125th Anniversary Ceremony of the Rugby Football Club Held

Photo: Scene from the symposium

In 2024, the Keio University Athletic Association Rugby Football Club, founded in 1899 (Meiji 32), celebrated its 125th anniversary. To commemorate this, the "Keio University Athletic Association Rugby Football Club 125th Anniversary Ceremony" was held on November 24 last year at the Fujiwara Hiroshi Hall in Hiyoshi. This was followed by the "Keio University Athletic Association Rugby Football Club 125th Anniversary Appreciation Gathering" at the student cafeteria to express gratitude to those who have guided the club over the past 125 years.

On the day, we welcomed President Itoh, Vice-President Yamauchi, Vice-President Okada, Athletic Association Director Komotori, and Athletic Association Vice Principal Okodono from Keio University. In addition, many guests attended, including executives from the Japan Rugby Football Union, Kanto Rugby Football Union, and Kanagawa Prefecture Rugby Football Union; executives from the alumni associations of rival schools with whom we have long competed; and executives from various Athletic Association alumni associations, including Tsushima, Chairman of the Keio University Athletic Association Alumni Association. A total of approximately 700 people gathered for the grand event, including members of the KRC (the Rugby Football Club's fan organization), members of the Kokukokai (the alumni organization), executives from affiliated schools, students, and parents.

The ceremony was moderated by Mr. Suguro, an NHK announcer and alumnus of the Juku Rugby Football Club.

Following the opening remarks by Chairman Kawakami of the Kokukokai, President Itoh gave a warm congratulatory speech covering the history of the Rugby Football Club and his own rugby experiences. Mr. Tsuchida, President of the Japan Rugby Football Union, provided a video message filled with expectations for Keio Rugby, and Chairman Terabayashi of the Waseda Rugby Club gave a passionate message and congratulatory speech as a long-time rival school.

It is said that the origins of Japanese rugby lie in the introduction of rugby to Keio University students in 1899 by Edward Bramwell Clarke, an English instructor at Keio University, and Ginnosuke Tanaka, who had studied in the UK, leading to the founding of the Rugby Football Club at Keio University.

In planning the 125th anniversary ceremony, we felt that as the root school of Japanese rugby, we should not treat the 125th anniversary as a mere ceremony or celebration. Instead, we planned a symposium as an opportunity to humbly reconsider the value of Japanese rugby—particularly university rugby—and to think about the future development of the sport, hoping to offer certain recommendations.

To this end, we received cooperation from experts active in various fields (including corporate executives who played rugby, corporate executives who are parents, the head coach of the Japan national team, the president of the Rugby Union, mental coaches for the national team, sports psychologists, sports journalists, and rugby journalists). We created an opening movie that presented their opinions on rugby from a wide range of perspectives and proposed what the future of rugby should look like, the goals university rugby should aim for, and what the challenges are.

The supervision of the movie was handled by Mr. Fukuzawa, a TBS director who is an alumnus of the Rugby Football Club and was a member of the 1986 Keio University Rugby Football Club team that won the only national championship in the club's history.

Following this, a symposium titled "Toward the Revitalization of Future University Rugby: What Contributions Should Each School Make to University Rugby?" was held. The symposium was attended by former Teikyo University coach Iwade, former Waseda University coach Sagara, former Meiji University coach Tanaka, and from Keio, Mr. Hirose, Assistant Team Director of the Japan national team. Various discussions were held with sports writer Mr. Ikushima serving as the facilitator.

During the discussion, several issues were raised, such as: the further development of university rugby is essential for the development of Japanese rugby; enhancing the appeal of university rugby requires further reflecting the charm of the sport and the unique colors of each team; we must act with a sense of crisis toward the future; and in addition to the educational value of promoting personal growth through rugby, we should aim to create a new fan base by involving current players, alumni, and the university to help people learn about rugby through various creative efforts.

In the second half of the ceremony, a commemorative performance of "Pomp and Circumstance" was given by the Juku Wagner Society Orchestra and Mr. Sachio Fujioka, a graduate of the Juku and Chief Conductor of the Kansai Philharmonic Orchestra. Amidst the solemn atmosphere, Head Coach Aonuki of the Rugby Football Club expressed his gratitude in his speech. Finally, the Wagner Society Orchestra performed the Rugby Football Club's song, "Hakugaigai." The long captain's solo at the beginning was reproduced with a magnificent trumpet performance, and many alumni were seen moved to tears by the first-ever orchestral performance of the song.

The "Keio University Athletic Association Rugby Football Club 125th Anniversary Appreciation Gathering" moved to the cafeteria and was moderated by Mr. Sasaki, a Fukui TV announcer and alumnus of the Juku Rugby Football Club. It began with opening remarks by Director Ushiba of the Rugby Football Club, followed by a speech from Chairman Nishizuma of the Meiji University Rugby Club Alumni Association, representing the guests.

After a powerful greeting from Chairman Ebihara of the Kanto Rugby Football Union and a toast, the gathering proceeded vibrantly in various areas. Parents and alumni deepened their connections, with some rekindling old friendships, others interacting with current players, and some reminiscing about the past with alumni from rival schools.

During the special cheering medley by the Keio University Cheerleading Team and cheerleaders, people of all ages joined in, and alumni from other schools also linked arms to sing "Wakaki-chi" passionately. It was an emotional moment where everyone was connected as one.

The ceremony concluded grandly with everyone's cooperation. Through this event, the Juku Rugby Football Club received the significant challenge of seriously considering what must be done to connect this 125th anniversary to the next 150th anniversary and what must be done for the development of university rugby.