It looks like Toa Yamaguchi(透空), a student at Imazu Junior High School, has been selected to represent Hyogo Prefecture in short track speed skating at the 79th “2025 Winter National Sports Festival.”
(Info provided by KAZU@Nishitsu SP)
The very fresh-faced Toa Yamaguchi is 14 years old. He’s a third-year student at Imazu Junior High School. And he has some seriously impressive results〜
He was selected as Hyogo’s representative for the National Sports Festival. By the way, it seems the Kokutai changed its name to Kokuspo in 2024. Did you know that〜?
There’s also a banner at Imazu Junior High School celebrating Yamaguchi’s victory at an international competition. Maekawa is amazing too!
And that Toa Yamaguchi,
made a courtesy visit to the mayor of Nishinomiya on Tuesday, December 10!
This time, five athletes took part. As you’d expect for a courtesy visit to the mayor, everyone’s expressions were so stiff〜f.
From the right: Yuta Fuchigami (3rd year high school), Akemi Ishikawa (1st year high school), Riya Tanaka (1st year high school), Toa Yamaguchi (3rd year junior high school), and Yunna Koya (1st year junior high school)
Then Mayor Ishii asked, “This is really a totally random question, but… is that(skating) always done counterclockwise??”
And the mood suddenly relaxed〜. The conversation turned into something like, “Maybe horse racing is the only thing that goes clockwise〜,” and it was kind of funny lol
The five people who made the courtesy visit are members of the speed skating and short track team “Hyogo SSC.” Four of them live in Nishinomiya.
The members of this Hyogo SSC are incredibly strong, winning medal after medal at competitions in Japan and overseas. The mayor looked happy too〜
Skating is generally considered to favor colder regions, but Hyogo Prefecture is exceptionally strong. There are three reasons!
First! Coach Yuko Koya, who used to coach top Korean athletes(her daughter here is also an athlete), has been providing top-level coaching here for the past six years, and
Second! Nishinomiya has the “Hyogo Nishinomiya Ice Arena,” where you can skate all year round!! It’s the only one in Hyogo Prefecture〜. Kihira, who is from Nishinomiya, has used it, and Olympic bronze medalist Kaori Sakamoto uses it too
And then, this
Third! Did you know that Henri, the financier brand, is also one reason Hyogo is so strong?
Why? That’s what you’re probably thinking.
This↓
Every year, Henri Charpentier holds a skating experience school, and
Of the five people who made the courtesy visit this time, three started skating because of Henri’s skating experience event. A lot of you may remember flyers being handed out at elementary schools
Yamaguchi, a Nishinomiya kid himself, also said he found out about Henri’s trial event in second grade and started ice skating. Apparently, at first his feet hurt so much that he cried.
But after joining the team and keeping at it, it became fun, and that brought him to where he is now! That’s what he told us〜. Nishinomiya City Council member Masatake Tanaka, seen in the background, is actually the president of the Hyogo Skating Federation〜
The person who helped arrange this courtesy visit was Nishinomiya City Council member Junjiro Osako, who has twice become the Lucky Man at Nishinomiya Shrine. It’s nice when one athlete connects other athletes
Activity Report Details | Toa Yamaguchi | His final All as a junior high school student
