A student fencer who has been pursuing the best environment in Japan since junior high school has reached a period of fulfillment. Hirao Naotake (4th year) from University of Tsukuba will compete as the first Kanto champion at the 72nd All Japan Student Kendo Championships to be held at Musashino Forest Sports Plaza in Tokyo on the 30th. Behind his leap was his awareness and “realization” as captain.
Hirao, who won the title at the Kanto Student Championships in May by defeating strong competitors including championship favorites, remained calm throughout as he reflected on the tournament.
“I don’t remember much about the final. No one, including me, thought we would win, so I just felt like, ‘Wow, we really did win.’ So I don’t feel that much pressure about the Intercollegiate Championships (All-Japan Student Championships). Maybe I’m just getting nervous as the tournament gets closer.”
As he carefully chose his words and responded calmly, he appeared to be analyzing himself objectively.
After winning two matches in the Kanto region and qualifying for the All Japan Championships, he couldn’t help but feel greedy when he faced Miyake Kotaro (4th year, Meiji University) in the next fourth round.

“I hadn’t really thought about the future until I decided to participate in the Intercollegiate Championships, but when I played against Miyake, I really wanted to win. I thought that if I could win here, maybe I could go all the way to the top.” He said that he was not in good form until just before the tournament, but after beating Miyake, he gained momentum and quickly rose to the top.
Kumamoto, Ibaraki… Seeking “the best environment in Japan”
He had an extraordinary talent for kendo since he was a child. Originally from Nagoya, he won the Chubu Regional Championship and came in third in the team competition at the national championships while he was still in elementary school, and he personally sought out a strong school because he wanted to practice kendo in the best environment in Japan.
When he was in the sixth grade of elementary school, he participated in a practice session at Kyushu Gakuin Junior High School in Kumamoto and said, “I was impressed by the way the practice always seemed to lead to a real fight right from the start.” He studied kendo at Kyushu Gakuin, a junior and senior high school, and spent six years there.
In his second year at Kyushu Gakuin High School, he won the team championship at the National High School Inter-High. When it came time to go to university, he received offers from strong schools in the Kanto region, but instead applied to the University of Tsukuba. “I thought that if I put myself in one of the toughest environments in Japan and practice kendo, I would become even stronger,” he recalls.
He said that there were high expectations from those around him from the moment he entered the school, and that “the candidates for captain are decided based on the achievements of those in high school. I was the one who achieved the most results in my generation, so it was decided that I would be captain in three years.” It was a given that he would be appointed captain, but the position changed him as a person.
“He’s grown through kendo as well” – praised by others
Takahiro Nabeyama, the head coach of the men’s team at the University of Tsukuba, said, “Since becoming captain, he has developed a sense of responsibility and his speech and responses have improved, and he has grown a lot.” Kenshiro Matsuzaki (University of Tsukuba Graduate School), an alumnus of the University of Tsukuba Kendo Club who practiced with Hirao as part of the Japanese national team for the World Championships in July, also commented, “Since becoming captain, he has grown as a person, and that has also translated into kendo. He now has the ability to negotiate with his opponents with determination.”
Hirao commented, “I don’t really understand the changes that have occurred since I became captain, but before I was only concerned with my own interests, but now I’m in a position where I have to look after, think about, and communicate with the whole club. That may have had an impact on my kendo as well.”
His strong point is his solid defense. He modestly says that he is “not everyone’s cup of tea,” but “I’m the type of person who can put together all of my techniques at about 80 points. Even at the Intercollegiate Championships, I just have to keep going at my own pace.” He lost in the first round of last year’s All Japan Championships, but this year he is in good shape both physically and mentally. If he can get through the first round and get on a roll, he may see a different picture.[Asatsuma Hiroyuki]