【Netherlands】Wheelchair basketball event coinciding with the visit of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Japan

Time Period
9th November, 2015
Region
Tokyo, Japan
Sport/Programme Category
Wheelchair basketball / event
Implementer
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Japan
The Japanese Paralympic Committee of the Japanese Para-Sports Association
Co-Implementer
The Tokyo Sports Association for the Disabled
the Japan Wheelchair Basketball Federation
Shiba Junior & Senior High-School
Number of Individual Beneficiaries
Around 215 people (including 100 foreign nationals)

An introduction to Wheelchair Basketball was held for primary and junior-high school students from Japan and the Netherlands and a demonstration by wheelchair basketball players was held with the attendance of Mark Rutte, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Yoichi Masuzoe, the Governor of Tokyo, and Daiichi Suzuki, the Head of the New Japan Sports Agency.

The event was held on the theme of 'Connecting Japan and the Netherlands through sports' to communicate the message of the development of health, solidarity and self-respect through sports, regardless of people's backgrounds and physical attributes.
Primary and Junior-High School students from Japan and the Netherlands enjoyed playing wheelchair basketball with the wheelchair basketballers, Kiyoshi Fujisawa, Horie Wataru, Marc van de Kuilen, and Mustafa Korkmaz, and played very excitedly in a lively friendly match. In a demonstration by the wheelchair basketballers, the students were able to experience the power and thrill of the speed of wheelchair basketball and the shots on target right before their eyes, and gained a first-hand experience of the enjoyment of wheelchair basketball. Finally, Prime Minister Mark Rutte presented the medals individually at the end of this very memorable day.

Kiyoshi Fujisawa, who represented Japan in the 2015 Asia-Oceania Tournament

Feedback from :

I was very glad that children from Japan and overseas were able to interact through wheelchair basketball. This was an event through which we could sense the value of sports.

【Netherlands】Wheelchair basketball event coinciding with the visit of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Japan1
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【Netherlands】Wheelchair basketball event coinciding with the visit of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Japan3
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