Let's watch sports in anime this summer! Four "sports anime" with hot dramas! Akiba Research Institute's Writers' Selection of Anime Samurai, Vol. 13

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games (commonly known as "Tokyo Olympics 2020") are finally underway. Although the world was supposed to be filled with the excitement of sports, the impact of the new coronavirus and various other problems that have erupted have left many sports fans with mixed feelings about the opening of the games.

And this summer, as was the case last year, has also been a difficult one for anime and voice-over actor fans, with the cancellation or curtailment of major events and live concerts being announced one after another.

So why don't we enjoy sports anime in an air-conditioned room and feel refreshed? Here are four sports anime titles to enjoy this summer.

SK∞ SK8

Broadcast from January to March 2021

An original anime work based on the theme of "skateboarding. Recently, the sport has been attracting a lot of attention, with an increasing number of promising young skateboarders being featured in the sports news.

In this work, battles unfold according to fictional rules called "beef," but the key point is that the story is carefully drawn based on the "original" (*a real skateboarding competition).

The high quality story of the main characters, Reki and Ranga, and other unique characters, each with their own unique ideas about the "duel," also adds to the excitement of the heated battles.

The author also covered the "SK∞ SK8 Masquerade," held on July 4, online. I enjoyed the strong characters' interactions in the "Introduction of Famous Scenes" section and thought to myself, "I want to see the sequel! I was thinking "I want to see the sequel!" at ......, but at the end of the event, the start of a new animation project was announced!　This is a work that we cannot take our eyes off of in the future.

Rifle is Beautiful

Broadcasting from October 2019 to January 2008

An anime about "beam rifle shooting. The story is about Hikari Ogura, a first-year high school student who loves rifle shooting, who enrolls in a high school with a shooting club and aims for the national championship with girls she meets who have shooting experience. ......

The activities of the high school girls, who give their all in the sport of beam rifle shooting, which is still a minor sport in Japan, are heartwarming ...... to watch, but in fact, it is a serious sport.

The story realistically depicts the importance of maintaining concentration, the "sweat that clings to the body" that is a major enemy of summer competitions, and the sadness that only a minor sport can cause,

Of course, the book is also a perfect peek into the secret garden (club room) where the girls are happily intertwined with each other. It has no blind spots.

The unit "Life Ring 4," consisting of the four main cast members who sang the theme song, was appointed as a "publicity ambassador" by the Japan Rifle Shooting Association, and has become a standard-bearer for rifle shooting.

Burning Table Tennis Girls

Broadcast from October to December 2016

An anime about table tennis in which Agari Kamiya, the ace of the municipal Jakugahara Junior High School, and Koyori Kaze, a super transfer student, aim to win the national championship.

Despite their cute appearance, the characters are full of power as they hit smashes and spinning balls as hard as the boys!　The competition within the teams is fierce, and when they compete against each other, they face a number of difficult opponents. The racquets used by the characters are modeled after actual racquets, making this a very authentic table tennis anime.

Incidentally, in November 2016, we covered the "Scorching Hot Table Tennis Girls Cup" held at Akiba Table Tennis Style, a table tennis lounge in Akihabara, Tokyo, where fans confident in their skills gathered for this event. A tournament was held. The winner of the tournament was given the privilege of playing ping-pong with the main cast members, Ayaka Imamura and Nisako Tojo!

The winner of the tournament was awarded the privilege of playing ping-pong with the main cast members, Ayaka Imamura and Nisako Tojo! (Mr. Minoru Furuya), and who has two different serves (with a shake hand), I was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to show my skills, but my wish was not granted as I unfortunately lost the game. ......

Incidentally, a reporter from a table tennis magazine, who was also there to cover the tournament, was also participating in the tournament, but he was a very skilled player, which made me realize that it was not my place to play anyway .......

Whistle!

May 2002-February 2003

December 2016- (voice remake version)

The story of Masaru Kazamatsuri, who suffered a setback at Musashimori Gakuen, a prestigious soccer school, when he was dropped to the third team simply because he was "short", and the friends he met at his new school, Sakurajosui Junior High School, with whom he engaged in friendly competition.

In Weekly Shonen Jump, where the original comic was serialized, "Captain Tsubasa," the gold standard of soccer manga, still has an overwhelming presence. This is a great achievement for this work. In this respect, the achievements of this work are no less than those of its great predecessors. I am a member of the "Captain Tsubasa" generation, and the appearance of this work marked the dawn of a new era in soccer manga.

As if to confirm its deep-rooted popularity, after the TV anime broadcast in 2002, an unprecedented attempt was made to "re-broadcast" the manga as a "voice remake" version in 2016. While the images remained the same, the CV of the main character, Masaru Kazamatsuri, was changed from Minako Komukai, who was active as a gravure idol at the time, to Shun Horie. The CV for the role of Daichi Fuwa was changed from Kohei Kiyasu to Takuya Eguchi. The CV of Yuki Kojima was changed from Masahito Suzuki to Yui Makino, and so on. If you have a chance, please compare the two versions and enjoy the charm of each cast member.

W" will be serialized from 2017 to 2021, with a total of five comics volumes. W" will be held from June to early July this year to commemorate its conclusion! All-Star Lottery" was also held in early July. W" was also held. The raffle drew a great response.

W" is and will continue to be a much-loved work of art.

＜Writer's Introduction

Atsushi Saeki

Atsushi Saeki

Atsushi Saeki is an editor and writer for the portal site "Repotama! a portal site that introduces information on anime, voice actors, games, idols, etc. He is also an editor and writer at

He is an official writer for "Peach Boy Riverside," "How Many Dumbbells Can You Hold? and various other works as an official writer and cameraman.

He loves "horse racing," which is very popular nowadays. Although he does not buy tickets, he always checks out the big prize races. He is also the owner of a (small) circle in the game "Uma Musume Pretty Derby. His treasure is a "Haruurara no 'hitaranai (traffic safety)' amulet" that he bought on a trip to the Kochi Racecourse.

He pitches right-handed and has been a fan of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp for a quarter of a century. The first half of the season ended on a positive note with four consecutive wins, and he is looking forward to the second half of the season and the further growth of the young players!　He has also been playing grass baseball for 18 years. The other day, he attended a game at Tokyo Dome of "ACTORS☆LEAGUE," a group of young actors who seriously advocate the fusion of baseball and entertainment, and was impressed by the many good plays, which has increased his motivation.