The Taiiku-no-hi festival is held on the second Monday of October every year. The festival is held to promote physical and mental health. It is held annually on the date of the 1964 summer Olympics.
There are two basic types of events, individual and group. 200m race is an individual event and relays are group events. Children usually compete against other children in the same grade but there are relay events that everyone can compete against everyone.
The festival is celebrated by competing in sports and playing games. People run traditional races such as 100m sprint and 4x100m relay. There are also some unique sports too such as the ‘exciting relay’ and rugby ball-dribbling. There are also some more common games like tug-o’-war and sack racing.
Some schools hold non-competitive sports like traditional dancing. Cheering contests are also held in which each class comes up with its own cheer. Naha Hari Dragon Boat Races are also held in which a team rows their own boat a couple of hundred metres, turns around and comes back.
by Stella
Tail No Hi is a festival held by Japanese schools on the second of October. It was moved to the second Monday in October in 2000 because of the happy Monday seido. About 76% of schools celebrate Taiiku No Hi and about 20% of young adults also celebrate the event. Tail No Hi commemorates the opening of the 1964 summer Olympic held in Tokyo and sports and active life style. On the day they have events such as tug of war, sprints and relays. The festivals begin at about 8:30am