Please enter search keywords
学生生活
In August, the APU Baseball Club invited the high school baseball club of Royal College, Sri Lanka, to an international baseball exchange activity at APU. In 2015, one of the APU club members from Sri Lanka voiced his desire to develop baseball culture in Sri Lanka the same way it has been developed in Japan. Since then, the APU Baseball Club has gone on two tours in Sri Lanka. There, the club contributed to baseball culture in Sri Lanka, such as running baseball clinics and donating gloves, bats and other baseball equipment to children there who will usher in the future of baseball in the country. The APU Baseball Club sought to continue the exchange with the Royal College club, inviting those students to experience baseball in Japan. This marks the third year of exchange between the APU and Royal College clubs. The one week program enabled the Sri Lankan students to practice and play exhibition matches with baseball teams in Oita Prefecture, go sightseeing in the prefecture, and interact with people in the region and with Japanese culture on top of playing baseball with the APU club.
The members of Royal College’s baseball club and their coach arrived at Fukuoka Airport on August 23. Right after getting off of the plane, their eyes fixated on the TVs in the airport playing a live broadcast of the Koshien nationwide high school baseball tournament.
After the students arrived at APU, Open Campus student staff and Global Admissions Student Staff (GASS) gave them a tour of campus.
On the second day of their visit to Japan, the members of Royal College’s baseball team took part in Japanese-style training with the APU Baseball Club. They experienced Japanese training methods such as calling out to each other and running with all members of the team keeping step. The Royal College’s club members enthusiastically carried out the training methods that they are not normally accustomed to. After training concluded, the members of both clubs made Japanese-style curry together, which the Sri Lankan students experienced for the first time.
At the Daihatsu Arena in Oita Prefecture’s Nakatsu City, the Sri Lankan students took part in joint training with the baseball team of Kyushu Sogo Sports College, a vocational school in Nakatsu, and played an exhibition match with them. While the Royal College baseball club lost the match 11-2, they enjoyed playing against a Japanese baseball team for the first time. On their return from the exhibition match, the Sri Lankan students stopped at Usa Jingu Shrine in Usa City, Oita Prefecture.
Unfortunately, the fourth day of the Sri Lankan students’ visit was marred by rain. As such, their scheduled match was cancelled, and they went shopping at a sporting goods store instead. As there are no such stores that carry baseball equipment in Sri Lanka, the students went about their shopping with great excitement, marveling at the rows and rows of brand-new baseball equipment available for purchase. For dinner, the students experienced summer in Japan by eating somen noodles, a classic Japanese summer dish.
On this day, the Sri Lankan students took a break to visit the Yufuin Hot Springs and the Kokone Yume Otsuruhashi Suspension Bridge. This experience, one that they cannot have in their home country, was arranged to thank the students for taking the time to come all the way to Japan from Sri Lanka.
As the program approached its end, the Sri Lankan students played their first exhibition match against the APU Baseball Team at Betsudai Kosan Stadium in Oita City.
On the final day of the program, the Sri Lankan students enjoyed Beppu City has by visiting the Hells of Beppu and going sightseeing elsewhere in the city. They left for Fukuoka airport that evening.
“I felt that we need to use this program as a vehicle for continuing to provide ongoing assistance in the future. At the sporting goods store that we visited, I saw how the Sri Lankan high school students looked at the merchandise with a gleam in their eyes, which gave me a renewed sense of them not having enough baseball equipment.
Looking at the smiles and attitude of the students, I felt a sense of joy, and I felt that I wanted to do more to support them. The program also gave us an opportunity to take another look at how we play baseball by illustrating the differences between the Sri Lankan students and us Japanese, such as how they enjoy the sport and how they are keen on taking care of their equipment.
This program gave me a sense of just fortunate baseball players are in Japan. When I go to club activities, I bring two mitts: a catcher’s mitt and a fielder’s mitt. The Sri Lankan high school students used the single mitt that each of them had in their possession with great care. Having witnessed that kind of situation with my own eyes, I felt gratitude towards the situation I find myself in as well as the desire to continue playing baseball from here on out.
By enabling us to continue our exchange with Sri Lankan students, this program proved meaningful for us.”
It was an awesome experience to visit Japan for the cultural and baseball exchange program with APU. We learned many important tactics and practices of baseball and also a lot about the Japanese culture as well. We participated in cooking sessions, hot water bath sessions, and visited many interesting places thanks to the APU baseball team.
Copyright (c) 2016 Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University
