world baseball
October 7, 2022
Participants in a futsal tournament
Text/Photos: NPO Japan Asian Baseball Team Laligurans (Yohei Kobayashi)
October is the month of festivals in Nepal. In the first half, Nepal’s biggest festival called “Dashain” lasts for about two weeks. During Dashain, many people return to their hometowns to spend time with their families and visit temples, much like New Year’s in Japan. At the end of October, a five-day festival called Tihar is held to celebrate wealth, prosperity, and harvest. Some Nepalese baseball teams hold baseball tournaments during the festival season, and this season is a time when the entire Nepali people are excited.
And this year, after the festival season is over, Qatar will host the soccer World Cup in November. Soccer is a popular sport in Nepal, and there is even a professional league. When it comes to the World Cup, many people watch the games on TV, and replica uniforms of participating countries are lined up in sports shops in the city. Soccer can be played with just one ball, and the rules are easy to understand. In Nepal, there are far more opportunities for both adults and children to come into contact with soccer than baseball.
As I have mentioned several times in my previous columns, the number of Nepalese living in Japan has been increasing in recent years, reaching approximately 97,000 at the end of last year. Naturally, soccer is a popular sport among Nepalese people living in Japan. There are many Nepalese living in Japan who came to Japan, where baseball is popular, and became interested in baseball. Meanwhile, on September 23rd, a futsal tournament was held by a team of Nepalese residents in Japan at FAB Futsal Park Nishikujo in Osaka City, and more than 200 Nepalis from all over the country gathered.
Explanation of the overview of baseball by our team staff
By the way, we believe that cooperation with Nepalese living in Japan is also important for the spread of baseball in Nepal, and we are taking various opportunities to introduce baseball to Nepalese people living in Japan. ing. And as part of that, we had an opportunity to introduce baseball to the participants during this tournament, and held a small baseball experience session. Events like this where many Nepalis living in Japan gather, especially sporting events, are great opportunities to strengthen ties with them. At the baseball experience session, after explaining the basics of baseball while showing a ball and a bat, the participants actually played catch ball classic (competition to see how many times you can catch a ball within a certain time) with a soft ball. I experienced the basics of baseball, such as throwing and catching a ball. It seems that most of the people touched a baseball for the first time, but everyone was playing catch in high spirits. Arjun Shrestha, representative of the Bentencho Football Club, which hosted the tournament, said, “We hope that we can do various things with the power of sports. This time it was a futsal tournament, but baseball I would like to make it even more exciting,” he said enthusiastically.
Catch ball classic by participants
By the way, while the futsal tournament was held this time, new movements are also beginning to appear. It is a concept to establish a baseball team by Nepali residents in Japan. The specifics are yet to come, but this initiative is being led by Nepalese residents in Japan, such as the aforementioned Arjun Shrestha and Isso Thapa (former captain of the Nepal national team and former Kansai Independent League player). As a matter of fact, some of the people who participated in the futsal tournament showed an interest in baseball by participating in the aforementioned baseball trial session. In this way, I think that Nepalese living in Japan working for baseball themselves will lead to the sustainable development of baseball in Nepal. According to one report, Japan is very popular as a study abroad destination in Nepal, and when looking at the number of international students in Japan by country, Nepal ranks third after China and Vietnam, and the increase is conspicuous compared to other countries. In addition, there are many people who come to work in Japan with qualifications for specific skills. About 15 years ago, we operated a Japanese language school and baseball office in Pokhara, Nepal, and since then, we expected the number of Nepalese living in Japan to increase as we do today. The number of Nepalese residing in Japan will continue to increase, and they have become a supporter of Japanese society. We will continue to cooperate with Nepalese residents in Japan.
