attended and TV broadcasts attract a large audience. The major surge in its popularity has come mainly within the past decade with the success of its native skaters, but there have been avid fans in the country for international skaters for much longer. Skater Dorothy Hamill is known to have received pearls from the Japanese royal family in the 1970s. Figure Skaters in Japan also enjoy some level of celebrity—some like Mao Asada becoming household names and gaining large endorsements.
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