ITOCHU Announces ITOCHU Children's Dreams Fund Support Project for Disaster-Affected Areas, Holding of the "ITOCHU Children's Dreams Rugby Scrum"

November 10, 2016

ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that it will hold the "ITOCHU Children's Dreams Rugby Scrum" through ITOCHU Children's Dreams Fund Support Project for Disaster-Affected Areas, which was established in March 2013 as a part of ITOCHU’s assistance in reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake.

The event is intended to support children who aspire to become rugby players in Kamaishi, Iwate, as one of the activities of ITOCHU Children's Dreams Fund Support Project, which supports the dreams of children in disaster-affected areas. Kamaishi City is known as "rugby town, Kamaishi." The home ground of the Kamaishi Seawaves R.F.C. (former Nippon Steel Corporation Kamaishi) is located in the city, which has earned a reputation as hallowed ground for rugby. Kamaishi has also been chosen as one of the host cities for the Rugby World Cup, which is to be held in Japan in 2019. Rugby has a power to be a driving force of the reconstruction efforts.

On November 19, about twenty elementary school students who play on the Kamaishi Seawaves junior team will be invited to Tokyo to serve as player escort kids for the official game held at the Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium near the head office of ITOCHU. They will be offered an opportunity to meet with the one of the top players in Japan. For the next day, on November 20, after practice with the ITOCHU's volunteer employees, the children will hold a practice match with the Nerima Rugby School team. This program is being held with the cooperation of Mr. Yoshihiko Sakuraba, former Japan national team member and currently General Manager of Kamaishi Seawaves and ambassador for the World Cup 2019. The nonprofit organization SCRUM KAMAISHI, which aims to support reconstruction through rugby, and Mr. Jiro Ishiyama and Mr. Hidehito Izumi, two key players who helped the Nippon Steel Corporation Kamaishi win the All-Japan Rugby Football Championship seven times, as well as the players belonging to the Japan Rugby Players Association are also supporting the program and are scheduled to participate in practice on the day.

ITOCHU Corporation will continue support for reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake through ITOCHU Children's Dreams Fund Support Project and other activities according to the “Action on Global Humanitarian Issues” and “Growth of Future Generations,” specified under the Basic Activity Guidelines on Social Contribution.

ITOCHU Children's Dreams Rugby Scrum

Outline of the event

Name ITOCHU Children's Dreams Rugby Scrum
Date Saturday, November 19 and Sunday, November 20, 2016
Sponsor ITOCHU Corporation
Co-sponsor Kamaishi Seawaves R.F.C.
Collaborators SCEPTRE CORPORATION
Rhino-Powa Japan Inc. (Rhino Rugby)
Cooperation Japan Rugby Players Association

Schedule

Saturday, November 19
14:00 To serve as player escort kids for the Kamaishi Seawaves game at the Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
16:00 Invite the children to Kidzania Tokyo, a vocational and social experience-based facility of which ITOCHU is an official sponsor

Sunday, November 20
9:00-11:00 Practice together with Mr. Jiro Ishiyama and Mr. Hidehito Izumi and ITOCHU's volunteer employees at Matsu no Kaze Bunka Park (Nerima-ku, Tokyo) and then hold a practice match with the Nerima Rugby School team

  • *The time schedule is subject to a partial change.