The Boardsailing Club won the 2022 Japan Universities Boardsailing Championship (Intercollegiate Championship) held at the Wakayama Sailing Center from February 24 to 26. This is the first time the club has won five championships in a row.
Nine races in total were held during this championship, and in the team division the total points of the three sailors in each race were aggregated. Meiji University was behind on the first day, but made a successful comeback on the second day. The team continued to lead on the final day, winning the championship by 13 points over second-placed Keio University.
With this victory, the club visited President DAIROKUNO Kosaku and others on March 25 to report on the results for the 2022 academic year, including a prize at the World Championships. The day’s visitors included General Manager KAWANO Akimasa (Professor of the School of Law), Head Coach KAKUBARI Hiroshi , and seven players of TANAKA Sho (4th year, School of Political Science and Economics), NAGAI Kanta (4th year, School of Political Science and Economics), KOBAYASHI Masashi (4th year, School of Arts and Letters), KAWAMURA Tsubasa (4th year, School of Science and Technology), TAKAHASHI Kunpei (4th year, School of Business Administration), HORIKOSHI Asuka (4th year, School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences) and NAITO Shinnosuke (3rd year, School of Law). There was also a video explanation of the competition. When the former captain TANAKA reported that the team had performed well in a major championship called Intercollegiate, President DAIROKUNO offered words of encouragement.
Comment from the sailors after the championship:
TANAKA Sho
I was able to lead the team as a captain to win the championship, even though it was held under tension that I had never felt before as a defending champion.
It has been a tough four years, but I’m glad we ended up with the best result at the very end. I will continue to support my juniors as an OB player and hope that they continue to win championships. Thank you for your support.
NAGAI Kanta
I’m glad that I was able to run at the leading position of the race on the first day and do my part. Also, I’m proud of the championship we won literally as a team.
KOBAYASHI Masashi
First of all, I’m relieved we won the championship. This has been a difficult year for the team as a whole, with few results. Even in such a difficult time, each of us faced challenges and continued to work hard, which I think is the result we got. I believe that my juniors can overcome the pressure that has grown with each successive championship, so I will continue to support them as an OB player.
NAITO Shinnosuke
For the past year, I’ve been practicing just thinking about contributing to win the fifth Intercollegiate Team Championship in a row, so I’m glad I could accomplish that.
My goal for the next year is to continue to win the Intercollegiate Team Championship to achieve our 10th victory in total in the history of the club. All members of the club are dedicated to the competitions. Thank you for your continued support.
※The school year is as of March 2023.
≪Japanese version≫
