When the interaction began, Ogasawara immediately grabbed the microphone. First, he introduced himself. "Who knows Antlers?", "Who has come to a game and seen me play?", "Who has seen Kawamata play?". To every question, everyone enthusiastically raised their hands and loudly answered, "Yes!". Kawamata seemed a little surprised, saying, "I've only played one or two games..."
Suddenly, he brought over a nearby table and said, "Let's arm wrestle! Kawamata here is the strongest on the team. Can anyone beat him?" Hearing this, children proud of their strength all raised their hands.
A child with considerable power came forward, but still, they were elementary school students. Even when told, "You can use both hands," they couldn't change Kawamata's calm expression. However, the second child who came forward had considerable power. Kawamata had to put strength into his arm too.
The next game was "push-up competition." Everyone participated and competed against Kawamata, who was on the stage. When they passed 20 push-ups, only a few children remained. Still, they pushed on to 30, and it ended with applause. By the end, Kawamata's face was also bright red. The fact that Ogasawara was only emceeing also brought laughter.
The group activity was "rock-paper-scissors train." The children desperately tried to cling to the tall Kawamata. Ogasawara was also full of spirit for the rock-paper-scissors train. He kept winning for a while and formed the head of the line, but before he knew it, he was at the back of the line.
The next event was a performance display. Here, Ogasawara suggested a one-on-one intense dodgeball game. He introduced Kawamata as the goalkeeper and called for challengers. Children proud of their speed-balls appeared. Kawamata's stable catching was truly a professional skill. However, the ball thrown by the second child who appeared was surprisingly fast, even for Kawamata. It was deflected with a single hit, and he bowed his head and tried again. In the "birdcage" game to steal the ball, Ogasawara challenged the children, asking, "Who thinks they can really get it?" and they fiercely competed for the ball.
Finally, they played mini-games against children from each grade. There were some skilled soccer players, and they scored and conceded goals. Everyone enjoyed the fun of soccer.
After the mini-games, Ogasawara himself showed his Kids Pass and appealed for support. In the Q&A session, fun questions like "Do you have an amore (lover)?" were asked. Finally, they presented signed paper and pennants, took a commemorative photo, and the enjoyable interaction session concluded.
It's unusual for the players themselves to hold the microphone and lead the event, but I believe this was the first time arm wrestling and push-up competitions were included in the elementary school visits that have been going on for over 10 years. It was clear that the children's excitement was growing, making for an interaction full of smiles.
