What only a club based in the city of international peace can do (The Hiroshima Dragonflies)Hiroshima for Global Peace

What only a club based in the city of international peace can do (The Hiroshima Dragonflies)

What only a club based in the city of international peace can do

The Hiroshima Dragonflies is a professional basketball club in Hiroshima that plays in the B1 Western Conference of the B-League, Japan’s professional basketball league. Located in the international city of peace, the Hiroshima Dragonflies pursues “sports because there is peace” and “peace because there is sports” and is tackling the SDGs with an emphasis on Hiroshima’s identity. For example, at home games, representatives of the two clubs hold an exchange of origami cranes to remind the players of the importance of peace before the game. In addition, the Origami Crane Award was established to recognize, after the ceremony and the game, the player who played most fairly and honestly. Through the game of basketball, which can only be played with mutual respect, they send the message that mutual respect is the first step toward peace.

The Origami Crane Award, sending a message of peace

Making connections through the power of sport, even amid the pandemic!

The Hiroshima Dragonflies collaborated with Takeda High School, the winner of the 1st National High School SDGs Championship, to work on SDGs on the theme of “Sports x Realization of Peace.”
The fact that Takeda High School in Hiroshima Prefecture was participating in the National High School SDGs Championship provided common ground with the Hiroshima Dragonflies’ desire for peace as a club based in Hiroshima, and the two decided to work together in order to send a message of peace.
The club’s first initiative was the #Origami Crane Relay, which was proposed by Takeda High School. In collaboration with the B-League, players and officials from each club folded origami cranes and made videos expressing their wishes for peace and chained them together in a relay format on social media. Through these activities, which allow people to think about peace through video even if they cannot visit the match venues due to the coronavirus pandemic, the club is continuing to put its slogan, “Basketball brings Hiroshima all Together,” into practice.

Players send a message of peace through the origami crane relay

Donation of origami cranes to the Peace Memorial Park

Promoting sports and peace on a global scale

Although sports and peace may not seem to have a direct connection, I realized that there are things that only the Hiroshima Dragonflies can do.
That is the fact that the club can reach out to a diverse range of people by conveying information through sports. I believe that sports have the power to pull together other sports clubs, sponsors, fans, and community members, regardless of age, nationality, or gender.
There are more and more companies and organizations that want to work with the club on SDGs activities.
Because many of the fans are in their 30s and 40s, since the 2018-19 season, the club has been handing out “Dream Cards” to elementary, junior high, and high school students in Hiroshima City, inviting them to matches for free, with the aim of bringing in the younger generation and making the club one that will transcend generations to be loved for many years to come. It was impressive to see how they are working, through this experience of watching basketball, to encourage younger generations to continue living in the city of Hiroshima.
Going forward, the Hiroshima Dragonflies will use its strengths in social media and team up with people who have the power to communicate with the public to launch major initiatives and expand activities that only Hiroshima can offer to the world.