Sports Day

Last month my schools had their undokai, or sports day. There is an insane amount of organization and preparation that goes into this yearly school event. One of my bosses told me that watching an undokai was one of the best ways to gain insight into Japanese culture and values. I agree. I’ve mentioned them before, but related to sports day, they are...

Preparation

Both the students and teachers begin preparing months beforehand. In the final month before the event, every possible moment that is not occupied with classes is spent in preparation; every student is either practicing the opening ceremony dance routine, training for the sports events, or rehearsing their class's dance or song.

Group Success Over Individual Success

Each grade level is split into multiple homeroom classes. Its these homeroom classes that end up competing against each other. There is an intense amount of pressure the students place upon themselves to do well in the group competitions. Although there are individual events in the morning, they seem to care less about individual achievement on the whole, instead putting all of their effort into the competitions that get more points for their class. The most intense of these group competitions is the class relay race, more on that later.

Humility & Servitude

There are no janitors in Japanese schools. After all the events are done the winners, losers, students and teachers, all help to clean up, put away the equipment, and return the school grounds back to its normal state before they go home.

The Relay Race:

One of the fastest students in the school hurt himself during the morning 1.5k race. As a result, he was unable to run the class relay, and had to be replaced with another boy from his class. he cried for quite some time before the race, but once it started he cheered his class on. His team came in first, and as soon as his teammate crossed the finish line they ran to each other and hugged and cried, while the rest of the class came flooding around them, screaming in cheers.

In a land that prides itself on stoicism and withholding emotions, rarely will you see an adult cry, but all of my teachers were definitely misty-eyed. And anyone that knows me...well, I’m sure you know what I did.