Three members of the 2025 Japan National Academy Squad volunteered to join a joint Japan Olympic Committee and "Don't Stop Sports" to assist with the reconstruction activities in Noto.
The town suffered significant damage during the 2024 earthquake and subsequent storms and the athletes joined reconstruction efforts for two days in March this year 14th & 15th) as part of the JOC Athlete Academy targeting “Olympic Next”.
International cricketers Kouki Yoshida (Men’s Under 16) and Kate Tai (Women’s Under 19) joined the activities, along with 2025 Female Academy member Haruka Akagi.
The JOC Athlete Academy, aiming to "nurture athletes who inspire others," was launched in 2023 and officially started operations in 2025. In the process, athletes expressed that they "want to be involved in solving social issues, but there are no readily available opportunities to participate." In response, the JOC Athlete Academy decided to create opportunities to connect athletes with the resolution of various social issues, leading to the Noto activity with another event planned for September.
On the first day of their activities, the team visited "Kamito-machi Terasha, Suzu City," located in the northeastern part of the Noto Peninsula, and engaged in volunteer activities to support recovery from the earthquake, based at the Kamito Community Center. Inside the community center and other facilities where they worked, untouched materials and damaged equipment were still scattered around, just as they were at the time of the earthquake. The players helped clean up the facilities, which still bore the scars of the disaster, in order to support the region's first step toward recovery.
Speaking about their time on the project the athletes said:
- Haruka Akagi: "I was impressed when she said, 'Please don't forget about Noto.' You can't really understand the mental aspects of the people of Noto through television, so I was able to learn about those things as well."
- Kouki Yoshida: "I myself have been fortunate enough to play cricket in Japan, and I was very happy to hear children say, 'I want to play cricket' and 'It's fun.'"
- Kate Tai: "The roads haven't been repaired yet, and Mitsukejima Island has been severely altered in shape. I really felt the power of the earthquake."
The JCA would like to commend all three athletes for joining this activity and their desire to give back to the wider community in Japan. It is an inspiring example of how athletes can contribute beyond the sports field.
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