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Sumo Wrestler Churanoumi (Yup, That Name Says it All)
We haven’t been following sumo lately but now we have a very BIG (no pun intended) reason to watch! Churanoumi Yoshihisa, is you guessed it (for those who noticed the Okinawan word chura), a sumo wrestler from Okinawa (Uruma City). Here’s his profile on the official Japan Sumo Association page. The next tournament starts this…
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Speaking of the Los Angeles Dodgers
As a bonus to one of our recent posts (Okinawa Everywhere All at Once), we wrote a bit about a large number of Japanese pro baseball players from Okinawa to kind of tie it in with the big baseball news of Otani Shohei signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Now their manager, Dave Roberts, who…
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Okinawa Everywhere All at Once
A long time dream come true to see my hero pro cyclist Arashiro Yukiya (if you don’t know him, he is the 🐐 [G.O.A.T. means greatest of all time] in all of Asian cycling and he’s from Ishigaki Island) in a road race during the Saitama Criterium in Japan. Although I wasn’t able to meet…
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When Worlds Collide Cycling and Music
Pro cycling team Bahrain Victorious was recently in Japan for the Japan Cup Cycle Road Race in Utsunomiya and for their reception singer-songwriter Ishigaki Yu (from Yanawaraba) performed! As you may know we’re big time cycling fans and our favorite road race cyclist is the 🐐 (G.O.A.T.) Arashiro Yukiya who is on the Bahrain team.…
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Miyagi Hiroya Leads the Orix Buffaloes to the Japan Series! (Baseball)
The Orix Buffaloes (I knew them as the Blue Wave!) made it the the Japan Series (like USA’s World Series) with a great effort from Okinawan pitcher Miyagi Hiroya (#13) and winning the Pacific League Climax Series versus the Lotte Marines. They go on to challenge Hanshin Tigers. By the way, the Orix Buffaloes has…
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Cheering for Dōan Ritsu in FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
(via Twitter) Fans of soccer had an Okinawa connection as we cheered on star midfielder Dōan Ritsu in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 who scored 2 goals playing for Team Japan. Ritsu’s grandfather is from Irabu Island but now lives in Osaka. Ritsu currently plays for SC Freiburg.
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Seibu Lions’s Kaima Taira Breaks NPB Record
Saitama Seibu Lions pitcher Taira Kaima broke a 15-year-old Nippon Pro Baseball (NPB) record with his 39th straight shutout appearance. The 21-year-old right-handed pitcher is from Ishigaki and has also be selected to be on the Japan Olympics baseball team.
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Koh Flippin with the Ryukyu Golden Kings
My Twitter feed exploded with news of Koh Flippin joining the Ryukyu Golden Kings team. The 25 year old 6’2″ Torrance, California native (his mother is from Naha) comes to the Kings from the Chiba Jets and plays guard. I love his tweet announcing his joining the Kings: “Haisai! I’m Koh Flippin. Yutashiku!!” A comment…
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Orix Buffaloes Miyagi Hiroya
I wonder if there is any other team in NPB that has as many players from Okinawa that the Orix Buffaloes has. There’s pitcher Higa Motoki (drafted 2nd in 2009), infielder Oshiro Koji (drafted 3rd in 2015), infielder Gibo Sho (drafted 5th in 2018), and then there’s 19-year old pitcher Miyagi Hiroya who was drafted…
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FC Ryukyu Football/Soccer Team
Previously we’ve introduced Ryukyu Blue Waves (baseball) and Ryukyu Golden Kings (basketball), and now it’s time to introduce Okinawa’s professional football (soccer) team FC Ryukyu. Currently in the second division J2 League (since 2018), the team was founded in 2003 and of the professional sports teams in Okinawa, I think they have the coolest uniform.…
Karakui 