Athletic Foundation’s Rugby Club Competes with Seoul National University in Routine International Match

Date of activity: May 4, 2014 - May 6, 2014

The University of Tokyo Athletic Foundation’s Rugby Club competed with Seoul National University in a routine match at the Rugby Field on Komaba Campus on May 5th (Mon). UTokyo’s team won the match with a final score of 53-32 (First Half: 26-8, Last Half: 27-24). Starting with a friendly game held between the two universities in 2000, the routine match has entered its 15th year, with the 9th match being held this year. UTokyo has remained undefeated throughout all nine matches. The members of SNU’s Rugby Club, many of whom are affiliated with the Department of Physical Education in their university’s College of Education, possess powerful physiques and excellent physical abilities. However, the team faces difficulties in becoming significantly stronger due to various circumstances, such as a lack of teams within the country with which to hold practice matches. However, the gap between UTokyo’s and SNU’s teams is certainly narrowing with every match. The University would like to show its respect to Seoul National University for its sincere attitude and its earnest efforts toward the routine matches.

The “spirit of ‘no side’,” a well-known phrase in Japan, refers to both the rugby term “no side,” which signifies the end of a match, as well as the sense of camaraderie felt among opposing teams after the match (since they are no longer on different “sides”). In accordance with this feeling of friendship and goodwill, the competing rugby teams always have a social gathering after every match to celebrate together the fighting spirit that both teams displayed. The club presidents, team managers and captains of both teams make speeches, after which each team’s club song is performed, as is an exchange of words of encouragement in the form of yells. It is not an exaggeration to say that intercultural exchange, the principal purpose of these routine matches, can be achieved not only through the matches themselves but also through these kinds of social gatherings.

On the day following the match, students from UTokyo and SNU went sightseeing in groups. Through discovering the differences and similarities between Japanese and South Korean culture, this outing gave students from both universities a chance to experience the true essence of international interaction – something which the Internet alone cannot provide. The teams’ impressions of each other before and after the outing were markedly different, showing that students from both universities grew as people during the course of this event.

The next routine match is planned to be held in Seoul on May 17th, 2016, two years from now. Both universities have promised that the next match will be a special “alumni match” featuring both current and many former players of the two teams. This special match will be held in order to commemorate what will be the 10th match in the series. Japan, as the future host of the 2019 Rugby World Cup, is expected to continue strengthening its ties with South Korea and revitalizing its efforts towards intercultural interaction. With such expectations in mind, the routine matches and social gatherings have been well-received due to embodying the ideal spirit of international exchange.

As a final note, all expenses related to these routine matches are fully paid for by the UTokyo Rugby Club Alumni Association. We would like to express our gratitude here for their support.