The 6th Hokuryu Kendama Festival (Hokuryu Town, Hokkaido) Children and adults can interact and connect together, uniting their hearts and having fun to the fullest!

Friday, June 28, 2024

The 6th Hokuryu Kendama Festival, sponsored by the Hokuryu Kendama Club (Representative: Kishi Naoki), was held at the Hokuryu Town Community Center Large Hall from 6:00 PM on Tuesday, June 25th.

The 6th Hokuryu Kendama Festival

Participants included members of the Hokuryu Kendama Club, as well as 24 children and 7 adults from Amuryu Town, Numata Town, Asahikawa City, and other areas.

Adults and children worked together, were full of energy, and everyone had a blast playing the games.

A message from Representative Naoki Kishi

"Thank you for coming to the 6th Hokuryu Kendama Festival today. Today, Takeru-kun came all the way from Asahikawa. Thank you for coming all the way. And also from Asahikawa,Mr. Masaki Akamatsu JOHN" is also participating.

Today we will be featuring "Kissy," "Kato-san," and "Mr. John," so please look forward to it.

Today's competitions are "Sitting Kendama Showdown," "Tube Kendama Relay," and "How Many Can You Put On A Show." Points are awarded for each competition, and the highest total score determines the ranking.

Participants will be divided into four teams: "Dragon," "Watermelon," "Melon," and "Rice." Prizes will be awarded based on ranking. The prizes are sweets, and the winning team will receive the most. Everyone, do your best to win!

Today's rule is,

1. Please don't fight within the team. Let's work together and aim for first place.
2. When the opposing team is playing, please cheer them on.

"Everyone, do your best," said Representative Kishi, also known as Kissy.

Greetings from Professor John Masateru Akamatsu

"The last time I visited was in late January, and I was glad to see everyone enthusiastically trying their hand at Kendama.
This is the sixth tournament since the Hokuryu Kendama Club started, and the third year since its inception.

This time, Kissy came up with the idea for a competition, and in addition to the kendama techniques, I think everyone will get a real feel for how difficult it is to play kendama while sitting down.

And as Kissy said earlier, when the people around you are playing, be sure to watch and cheer them on, saying, "Go for it!"

Have fun today and do your best to win," said Teacher JOHN.

Sitting Kendama Showdown

Four teams (six people + one adult per team) will take turns competing in 13 different categories, and points will be awarded to those who complete the competition.

　
"Yes!" "Yes!" "Wow, that's it!"
"Amazing!" "Nice!" "I did it!" "Amazing!"
"Ahh, that was close!" "Take a slow, deep breath."

They cheer each other on, shout encouragement, and boldly take on the challenge of performing tricks!
Advice and cheers from Mr. JOHN and Kissy echo throughout the room.

Tsutsuken Relay

Players place a ball in the tube of the Tsutsuken, run around the cones, and pass the ball to the next runner without dropping it, competing for the fastest time until the final runner.

Each team worked well together, got along well and passed the ball smoothly!

How many will ride? SHOW

The entire team tries to guess how many items the adults can fit on the five-piece platter, and if they guess correctly they get points.

Four adults, one from each of the four teams, Kissy, Kato-san, John-sensei, and the principal of Shinryu Elementary School, who came to offer encouragement, also took on the challenge!!!

The joy of the teams who got their predictions right and the disappointment of the teams who got them wrong were all felt by both teams, and everyone had a blast!!!

Announcement of Results

• Victory:Rice Team (71 points)
• 2nd place:Dragon Team (69 points)
• 3rd place:Watermelon Team (62 points)
• 4th place:Melon Team (53 points)

Everyone worked hard together and did a great job! Congratulations!
Each team was beaming with smiles as they received their prizes (sweets)!

Greetings from Representative Kishi

"In Hokkaido, there are still only a handful of Kendama clubs. These include Sapporo, Asahikawa, Kamishihoro, Kitami, and Atsuma. The Hokuryu Kendama Club is becoming more well-known nationwide.

Because everyone is involved in various activities, we have been invited to give instruction in neighboring towns in Kita Sorachi and hold Kendama workshops.
Members of the Hokuryu Kendama Club come to play there, and we are planning to hold several events this year as well, so I hope you will come and join us.

This year, it has been decided that a Kendama event will be held at Himawari no Sato on Sunday, August 4th (everyone claps their hands!!!).
Everyone at the Hokuryu Kendama Club wants to liven up the event at Himawari no Sato. What do you all think? (Everyone: Applause!!!)
In case of rain, the event will be held in a larger space within Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen.

"Thank you to everyone who helped out today. We were able to successfully complete the 6th event. Finally, I would like to ask for some advice from Professor John," said Representative Kishi.

A word from Professor JOHN

"Thank you all for your hard work. Who found today's 'Sitting Kendama Showdown' difficult? It's a difficult game.

When playing Kendama while standing, you can see how much you use your lower body, such as your knees and stomach, rather than your upper body, which is what makes this sport, which is played while sitting, so effective.

I think it's important to realize (understand) that by doing this, you are using your lower body, such as your hips, when you stand.

I think that carefully thinking about how you are using your hips and knees will help you improve your level in the future.

There will be a rush of events coming up as we approach summer.

This Saturday I will be participating in an interdisciplinary event at Dohto University in Kitahiroshima. At the end of July I will be participating in a surfing event in Atsuma Town. On Sunday, August 4th there will be an event at Himawari no Sato. I have been offered an event at AEON Mall Sapporo Naebo on Saturday, August 17th. In September I am planning to participate in an event at an abandoned school in Pippu Town. I hope to do various things during the summer holidays so that I can play on the stage at the event.
First of all, Kissy has a lot of plans for the event at Hokuryu Sunflower Village in August, so please come and join us!

"Have fun and keep working hard to improve your skills. Thank you for today," said Mr. John.

It's a team competition where individual kendama skills are utilized to win as a team! We send our boundless love, gratitude, and prayers to the Hokuryu Kendama Club Tournament, where children and adults can interact and connect together, united in spirit and having fun to the fullest...

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Photos (72 photos) from the 6th Hokuryu Kendama Festival (Hokuryu Town, Hokkaido) can be found here >>

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