On the 9th, Fukuoka Softbank Hawks Corp. and the NPO The Hawks Junior Academy announced that as part of the "Fight! Kyushu" project, which aims to revitalize Kyushu, they will hold the "Kyushu Sports Kids Caravan" at eight venues in Kyushu and Okinawa from April to August 2026, where they will interact with children in grades 1 to 6 through sports.
The "Fight! Kyushu Project," which was launched to support the recovery efforts following the Kumamoto and Oita earthquakes that occurred in April 2016, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. This caravan will involve coaches from The Hawks Junior Academy, as well as professional sports organizations from each prefecture, interacting with children through sports. This year, the project will also work to raise awareness of disaster prevention through programs that incorporate sports activities.
The event's ambassadors will be Takeshi Wada, advisor to the team's headquarters, who served as ambassador last year, as well as Seiichiro Maki, a former Japanese national soccer team player from Kumamoto who experienced the Kumamoto earthquake that sparked the project's launch and is currently involved in reconstruction support and disaster prevention activities.
MIZUHO PayPay Dome FUKUOKA All participants at each site will receive a "Fight! Kyushu Day" on Sunday, April 19 (The Hawks), all participants at each site will receive a "Pow Patrol Collaboration Design Knapsack" featuring the Pow Patrol(TM) design to raise disaster awareness and an "Original Baseball Cap" as an opportunity to get in touch with baseball and .
▼ Takeshi Wada
"I am very happy to be able to continue to be involved in this wonderful project, as I was last year. I will never forget the sparkle in the eyes of the participating children when they tried out various sports last year, and my wish that the project be held again this year has now come true! This year, I would like to do my best to encourage more children to become interested in sports through this event. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the 2016 Kumamoto-Oita earthquake, which was the catalyst for the launch of the Fight! Kyushu Project. This was the first year that Kyushu was reverted to Japan, and it still pains me to think back to that time. This time, in collaboration with Maki-san, who is from Kumamoto, I hope to use the event to create an opportunity for people to think about disaster prevention."
▼Mr. Seiichiro Maki
"I am extremely honored to have been asked to become an ambassador for the Kyushu Sports Kids Caravan. I myself was affected by the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake, which was the catalyst for the launch of the Fight! Kyushu Project, and since then I have been involved in reconstruction support and disaster prevention activities. During this time, I have witnessed many scenes where children's smiles came out as a result of playing sports together, and I have once again felt the great power of sport. I would be happy if this event allows many children to experience the wonder of sport. Also, as this marks the 10th anniversary of the project's launch, I would like to use my own experience to provide an opportunity for people to think at least a little about disaster prevention."
