From time to time, we all need to reevaluate our health—our dietary habits, our exercise patterns (or lack thereof), and our ability to live each day well. On Health and Sports Day, the people of Japan do just this. This holiday encourages and inspires good health and more exercise at every level of society, but most especially for children and young adults.

In this article, you’ll learn about Health-Sports Day in Japan and how it affects the health and lives of people all over the country.

At JapanesePod101.com, we hope to make every aspect of your language-learning journey both fun and informative!

1. What is Health and Sports Day in Japan?

Health and Sports Day is a national Japanese holiday dedicated to inspiring a love of sports, exercise, and good health. Further, people are encouraged to think about the role of exercise and health in their daily lives.

Do you know what event inspired the creation of Health-Sports Day?

The correct answer is the Tokyo Olympics. On October 10, 1964, the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic Games was held in great fanfare.

To commemorate this event, two years later, from 1966, October 10 became a national holiday to mark Sports Day. After this, since 2000, and in line with the Happy Monday System, Sports Day was moved to the second Monday of October. This means that every year, many people get to enjoy the feeling of playing sports under a fine autumn sky.

2. When is Japanese Health Sports Day?

Each year, Japan celebrates Health-Sports Day on the second Monday of October. For your convenience, here’s a list of this holiday’s date for the next ten years.

• 2019: October 14
• 2020: October 12
• 2021: October 11
• 2022: October 10
• 2023: October 9
• 2024: October 14
• 2025: October 13
• 2026: October 12
• 2027: October 11
• 2028: October 9

3. Celebrating Sports Day in Japan

On National Health and Sports Day, Japanese kindergartens, schools, companies, and regional organizations across the country hold events such as track meets. On top of relays and races, other more game-like events such as toss-ball, tug of war, and scavenger hunts, are also held.

There are also events such as sports festivals, physical fitness tests, and marathons, which the entire family can participate in. On Health and Sports Day, Japanese people can enjoy the autumn season, which is known in Japan as the season for sports.

At kindergarten and elementary school sports events, families also run in order to support their running child. A common sight on Health Sports Day in Japan is that of fathers holding video cameras, lined up in the best position for taking a video while cheering loudly through the viewfinder. The sight of children running with all their might is very cute and is sure to make anyone cheer excitedly. At lunchtime, the children eat lunch with their families.

Each municipality also organizes a sports event for Health and Sports Day in Japan. These include events where parents and children can enjoy Frisbee, bowling, and marathons. Some places also offer health assessments for adults to raise awareness of their own lack of exercise.

On Health-Sports Day, Japanese amateur teams in sports such as soccer and baseball form inter-league games and have fun while breaking a sweat.

4. Fine Weather, Indeed

Statistically, this day has a high likelihood of having good weather. According to the statistics, in the thirty-four years since Sports Day was first held on October 10, there has been a more than eighty-five percent chance of no rain in Tokyo.

5. Essential Vocabulary for Health-Sports Day in Japan

Here’s some essential vocabulary you should know to talk about Health and Sports Day in Japanese!

• スポーツ (スポーツ) — sports
• ジョギング (ジョギング) — jogging
• 体育の日 (たいいくのひ) — Health-Sports Day
• 運動 (うんどう) — exercise
• 健康 (けんこう) — health
• 運動会 (うんどうかい) — sports festival
• 体力測定 (たいりょく そくてい) — measurement of physical fitness
• 運動不足 (うんどうぶそく) — lack of exercise
• スポーツに親しむ (スポーツにしたしむ) — familiar with sports
• スポーツの秋 (スポーツのあき) — Autumn is the season for sports.
• 1964年夏季オリンピック (1964ねん かきオリンピック) — 1964 Summer Olympics

To hear each of these vocabulary words pronounced, alongside relevant images, check out our Japanese Health-Sports Day vocabulary list!

How JapanesePod101 Can Help You Learn More Japanese

We hope you enjoyed learning about Health-Sports Day in Japan with us, and learned something new.

Are there any holidays or special events in your country to encourage better health? Tell us about it in the comments; we love hearing from you!

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