The 55th Seven Universities Athletic Meet Opening Ceremony Held

Date of activity: July 2, 2016

The opening ceremony of the 55^th Seven Universities Athletic Meet (7-Univ.) which was hosted by UTokyo this year was held on July 2, 2016 at 3 PM at Yasuda Auditorium. UTokyo President Makoto Gonokami who is the tournament chairman, the presidents of the other six participating universities (Hokkaido, Tohoku, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka and Kyushu) and the chairman of the Kyoto University Sports Union who is the tournament's vice chairman attended the ceremony with many others.
 
In this ceremony, Hiroaki Matsuyama of the UTokyo Athletic Association's General Affairs Department, the executive committee chairman of this year's 7-Univ., gave the opening speech. Then the pennant and the trophy were returned to the tournament chairman, UTokyo president Makoto Gonokami, by defending university champion, Tohoku University.
 
After that, there were speeches from UTokyo President Makoto Gonokami; executive committee chairman Hiroaki Matsuyama; Mao Atsumi, the student representative of the host university UTokyo; Seiichi Matsuo, the president of Nagoya University which is the next host university for 7-Univ.; and Takeshi Sasaki, the president of Gakushikai, which is a special sponsor of 7-Univ.
 
The players' oath was given by Katsushi Yamamoto, the captain of the UTokyo baseball team. Then Ichiko, the mascot of 7-Univ., appeared. Then the chorus group Hakuyou-kai sang "Tada-Hitotsu," the song of Athletic Foundation of the University of Tokyo. Finally, the UTokyo Cheer Squad performed, and then the ceremony was brought to a close.
 
After the ceremony at 5:30 PM, the 7-Univ. reception was held at Gakushi-kaikan located in Kanda Nishiki-cho of Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. In this reception, UTokyo President Makoto Gonokami delivered an opening speech, followed by the kagami-biraki  (a ritual in which a sake cask is broken open with a mallet) and toast given by UTokyo Executive Vice President Tomokazu Haebara. After that there were greetings from the presidents of the other six universities (Hokkaido, Tohoku, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka and Kyushu) and the chairman of the Kyoto University Sports Union, who was the 7-Univ.'s vice chairman.
 
During the reception, a cake-cutting ceremony was held by Executive Committee Chairman Hiroaki Matsuyama and Ichiko. The cake, made by the staff at Gakushi-kaikan, was decorated with an illustration of Ichiko. After the cake was cut, stage performances were given by University warrior TODAIN of the UTokyo Special Effects Video Club and D-act, which put on a "double Dutch" jump-rope show. The two performances captivated the audience. With non-athletic UTokyo clubs participating in the ceremony, this major event truly brought different members of the UTokyo community together.

Towards the end of the reception, speeches were given by the student representatives of each university and the reception was ended with an ippon-jime (a single clap) led by Executive Committee Chairman Hiroaki Matsuyama.
 
UTokyo's current total score in 7-Univ., with 7 competitions completed, is 66 points. UTokyo is in first place with a 22-point difference from second place. We are off to a great start toward our first overall victory since 2011.
 
The tournament will be carried out until the end of September, and the closing ceremony is scheduled to take place in early October.
 
The competition results will continue to be released when they are available.
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