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Japan Earthquake & Tsunami Emergency Relief

Japan Earthquake & Tsunami Emergency Relief (89th report)
The 58th Iwate Prefecture Inter-Junior High School Athletic Competition
Sumo event

[IWATE, Japan, 20 July 2011]

On 18 July, the 58th Iwate Prefecture Inter-Junior High School Athletic Competition sumo event was held at the sumo ring in the Prefectural Budokan. This historic competition draws considerable attention every year; a great number of people pile in from early morning to cheer the wrestlers on in spite of the sweltering summer heat.

 
On a hot summer day the students carefully rehearse their moves while gearing up for their matches.   The opening ceremony.

At the opening ceremony, after the opening declaration, the Chairman of the Iwate Prefecture Sumo Confederation delivered a congratulatory message: “The disaster took with it many victims from our prefecture. Everybody is working very hard to move forward. Many have endured mental scars and some have nearly lost hope. It is up to you all to exhibit the fruits of your training and show everyone our lion-heart spirit, so as to resonate a message of energy and bravery in Iwate residents.”

Hiromasa Iwama of Otsuchi Junior High School making a pledge for fair play.

Next, Hiromasa Iwama of Otsuchi Junior High School, the winner of last year’s competition and also a victim of the Great East Japan Earthquake, returned the championship flag and made a pledge for fair play, saying, “Our school was severely damaged in the disaster, but we pledge to present those that supported us with a good show and wrestle fair.” A champion flag was donated by local junior high school graduates as the real champion flag was washed away in the tsunami.

Without further ado the first group matches began. The first matches were loaded with excitement as players utilized an array of techniques to force their opponents down or push them from the sumo ring. The finals of Category 1 of the group competition pitted last year’s winners, Otsuchi Junior High School, against Nishine Daiichi Junior High School, who took second place last year. The instant that Nishine Daiichi sealed the victory the crowd erupted in a roar of applause in a message of awe and respect for the wrestlers.

The singles followed with a series of heated matches. Six students made it through the preliminaries, and there were two third-year students that scored four wins and one loss in the finals, so a second final match was held. Both the winning and losing player exited the ring in tears after a mighty, spirited performance.

Victory went to Tomoya Matsuura, a third-year student at Nishine Daiichi Junior High School. Tomoya told us how happy he felt, “I am absolutely thrilled. Before today I had never beaten Takuya Ohara of Otsuchi Junior High.”

Coming in second, Takuya Ohara of Otsuchi Junior High School told us how he felt after winning a ticket to nationals. “There were some hard times, but I am happy that I was able to practice and compete today. I took first place last year so my loss today is very frustrating.”

Hiromasa Iwama from Otsuchi Junior High will also being going to nationals. Hiromasa told us about how enthusiastic he is, commenting, “Thank you for your support. I was able to make it this far because of my friends. I intend to fight just as hard as students from other prefectures.”

Hiromasa’s mother, Sachiyo, also commented, “I did not think he would be able to go to nationals, so I am pleasantly surprised. Our house was washed away in the tsunami and we have been living in temporary housing, so not everything goes our way. That is why I am so happy that Hiromasa was able to make it this far.”

After the competition was finished, Mr. Sugiura, the sumo coach at Otsuchi Junior High School, told the students, “We didn’t make it as far as we hoped, but we did what we came here to do. Also, I would like to thank everyone for streaming the event live. We weren’t able to practice for about a month and a half after the disaster, so taking that into account, you all did very well today. We have only been able to work this hard because of the support from everyone in Japan. I intend to show how hard you guys work to our supporters.”

The Japan Committee for UNICEF has provided assistance for this event so that junior high school students in Iwate Prefecture’s disaster-stricken coastal areas have the same opportunity as other junior high school students to aim for the national competition, and have an equal opportunity to demonstrate the fruits of their training. The sumo event was broadcasted live on Ustream in efforts to encourage more support for the sumo team of Otsuchi Junior High School, a school that was heavily damaged in the Great East Japan Earthquake. People from all over Otsuchi Town gathered to cheer on their junior high school.

All photo credits: © Japan Committee for UNICEF

Current arrival status of relief supplies

Receiving
Prefecture
Type of Emergency
Supplies
Arrival
Date
Quantity Donating
Company
Comments
Miyagi Water 19 Mar. 12,288
bottles
VanaH Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Fukushima Water 22 Mar. 12,672
bottles
VanaH Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Miyagi Underwear for boys and girls 22 Mar. 200,000    
Iwate Underwear for boys and girls 23 Mar. 30,000    
Fukushima Water 23 Mar. 4,680
bottles
KIRIN MC DANONE WATERS Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Miyagi Children’s shoes 23 Mar. 10,000
pairs
   
Miyagi Children’s diapers 24 Mar. 80 packs P&G Japan  
Iwate Children’s underwear 24 Mar. 9,700    
Fukushima Water 24 Mar. 12,288
bottles
VanaH Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Iwate Shoes 26 Mar. 1,404 pairs Achilles Corporation  
Iwate Underwear for boys and girls 27 Mar. 28,266  
Iwate Boots 27 Mar. 7,462 pairs  
Iwate Wipes 28 Mar. 1,200 P&G Japan For babies
Miyagi Recreation kits
Early Childhood Development kits
2 Apr. 50 of each Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division
Iwate Recreation kits
Early Childhood Development kits
2 Apr. 50 of each Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division
Miyagi Book bags 6 Apr. 70 Nihon New Bag Chain
Iwate Book bags 6-7 Apr. 340 Seiban
Miyagi Schoolbags 8 Apr. 18,000 Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division
Iwate Schoolbags 8 Apr. 18,000 Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division
Miyagi Personal security buzzers (for crime prevention purposes) 8 Apr. 5,000
Iwate Personal security buzzers (for crime prevention purposes) 8 Apr. 5,000
Miyagi Minicar 8 Apr. 3 cars
Miyagi Nutritional supplements From early April 4,000 bottles
Fukushima Water 11 Apr. 1,536 bottles VanaH Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Miyagi Replenishments for recreation kits 12 Apr. 60 sets
Miyagi Miniature toy cars 12 Apr. Approx. 1,200 TAKARA TOMY
Sagamihara* Water 12 Apr. 12,288 bottles VanaH Co., Ltd. Two-liter plastic bottles
Miyagi Play mats 13 Apr. Two types; 80 of each type IKEA
Miyagi Drawing sets 13 Apr. 60 sets IKEA
Iwate Preschool-size chairs, tables and low tables 14 Apr. 75 chairs; 11 tables; 9 low tables Donated to preschools, primary schools, junior high schools and high schools in the disaster area as well as their new locations
Miyagi Mopeds 15 Apr. 5
Iwate Notebooks and stationery sets for primary and junior high school students 15. Apr. 16,700 sets
Miyagi 183 computers; 57 copiers and fax machines; 61 printers 18-21 Apr. Distributed to preschools, primary schools, junior high schools and high schools in the disaster area as well as their new locations
Fukushima Movable blackboards 21 Apr. 10
Fukushima Temporary toilets 22 Apr. 20
Iwate Geiger counters 28 Apr. 14 For schools in Soma City
Iwate Dressing room/ breastfeeding partition system 28 Apr. 21 sets
Saitama* Milk From late April Shelter in Futabamachi, Kazo City
Saitama* Yogurt From early May Danone Japan Shelter in Futabamachi, Kazo City
Iwate Color pencils (120 sets) and paint (240 sets) 13 May
Iwate Student lamps 14 May 15
Iwate Stationery sets 16 May 840 sets
Fukushima Lockers 16 May 22 sets For the Board of Education of Minamisoma City
Fukushima Computers 16 May 1 Ishikawa Town Board of Education
Miyagi 2 copiers; 2 computers; 2 printers May For Higashi-Matsushima Day-Care Center and Watari Day-Care Center
Iwate Water receiving tank, water purifier tank, water supply tank May construction May construction
Miyagi Solar-powered vaccine refrigerator 18 May
Fukushima Fans 30 May 112 Minamisoma City Board of Education
Fukushima Masks 30 May 100,000 Minamisoma City Board of Education
Iwate 1 copy machine 2 June
Saitama* Shoes 15 June 460 pairs Converse Footwear Co., Ltd.

-Number of UNICEF Children’s Mini Libraries distributed: Approximately 150,000 books to over 900 locations (as of 20 June 2011).
-Number of children that have participated in the UNICEF “Let’s Play! The Outdoors Playtime Project” in Fukushima Prefecture: Approximately 5,600 (as of 26 May)

*Areas receiving disaster victims.

*In certain cases some supplies may be taken from prefectural supply storage warehouses and distributed to shelters and disaster sites in other prefectures.
As of 9:00 a.m. on 17 June 2011 (compiled by the Information and Public Affairs Division).