Japanese rugby relies on France to move forward

Letter from Shizuoka

Japanese players celebrate after scoring a try against Chile during the Rugby World Cup, Toulouse, France, September 10, 2023. CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP

“When I see you play, I see Stade Toulousain,” said Emile Ntamack, without hiding his satisfaction. The 56 young Japanese rugby players, including four girls, who took part in the training camp held in late August at the lush Tsumagoi recreation center in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, delivered the goods.

For three days, braving the heavy heat, they applied themselves seriously and enthusiastically to the principles taught by the French former international player and his colleagues, Daniel Andry and Yoann Faure, all representatives of the Stade Toulousain Academy, which runs training camps in France and abroad.

This was the second edition of the camp, co-organized by the Shizuoka Blue Revs, a League One team (Japan’s equivalent of the Top 14). “There are more resources and more motivation than last year. There were only 36 children in 2024. 66% have returned,” said Andry, who usually oversees Toulouse’s youth girls’ teams. “The Blue Revs now want us to come twice a year,” added Faure, sporting director of the Association Stade Toulousain, the club’s rugby school.

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