Photo/Illutration Yamanashi Gakuin High School students cheer on their team at Hanshin Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on March 18, the opening day of the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament. (Kazuhiko Matsunaga)

NISHINOMIYA, Hyogo Prefecture—Loud cheers and singing of teams’ fight songs returned to the national high school baseball tournament for the first time since the novel coronavirus pandemic began in 2020.

Tournament officials allowed spectators at Hanshin Koshien Stadium to scream and chant for their teams. They were also given the choice to wear facial masks or not.

The two-week National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament opened on March 18
with 36 teams competing.

The area for supporters of Okinawa Shogaku High School resonated with the sound of finger flutes.

“A finger flute is an integral part of Okinawan culture,” Kayo Kanemoto, a 52-year-old woman from Japan’s southernmost prefecture who now lives in Kobe, said during the game. “Without it, the cheers for the local team can never be lively.”

In 2021, when the school competed in the summer tournament, she cheered with a finger flute but in front of a TV. Spectators from the general public were not allowed to enter the stadium that year during the event.

In the second game on March 18, Koshien stadium was buzzing with the sound of clappers used by supporters of Kochi High School from Kochi Prefecture.

A cheering squad of about 80 students from the school performed the “yosakoi” dance, which represents the prefecture, accompanied by clappers.

Kochi High School won its first game of the spring tournament for the second straight year. But the March 18 victory was the first with the traditional style of support.

“I feel great because we could give the team a spirited cheer,” said Nagi Izumi, who led the Kochi cheering squad.

Related News