Way better than watching a bunch of human children run around.
Every year in October schools across Japan hold what in English tends to be called “Sports Day.” Known as undōkai or taiikukai in Japanese, this is a day on which students participate in all sorts of athletic events in order to win glory for their respective teams. However, for five years mascot characters (sometimes referred to as yurukyara) from all over Japan have been gathering in Tochigi Prefecture to hold their own extremely cute and comical version of Sports Day.
The poster for Otawara City’s 2018 yurukyara Sports Day
Called the National Local Mascot Sports Day Competition (Zenkoku Gotōchi Kyarakuta Supōtsu Taikai), this year the event took place on October 7 at the Tochigi North Gymnasium in the city of Otawara.
The event featured a total of 30 mascot characters from across Japan participating in a number of athletic events, including mukade kyōsō (literally meaning “centipede race,” this is like a three-legged race but with many more participants), darumesan ga koronda (the equivalent of Red Light, Green Light, 1, 2, 3!), and tamaire (a game in which participants must throw balls into baskets).
Among the mascots in attendance were Otawara City’s very own mascot Yoichikun, Gunma Prefecture’s beloved Gunmachan, Takata no Yumechan from Rikuzentakata City in Iwate Prefecture, the energetic pear fairy from Funabashi City in Chiba Prefecture Funassy, and many more.
There were also plenty of opportunities for children to interact with the mascots and take pictures with them. And of course, there was plenty of dancing (to the tune of Japanese “boy band” Da Pump’s hit song “U.S.A.,” no less!).
Check out the video below to see some of the highlights from this year’s event.
And if you want to watch even more mascot craziness, here’s a video of the 2016 mascot Sports Day.
Source: Shinotsuke Original Online News
Image: ゆるキャラたちの運動会 大田原 (Shinotsuke Original Online News)
