Creating the “connection with people” through sports

For this interview, we spoke with the two new members of TSUKUBA LIVE (TL) Creators, Masayoshi Usui (3rd year, Humanities) and Haruhiko Mikami (2nd year, Humanities). They are currently working as part of the public relations team. We will find out why they got involved in “TSUKUBA LIVE!” and the appeal of sports from their perspective, even though they don’t specialize in physical education or sports.

Self-introduction

Usui　My name is Usui, and I’m a junior in the Humanities Department. I am studying philosophy as my major. I often think about various news and trivial things. I don’t usually read books because my thoughts are the main thing.

Mikami　I’m Mikami, a sophomore in the Humanities Department. My major is Japanese History; there are various times periods, but I am studying modern history. I’m having a lot of trouble reading cursive scripts and reading documents, but I’m doing my best.

Left: Mikami Haruhiko 　Right: Usui Masayoshi

Why did you join the TL Creators?

Usui　My past experience as a Racewalker in club activities is significant. In fact, if you ask me if I like Racewalking, I actually don’t… However, the reason why I was able to continue was because of the expectations and the support of others. Since then, I’ve always valued the “connections between people,” and I believe that the philosophy of “TSUKUBA LIVE!” is to “create connections with people through sports,” and that’s why I was drawn to join the TL creators.

Mikami　That’s amazing… I wasn’t thinking about anything that complex (laughing). The reason why I joined the TL Creators is simply because I love the University of Tsukuba’s sports. I knew from a young age that the University of Tsukuba was strong in sports, and I especially remember Yudai Baba, who played on the basketball team when I was a junior high school student. I originally thought that I would like to be involved in the Athletics Department as a trainer, but my interest in thinking about sports from a different perspective led me to apply for this position.

The reason why we challenged to join the PR team and the hardships that comes with it

Usui　As I said at the beginning, I’m a philosophy major and I consider myself good at writing things. It takes a lot of writing skills to put into words that I have in mind, and I’ve gained confidence in my writing skills as I’ve been doing it for a long time. I thought I could make use of my writing skills in “media releases,” which is one of the tasks of Public Relations. Speaking of what I think day to day, there was a part of me that thought: “all I need is the ability to write things (in PR)”, but that was not true at all. I also needed to have practical skills, such as using computers, and so on. I felt as if I wasn’t good enough everyday (laughing). I would like to learn more from the senior members of the PR team, not only about how to operate computers, but also how to conduct to expand and summarize discussions at meetings.

Regular meeting of the PR Team

Mikami As for why I wanted to work in the PR Team, as I mentioned earlier, I like sports at the University of Tsukuba, and I basically like sports and want to work in a profession related to it in the future. I was involved in basketball as a competitor until high school, but I felt as if I had some limitations, and I wondered if there was anything I could be involved in sports from a position other than that of a competitor. One of the answers was public relations, and I wanted to experience what it was like, so I decided to join. Through my PR activities, I immediately thought that "I'm probably not suited for PR..." (laughing). Again, the feeling of love for one's own sport is inevitable. I have been thinking everyday about how to elicit that same feeling from others, but it’s difficult to do so. I was quite troubled by the fact that I couldn’t simply use my "love of sports" as a driving force, but recently I have been assigned a lot of work, and I am feeling more and more rewarded and simply happy that I’m being appreciated and needed as a member of the team.

What we want to tell the visitors who will come to watch the home games

Usui　Through “TSUKUBA LIVE!” I want to reaffirm your connection will people. I think it’s the happiest and most stable thing to be involved with people because thinking that "that person is there" or "that organization is there” is exciting! We want people to come to “TSUKUBA LIVE!” with that in mind. As part of forming such an awareness, for example, there will be a dress code and cheer of support, and I believe that this will be an opportunity for everyone to experience the "connection with others" once again.

The dress code and support at “TSUKUBA LIVE!” SUMMER Tuneee! (Held on August 7th）

Mikami　I also believe that connecting with others is really important. I went to the last “TSUKUBA LIVE!” home game, and was anxious about going to the event alone, but I could feel the connection with the people who came to the venue through the same dress code, the same choreography of cheering, the MC hyping the crowd, and the sense of unity created by the sound system. I couldn't contain the high spirits that rose from such a performance on my own, so I involuntarily spoke to the person who was sitting next to me at the time. That person was Dr. Makoto Nakazawa, an associate professor of physical education. I was afraid that I might have been rude, but I was very grateful for the opportunity to talk to him for a while. I would also like you to be aware of the connection not only between the audience, but also with the players who are competing. The players who show us Japan's best on the court are also shopping at a nearby convenience store or eating at a nearby restaurant. Therefore, I hope that the University of Tsukuba students who come to watch the games are aware that the players on the court are also students of the University of Tsukuba.