Global warming may stop summertime school sports in Japan from 2060s
Without serious efforts to tackle global warming, students in the 2060s or later may no longer be able to engage in extracurricular outdoor sports in summer in most parts of Japan, according to predictions by a research team.
In the most pessimistic global warming scenario, the team's heat stress projections showed all or intense outdoor sporting activity would need to be avoided for some time between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. in July and August in areas apart from the northern main island of Hokkaido.
In Japan, extracurricular activities normally take place in the late afternoon, though the situation may differ during the summer vacation period.
The team from the National Institute for Environmental Studies and Waseda University in Tokyo created a projection model based on weather data including temperature and humidity as well as a measure of heat stress called the wet-bulb globe temperature, which takes into account factors such as wind and solar radiation, in 842 cities in Japan over a 12-year period.
It predicted hourly WBGT heat stress figures in 11 areas across the nation from the 2060s and 2080s, according to scenarios such as when greenhouse gas emissions are drastically cut as well as when emissions are not reduced because of a high dependence on fossil fuels.
In the most pessimistic of cases of global warming, the projected reading was 31 or more, meaning outside sporting activity should be avoided in principle under the country's guidelines, in four regions, covering Shikoku, northern and southern Kyushu, and Okinawa, for some time between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. in July and August.
A heat stress index at or above 31 roughly corresponds to 35 C or higher in air temperature.
Six areas, from Tohoku to Chugoku, had readings between 28 and 31, meaning intense sporting activity should be avoided.
Between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., none of the regions had figures of 31 or above, but the projections showed intense sports should be avoided in the same hours in August in all regions apart from Hokkaido.
Takahiro Oyama, researcher at the institute's Center for Climate Change Adaptation, said the results were indicative of how people's daily lives will change as global warming progresses. "We need to start thinking about how future club activities should be."
The annual Koshien national high school baseball tournament has already adopted a two-session system to reduce the negative impact of the summer heat, dividing some of the schedule into morning and late afternoon games.
If the warming of the planet continues, it could affect more than just school sports, leading to time and venue changes, experts said.
Related coverage:
Japan logs its hottest year on record in 2024 for 2nd straight year
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Kyodo News
3 hours ago
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: July 28, 2025
TOKYO - The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- SDF request led to nuclear threat scenario in Japan-U.S. exercise TOKYO - The Japanese Self-Defense Forces strongly urged the U.S. military during a joint command post exercise last year to mirror any nuclear threat made by China with one of its own, government sources said Sunday. The United States ultimately complied with the request in the simulation exercise that envisioned a potential invasion of Taiwan by Beijing, raising concerns that Japan's push to invoke nuclear deterrence could exacerbate tensions between the United States and China. ---------- U.S., EU clinch trade deal setting 15% tariff on most European goods TURNBERRY, Scotland - The United States on Sunday clinched a trade agreement with the European Union, setting a 15 percent across-the-board tariff on cars and most other goods from the 27-member bloc, President Donald Trump said, calling the deal "very satisfactory to both sides." Under the agreement, the EU will buy $750 billion worth of American energy and invest an additional $600 billion in the world's largest economy, Trump said following a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland. ---------- Baseball: Ichiro reflects on legendary career in Hall of Fame speech COOPERSTOWN, New York - Ichiro Suzuki, the first Japanese member of the U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame, shared his inspiration to play in the majors while thanking his family and teammates in his induction speech Sunday. The former Seattle Mariners outfielder began his speech in Cooperstown, New York, by calling himself a third-time rookie, now as a member of the hall, after being a rookie in Japan in 1992 and a major league rookie in 2001 at age 27. ---------- Nobel panel, A-bomb survivors urge youth to carry torch of peace TOKYO - The Norwegian Nobel Committee and Nihon Hidankyo, Japan's leading group of atomic bomb survivors, jointly urged younger generations at an event Sunday in Tokyo to "carry the torch" for peace by listening to the stories of survivors and keeping up the momentum for nuclear disarmament. "The nuclear taboo is under threat, and the hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors) are aging. In not too many years, we will no longer have the testimonies of those who were there, those who could tell this story," said Norwegian Nobel Committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes. ---------- 3 suspected drones intruded on premises of Japan nuclear complex TOKYO - Three bright objects believed to be drones intruded on the premises of the Genkai nuclear power complex in southwestern Japan, the country's nuclear watchdog said Sunday, correcting its statement the previous day that drones had been spotted. The Nuclear Regulation Authority said Saturday it was informed of the incident by Kyushu Electric Power Co., the operator of the four-reactor Genkai Nuclear Power Station. ---------- U.S. brokers cease-fire after Cambodia, Thailand border clashes WASHINGTON/BANGKOK - The leaders of Cambodia and Thailand have agreed to meet immediately and work on a cease-fire following cross-border attacks, U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday after speaking with them by phone. Clashes between Thailand and Cambodia in a disputed border area have continued since Thursday, leaving several people dead including civilians. Each side has accused the other of initiating the fighting. ---------- Video: Fireworks light up summer skies over Tokyo's Sumida River
Asahi Shimbun
5 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Soft tennis champion Yuta Funemizu takes on U.S. pickleball
With new courts to conquer, Japanese soft tennis champion Yuta Funemizu is taking his championship game to U.S. pickleball. Funemizu, 31, has a sterling record in soft tennis, which is a variant of the sport using a lighter, softer ball and usually lighter and less tightly strung rackets. Funemizu was a Waseda University student when he played for the Japanese national team, which captured a world championship. As a working adult, he played for the powerhouse Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corp., recently renamed NTT West Inc., and made a name for himself as a leading professional player. But the sorrows and lack of recognition that came with being a star in a minor sport never really left him. 'We were never in the spotlight, even after winning 10 successive victories in the Japan (soft tennis) league,' Funemizu said. Funemizu was soon to turn 30 when Soichiro Minami, founder of the job transfer service operator BizReach Inc., introduced him to pickleball, which was surging in popularity in the United States. He was thus initiated to this fateful 'job transfer.' Pickleball players use 'paddles,' resembling oversized table tennis paddles, to hit a perforated plastic ball toward each other on a roughly badminton-size court. Invented in the United States in the 1960s, the sport saw a sharp rise in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic. The main draw of pickleball lies in its ease, which allows players to enjoy rallying even as beginners. Some say more than 50 million people have played pickleball in the United States, where Major League Pickleball, a professional league, was founded in 2021. 'I found the sport so appealing that I decided it was worthwhile to stake my life on going after it,' Funemizu said. He enlisted Minami's help to go to the United States in January last year. 'I will compete in more matches than anybody else and acquire skills in a year that it would normally take three or four years to master,' Funemizu said he thought at the time. A team selected him during a draft in March this year, which made him the first Japanese major leaguer in the sport. Funemizu operates a YouTube channel, where he openly shares his impatience at having to sit out matches. He has also started a crowdfunding project for covering his tour expenses. 'I hope my donors will enjoy, with me, this journey I am making to the world's top place,' Funemizu said. The sheer grandeur and plainness of his dream appear likely to endear him to many a supporter.
Japan Today
a day ago
- Japan Today
'Oddball' Ichiro faced hardship head-on in decorated career
Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki gives an interview in Kobe on June 23, 2025. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo baseball Reflecting on his journey to the Baseball Hall of Fame, Ichiro Suzuki said choosing the difficult path meant he confronted challenges head-on, allowing him to develop his famed mental strength. When he was in the third year of elementary school, Ichiro began to work out with his father every afternoon instead of playing with friends. "My father said to me, 'If you want to become a professional ballplayer, you don't have time to play after school. I'll practice with you if you can continue every day,' so my father and I promised to do that," the Seattle Mariners icon said in a recent interview with Kyodo News. "Once it began, it was quite painful for an elementary school kid, but my goal was clear since then." For high school baseball in his native Aichi Prefecture, Ichiro, who is widely known by just his first name, picked a military-style life in Aikodai Meiden's dormitory over Toho, where he could stay at the team's manager's house. He said dormitory life was stricter and harder than he expected, describing it as "a real hell." "The same goes for my decision to go to America. Everyone thought I was headed on a big adventure. Even looking back now, it was a tough decision," Ichiro said. He initially wanted to go pro as a pitcher before a traffic accident in his second year of high school led him in a different direction. While playing first base during his rehabilitation, he developed a case of the "yips" that made him reconsider playing on the mound. "It turned out to be good, since I was able to concentrate on being a position player, but the time I spent worrying about whether I would become a pro was so stressful, and I felt desperate," Ichiro said. "I was lucky enough to be drafted (by the Orix BlueWave), but it wasn't until around 1998 that I overcame (the yips). It took me six to seven years, but overcoming the symptoms that are hard for anyone to beat gave me a lot of confidence." In 2001, Ichiro defied the preseason odds to win both the American League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards, hitting .350 and stealing 56 bases for the Mariners. Ichiro said he endured setbacks when his 200-hit streak ended after 10 seasons and when his move to the New York Yankees in 2012 saw him lose his status as a regular starter. Asked how he managed to persevere during those periods, Ichiro said, "I can't digest those feelings, so I had no choice but to keep playing despite feeling frustrated." Ichiro retired as a Mariner in 2019 after having 1,278 hits in nine seasons in Japan and 3,089 hits in his 19-year major league career. Meanwhile, Ichiro has questioned today's data-driven game and the increasing lack of individuality. "It's getting harder to see players' true feelings. It seems like many are prioritizing not getting involved in any trouble (by making textbook comments). It's like there's no praise or criticism," he said. After his retirement, Ichiro has visited high schools, including Aikodai Meiden, to instruct young players and has pitched in games against female all-star teams. His team Kobe Chiben is scheduled to play a game against a girls' high-school all-star team at Vantelin Dome Nagoya on Aug. 31. The game will also feature other former major leaguers Hideki Matsui, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Kazuo Matsui. In early June, Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima's death shocked the country. His former Yomiuri Giants teammate and Nippon Professional Baseball all-time home run leader Sadaharu Oh reflected that Nagashima kept moving forward and never retreated throughout his life. Asked if he can relate, Ichiro said, "I would say: I follow my own will and act based on my belief. My image is 'I'm moving forward to the horizon.' Some people say 'they are climbing to new heights.' I haven't had that kind of feeling since my playing days." "Ideally, I want to run just a little ahead of other people. But if I'm too far ahead, then I'll end up looking like an oddball." © KYODO
