championship – SoraNews24 —Japan News— https://soranews24.com Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today. Sun, 24 Jul 2022 17:30:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.4 https://soranews24.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2020/05/en_rocket_1024.png?w=32 championship – SoraNews24 —Japan News— https://soranews24.com 32 32 176746664 We find who gives the best deadpan face in inaugural ‘King of Expressionlessness’ Championship https://soranews24.com/2022/07/25/we-find-who-gives-the-best-deadpan-face-in-inaugural-king-of-expressionlessness-championship/ https://soranews24.com/2022/07/25/we-find-who-gives-the-best-deadpan-face-in-inaugural-king-of-expressionlessness-championship/#comments Sun, 24 Jul 2022 17:30:32 +0000 https://soranews24.com/?p=594930 
Who is best able to completely rid their face of any emotion whatsoever? Let’s find out!
If there’s one thing you should know about our writers, it’s that we give good face. Whether we’re overcome with overwhelming happiness or filled with frustration and sadness, our reporters know how to show their emotions clearly through their face when a camera is pointed their way.
But while we have confidence in our evocative facial expressions, could the same be said for the opposite? While our faces are full to the brim with passion and feeling, would we be able to turn it all off and show an expression completely devoid of any emotion whatsoever?
Our crack reporter Mr. Sato, a man who is no stranger at mugging the camera, was keen to find out, and so he declared to the office that he would be hosting the first ‘King of Expressionlessness‘ Championship, where competitors would battle it out to see who was the Ultimate Expressionless King.
The combatants were decided — seven men stepped up to the plate to determine who among them could make the most deadpan face. In order to truly determine the best deadpan face, the competitors would need to first make a range of extreme emotions — joy, anger and sorrow — and then finish up with their best straight-faced expression.
Mr. Sato himself was the first person to step up to the face-off, and started off the battle with a strong expression of joy.
▼ Joy (Mr. Sato ver.)
▼ Anger (Mr. Sato ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Mr. Sato ver.)
And then, what we’ve all been waiting for…
▼ Nothingness (Mr. Sato ver.)
So what do the judges think of Mr. Sato’s effort? Well, the judge of the competition just so happens to be Mr. Sato himself, but worry not; he is a fair and impartial referee, and judged himself thus —
“I would say that I am very expressive, but it is clear that I’m just making facial expressions by distorting my face. My eyebrows and jaw have an impressive range of movement, but I’m lacking any emotional depth when it comes to expression.”
So Mr. Sato, as the only participant so far, takes an early lead, but next to the battleground is the current favourite to win the Expressionless King Championship, Ahiruneko. Let’s check out his attempts as follows:
▼ Joy (Ahiruneko ver.)
▼ Anger (Ahiruneko ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Ahiruneko ver.)
▼ Nothingness (Ahiruneko ver.)
We’re certainly impressed with Ahiruneko’s range of expressions, but what does Mr. Sato have to say about them?
“As expected of the favourite to win, Ahiruneko’s ‘joy’ and ‘anger’ are sublime. His facial skills have improved greatly over the past few years, and we can see that here. His ‘sorrow’ really lets him down, though, as there doesn’t appear to be any sadness on display whatsoever.
However, his ‘nothingness’ is simply incredible. It’s like he is showing us the emptiness of his soul through his face. Superb!”
Who’s going to follow that excellent performance? Why, it’s none other than Go Hatori. Go previously declared that he was our number one host, but how will such a talent translate into the word of deadpan faces? Let’s find out!
▼ Joy (Go Hatori ver.)
▼ Anger (Go Hatori ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Go Hatori ver.)
▼ Nothingness (Go Hatori ver.)
An impressive selection of faces, but what do the judges think? Mr. Sato, please!
“Go Hatori is another strong competitor, and one of the best facial performers here at SoraNews24. His first expression, ‘Joy’, is a sudden and unexpected burst of emotion. He followed up well with ‘Anger’, and you can really see power in the space between his eyebrows. ‘Sorrow’ is another powerful play, and he looks as if he is about to burst into tears. Finishing off with ‘Nothingness’, he completely breaks free from the mortal realm and transcends into absolute nothingness.
He performed well across all expressions. This is a presentation I expect will score very highly.”
Go has certainly done well here, but there are still four other competitors ready to take the stage. Let’s go now to our next competitor, Masanuki Sunakoma.
▼ Joy (Masanuki Sunakoma ver.)
▼ Anger (Masanuki Sunakoma ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Masanuki Sunakoma ver.)
▼ Nothingness (Masanuki Sunakoma ver.)
Masanuki is a man who clearly likes to express his emotions by showing us his chompers, but what will Mr. Sato make of this spirited performance?
“Masanuki’s performance here is the kind of performance where emotions no longer come into play, and he just throws everything he has into making powerful expressions. His performance is quite energetic, but it’s hard to tell whether he is angry or sad. As a side note, Masanuki wasn’t able to stay very still when making these expressions, so it was difficult to take clear pictures…”
Up next is P.K. Sanjun.
▼ Joy (P.K. Sanjun ver.)
▼ Anger (P.K. Sanjun ver.)
▼ Sorrow (P.K. Sanjun ver.)
▼ Nothingness (P.K. Sanjun ver.)
As expected of a man who experiences a rollercoaster of emotions on a daily basis, P.K. Sanjun performed decently here. Mr. Sato, your comments please.
“P.K. Sanjun is a man who usually expresses his emotions well. He’s the type of person who can handle anything life throws at him without a hitch, but a deadpan face is his absolute weak point. He is a man that will instantly break into a smile the second a camera is pointed in his direction, but for this challenge he was able to overcome his weakness and refrain from smiling. His ‘Sorrow’ performance was also a little weak, but he gave it a good go.”
Up next is Seiji Nakazawa, our resident anime expert. Will his time spent watching anime translate into how expressive his face is?
▼ Joy (Seiji Nakazawa ver.)
▼ Anger (Seiji Nakazawa ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Seiji Nakazawa ver.)
▼ Nothingness (Seiji Nakazawa ver.)
Seiji’s recently been rocking a fresh beard and moustache combination, but did that affect his performance in anyway? It’s over to Mr. Sato for some comments.
“Seiji was quick to burst into his signature smile for ‘Joy’, but following it up with ‘Anger’ and “Sorrow’, Seiji’s expressions were surprisingly calm. On the other hand, in his finishing move of ‘Nothingness’, his eyes were filled with an energy none of the other competitors had. Seiji ended up with a quite lively version of ‘Nothingness’.”
Our last competitor to enter the ring was Takashi Harada. How will he compare with the previous competitors?
▼ Joy (Takashi Harada ver.)
▼ Anger (Takashi Harada ver.)
▼ Sorrow (Takashi Harada ver.)
▼ Nothingness (Takashi Harada ver.)
While Takashi is not particularly known for his vivid facial expressions, he seems to have performed very well here. What will Mr. Sato make of such a performance?
“A lot of people don’t know this but Takashi is actually quite an expressive person. The personalities of our other writers are so strong that often Takashi doesn’t stand out too much, but he has a great range of facial expressions. Unfortunately, his bangs were so long that we weren’t able to see his full potential. Also, he appears to have lost weight.”
With that devastating blow for Takashi (or a reminder to go and trim his bangs), the competition was officially over, and it was time to tally up the scores. While each participant displayed a varied range of expressions, the aim of the game was to be the person who completely rid their face of any expression whatsoever, so let’s take a look at their ‘Nothingness’ deadpan expressions one last time —
▼ Looking at the line-up like this, Mr. Sato couldn’t help but imagine he was looking at the mugshots of a fraud ring
After careful deliberation, Mr. Sato had found his winner. So without further ado, the King of Expressionlessness, the man who displayed absolutely no emotion on his face whatsoever, is…
…
…
…
…
…
…
▼ Ahiruneko!
The favourite from the start, Ahiruneko’s complete lack of expression was the very definition of emptiness. It seemed as if his very soul had left his body, and his eyes showed such a deep, rich nothingness that it felt like Mr. Sato was looking into the void. Well done, Ahiruneko!
So Ahiruneko takes the championship title for 2022, but who knows what will happen in next year’s competition? Will Ahiruneko be able to hold on to his title? Will another competitor swoop in and take the victory? Stay tuned!
But just when everyone was starting to get back to work, Mr. Sato suddenly declared another championship battle had started. This competition would act as the polar opposite to the ‘King of Expressionlessness’ championship — this time, the team would battle it out to see who could cram as much emotion into their face as possible.
But not just any old emotion — this time, Mr. Sato was to find out who was the King of Ecstasy.
The same seven men would once more compete, but this time with an added bonus competitor of our boss Yoshio, who was unable to compete in the previous tournament due to a sudden and unexplained toe cramp.
So without further ado, let’s check out their ecstatic expressions! We didn’t ask them to think about anything in particular to conjure up these faces, but we can only imagine it was something evocative.
▼ Ecstasy (Mr. Sato ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Ahiruneko ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Go Hatori ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Masanuki Sunakoma ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (P.K. Sanjun ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Seiji Nakazawa ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Takashi Harada ver.)
▼ Ecstasy (Yoshio ver.)
Mr. Sato didn’t take long to deliberate here, and immediately declared Yoshio the winner. Although, we’ve gotta say, Takashi’s facial expression is one we won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
Images © SoraNews24
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]]> https://soranews24.com/2022/07/25/we-find-who-gives-the-best-deadpan-face-in-inaugural-king-of-expressionlessness-championship/feed/ 0 594930 facenomore1 Women’s high school soccer team wins Mie Prefecture championship with only 70 percent of a team https://soranews24.com/2019/02/28/womens-high-school-soccer-team-wins-mie-prefecture-championship-with-only-70-percent-of-a-team/ https://soranews24.com/2019/02/28/womens-high-school-soccer-team-wins-mie-prefecture-championship-with-only-70-percent-of-a-team/#comments Thu, 28 Feb 2019 03:00:21 +0000 http://soranews24.com/?p=443385 You’d probably have expected their 8-on-11 matches to be bloodbaths, and they were…
In 2017, Kamimura Gakuen Iga School was established in Iga City, Mie Prefecture. The high school is a branch of the Kamimura Gakuen corporation of educational facilities including correspondence courses. However, even for such a large company, setting up a new school is a big challenge in a country with a steadily declining birthrate.
Initial enrollment was lackluster, so in 2018 Vice Principal Teruhiko Yoshinaga thought setting up and coaching a women’s soccer team would be a good way to raise awareness and attract applicants. Since another Kamimura Gakuen school in Kagoshima Prefecture was well-known for its women’s soccer program, perhaps the Iga School could do the same.
The only problem was that a soccer team needs people, something which Kamimura Gakuen Iga School lacked. The best Yoshinaga could muster, even after importing six players from the Kagoshima sister school, was eight – three shy of a proper soccer team.
女子サッカー、8人で県タイトル 神村学園伊賀分校 三重 ｜ 伊勢新聞 https://t.co/tG7C0qmWLt pic.twitter.com/LRhBLFj09u
— B級サッカー情報局 (@bqsoccercom) February 26, 2019
Still, since the main idea was getting the school’s name out there, it was enough to get the job done. The team made the best of what they had and trained for an hour each day, focusing heavily on stealing the ball and playing multiple positions to compensate for their lack of people.
The players also lived together in a dormitory, creating a family atmosphere which Yoshinaga attributes much of the team’s strength too. This continued until January and February of this year, when the 18th Mie Prefecture High School Women’s Soccer Rookie Championship was held. This would become the eight-woman team’s debut tournament.
平成30年度 第18回 三重県高校 女子サッカー新人大会
優勝 神村学園伊賀分校
準優勝 高田高校神村学園伊賀分校は初優勝！！
応援アカウント者として嬉しい限りです。
本当におめでとうございます。 pic.twitter.com/Iy0bQQqyOa— 神村学園伊賀分校女子サッカー部応援垢
(@403fK6YOU2Iv4rH) February 3, 2019
If being down three players wasn’t enough, Kamimura Gakuen also had to face the tournament’s reigning champs for ten years in a row in their first-ever match (Japanese high school teams often only play in tournaments, not in local league games). Using their aggressive strategy of constantly applying pressure and stripping the opponents of the ball, Kamimura not only fared well, they won their opening match.
The thrill of that win seemed to power the team’s momentum as they plowed through the other eight competing schools to reach the final round.
In the final game, Kamimura player Ayaka Yokomichi drew first blood with a goal, but the team ultimately gave up a point, ending regulation with the score tied and forcing a penalty kick shootout. Still, the underwomaned Kamimura Gakuen persevered, winning the shootout 4-3 and earning the school its first-ever championship, on its first-ever attempt.
[毎日]神村学園伊賀分校の女子サッカー部 創部１年で新人大会優勝 三重 https://t.co/Yv1jdkd2tc 三重県伊賀市北山の神村学園伊賀分校女子サッカー部が、創部1年目で県の高校女子サッカー新人大会で優勝した。全部員は1年生8人だけ。試合に出場できる11人より人数が少ないが、分校副校長の吉永輝彦… pic.twitter.com/5GIGUaUZaR
— ニュース速報(一般紙系) (@FastNewsJP_) February 21, 2019
It’s an inspirational story to say the least, and most reacted in awe.
“Damn, they’re strong.”
“They only had eight, but those were eight elite players.”
“Awesome! Great job!”
“Are they ninjas? [Iga city is famous as the former home of a ninja clan]“
“Let that be a lesson to anyone who thinks they don’t stand a chance.”
“I wonder if that has more to do with the low level of women’s soccer in Mie than the strength of that team.”
“That’s like something out of a manga!”
“I’m scared to see what they can do with a full team.”
“Well, I guess we have our next World Cup team all sorted then.”
It is a great example of the value of working hard and not giving up by recognizing and tackling your weaknesses to reach your goals.
全員1年生で県大会に優勝したことだけでも評価できるのにその偉業を８人で成し遂げたとは！ pic.twitter.com/gMjySRJFv5
— わさきぃキャプテン (@daisumf10kemari) February 3, 2019
It’s exactly like the time when we got an X-Box One but couldn’t play our Wii U on the same TV, before realizing we could just patch the Wii through the X-Box… Exactly like that time.
Source: Ise Shimbun, Hamusoku
Featured image: Twitter/@daisumf10kemari
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