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2013–14 Top League
The 2013–14 Top League was the 11th season of Japan's domestic rugby union competition, the Top League. It kicked off on 30 August 2013. The final was held on 9 February 2014 and won by Panasonic Wild Knights. Teams The Top League expanded from 14 to 16 teams for the 2013–14 season. The Sanix Blues team was relegated, and Coca-Cola West Red Sparks, Kubota Spears, Toyota Industries were promoted to the Top League for 2013–14. Regular season For the Pool stage, the 16 teams were placed into 2 pools of 8 teams each and a round-robin tournament was played within each of the pools. Then, for the Group stage, the top 4 teams from each pool went through to Group 1, and the bottom 4 teams from each pool went through to Group 2. The teams were given starting points based on where they finished in their pool. - i.e. starting points of 4, 3, 2, and 1, for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th respectively; and starting points of 4, 3, 2, and 1, for 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively. Another r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north toward the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Taiwan in the south. Japan is a part of the Ring of Fire, and spans an archipelago of 6852 islands covering ; the five main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu (the "mainland"), Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. Tokyo is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kobe, and Kyoto. Japan is the eleventh most populous country in the world, as well as one of the most densely populated and urbanized. About three-fourths of the country's terrain is mountainous, concentrating its population of 123.2 million on narrow coastal plains. Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions. The Greater Tokyo Ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shogo Mukai
, (born Iyo, October 2, 1961) is a Japanese former rugby union coach who coached the Japan national rugby union team from 2001 up to the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Mukai played as a full back and won 13 caps for the Japan national rugby union team between 1985 and 1988 and played at the 1987 Rugby World Cup. After retiring from his playing career in 1994, he became coach of the Toshiba Brave Lupus whom he led to three consecutive national titles from 1997 and 1999. His success with Toshiba Brave Lupus led to him to be appointed as coach of the Japan national team in December 2000 after Seiji Hirao resigned. He led the side up to the 2003 Rugby World Cup, where Japan put up some credible performances against and but ultimately finished the tournament winless. He stepped down after the tournament to spend more time with his family. He finished his time as Japan coach with a record of 9 wins in 24 matches. After leaving his post with Japan, he became coach of the Coca-Cola Red Spark ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Takashi Yamagami
is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings The name Takashi can have multiple different meanings depending on which kanji is used to write it. Some possible writings of the name include: *江詩 - "estuary , inlet, poem" *隆 - "prosperous noble" *喬士 - "high, boasting, samurai, gentleman" *峻 - "high, steep" *崇史 - "adore, revere, chronicler, history" *孝 - "filial piety, serve parents" *節 - "moral courage, integrity" *傑 - "hero, outstanding" Takashi can also be written in hiragana and/or katakana: *タカシ (katakana) *たかし (hiragana) People with the name * Takashi Abe (阿部 隆, born 1967), Japanese shogi player *, Japanese rugby union player *Takashi Amano (天野尚, 1954–2015), Japanese photographer, aquarist and designer * Takashi Aonishi (青西 高嗣), Japanese music artist *Takashi Asahina (朝比奈 隆, 1908–2001), Japanese conductor *, Japanese volleyball player *Takashi Fujii (藤井隆, born 1972), Japanese singer and comedian *Ta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abiko, Chiba
260px, Abiko City Hall is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 131,714 in 59,895 households and a population density of 3000 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Abiko is located in the northwestern part of Chiba prefecture, about 30 kilometers from the prefectural capital of Chiba, and within 30 to 40 kilometers of central Tokyo. It is separated from Ibaraki Prefecture in the north by the Tone River. The city is located on the Shimosa Plateau, with an average elevation of about 20 meters above sea level. The city stretches about 14 kilometers east-to-west and about 4 to 6 kilometers north-to-south. Neighboring municipalities Chiba Prefecture *Inzai *Kashiwa Ibaraki Prefecture * Toride * Tone Climate Abiko has a Humid subtropical climate (Köppen ''Cfa'') characterized by warm summers and cool winters with light to no snowfall. The average annual temperature in Abiko is 14.7 °C. The average annual r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kubota Spears
Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay (commonly known as the Kubota Spears) is a Japanese rugby union team based in Funabashi, Chiba participating in the Japan Rugby League One. The team rebranded as Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay ahead of the rebranding of the Top League as the Japan Rugby League One in 2022. Current squad The Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay squad for the 2023 season is: * * denotes players qualified to play for the Japan on dual nationality or residency grounds. Former players * Willie Ofahengaue * Joe Roff - Fullback/Wing * Barrie-Jon Mather - Centre/Wing * Marty Veale - Lock *Kōtarō Nakamura - Wing/Fullback * Jason O'Halloran * Cameron Pither * Shunji Ishikura - Lock * Joshua Fuimaono * Justin Sampson Justin "Sambo" Sampson (born 2 September 1966) is a sports television personality, professional speaker and former Australian rugby union player. Sampson has played representative rugby with New South Wales Country and North Harbour. He was ... R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daiki Hashimoto
is a Japanese artistic gymnast. Widely regarded as the successor of Kohei Uchimura, he won two gold medals at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in all-around and horizontal bar, as well as a silver in team. At the World Championships, he also achieved 1 gold, 5 silvers and 1 bronze. Hashimoto became a member of the Japan men's national gymnastics team in 2019, while he was still studying at Funabashi Municipal High School. He has represented Japan in every major competition since then. Career 2019 Hashimoto competed at the World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, where his team placed third all around. On the pommel horse, he finished in 9th place, and on the horizontal bar, he finished in 4th place. 2021 Hashimoto's breakthrough arrived when he became the national all-around champion. His score of 88.532 was the highest of 2021 until being surpassed by Zhang Boheng's 88.565 result at the Chinese Olympic Trials. One month later, Hashimoto participated in NHK Trophy, and d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seiji Hirao
was a Japanese rugby union footballer and coach. He played as a fly-half, and was one of the most popular Japanese players of his time, earning the name of "Mr. Rugby". Biography Hirao first played rugby at Fushimi Kogyo, in Kyoto, who won the national high school title in 1980. He then moved to Doshisha University, where he won three national university titles. He graduated in 1985, moving to England, where he played a year for Richmond. Returning to Japan in 1986, he helped Kobelco Steelers to win seven consecutive National Championships, from 1989 to 1995. He had 35 caps for Japan, from 1982 to 1995, scoring 1 try, 5 conversions and 1 penalty, 18 points in aggregate. His first match was a 22-6 loss to New Zealand Universities national team, at 30 May 1982, aged only 19 years old. Hirao played at the 1987 Rugby World Cup, all the three matches. He also played at the 1991 Rugby World Cup, as the captain, again in all the three matches, and, after a three years and a half retir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kobe
Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, which makes up the southern side of the main island of Honshū, on the north shore of Osaka Bay. It is part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kyoto. The Kobe city centre is located about west of Osaka and southwest of Kyoto. The earliest written records regarding the region come from the '' Nihon Shoki'', which describes the founding of the Ikuta Shrine by Empress Jingū in AD 201.Ikuta Shrine official website – "History of Ikuta Shrine" (Japanese) [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kobelco Steelers
The Kobelco Kobe Steelers are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kobe Steel, and based in Kobe. They were the first ever Top League champions when the League started in the 2003-2004 season. The team rebranded as Kobelco Kobe Steelers ahead of the rebranding of the Top League to the Japan Rugby League One in 2022. Honours * Top League: ** Champions: 2003–04, 2018-19 Personnel Current management team Current squad The current Kobelco Kobe Steelers squad for the 2023 season is: * * denotes players qualified to play for the Japan on dual nationality or residency grounds. Past players Japanese players * Toshiyuki Hayashi * Ian Williams * Seiji Hirao * Yuya Saito * Kensuke Iwabuchi * Daisuke Ohata * Andrew Miller Foreign players * Brodie Retallick * Andy Ellis * Dan Carter * Adam Ashley-Cooper * Aaron Cruden * Andries Bekker * Jacque Fourie * Ron Cribb * Dave Bickle * Mark Egan * Simon Wensley * Pierre Hola * Peter Grant * Thinus Delport * Ben Smith * Lukhanyo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haruki Ota
Haruki is both a masculine/neutral Japanese given name and a Japanese surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese-born theatre performer *, Japanese footballer *, Nippon Professional Baseball player for the Nishitetsu Lions *, Japanese voice actor *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese publisher, film producer, director and screenwriter * Haruki Kanashiro (born 1977), Peruvian footballer *, Japanese architectural translator *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese diplomat *, Japanese writer and translator *, Japanese darts player *Haruki Nakamura (born 1986), American football safety *, Japanese professional baseball player *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese football player *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese footballer *, former judoka from Japan *, Japanese football player *Haruki Yamashita (born 1999), Japanese cross-country skier *, Japanese footballer Surname: *, Japanese manga ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kansai
The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropolitan region of Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto (Keihanshin region) is the second-most populated in Japan after the Greater Tokyo Area. Name The terms , , and have their roots during the Asuka period. When the old provinces of Japan were established, several provinces in the area around the then-capital Kyoto were collectively named Kinai and Kinki, both roughly meaning "the neighbourhood of the capital". Kansai (literally ''west of the tollgate'') in its original usage refers to the land west of the Osaka Tollgate (), the border between Yamashiro Province and Ōmi Province (present-day Kyoto and Shiga prefectures).Entry for . Kōjien, fifth edition, 1998, During the Kamakura period, this border was redefined to include Ōmi and Iga Provinces. It i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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