Japanese Community Rebuilds Around New Rugby World Cup Stadium

• Newly built stadium opens with symbolic match between Kamaishi Seawaves Rugby

Football Club and Japanese Top League side Yamaha Júbilo

• The Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium is the only newly built facility of the 12

Rugby World Cup venues

• Venue to play host to two Rugby World Cup matches

• Local community rallies around rugby following the devastation caused by the 2011

earthquake and tsunami

The newly built Rugby World Cup 2019 venue Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium in

Iwate Prefecture opened today with a memorial match between the local Kamaishi

Seawaves Rugby Football Club and Top League side Yamaha Júbilo.

The match was the culmination of a weekend of rugby themed events marking the

beginning of a new chapter in the remarkable story of Kamaishi, a city for which rugby

plays such an important role; in its history, present and its future.

The Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 and the tsunami that followed brought

considerable devastation and loss of life to Kamaishi and the surrounding area. A

bustling port town on the edge of the Pacific Ocean, Kamaishi bore the full force of the

tsunami as it came ashore in the north east of Japan. Throughout the area, thirty percent

of homes were either damaged or destroyed, sixty percent of businesses were

completely inundated, and nighty-eight percent of the local fishing fleet was wiped out.

Players from the local rugby team, while initially focused on supporting the relief and

recovery effort, were encouraged by the people of Kamaishi to return to the rugby pitch

as quickly as possible to begin training for the upcoming season. Being a town so closely

tied to its rugby team, rugby was recognised as an important way of helping to bring a

sense of normal life back to the people of the city during a time of incredible hardship.

On 5 June 2011, less than three months after the earthquake and tsunami, Kamaishi

welcomed Yamaha Júbilo for its first match of the season. It was therefore highly

symbolic and with a great sense of pride that the people of Kamaishi and the Seawaves

Rugby Football Club welcomed Yamaha Júbilo back for this special memorial match to

mark the opening of the new stadium.

Kamaishi has a long and successful rugby history. The previous local team, Nippon Steel

won seven consecutive national championships between 1979 and 1985, earning them

the nickname, ‘The Northern Iron Men’.

Built on the former site of the local Elementary and Junior High Schools, construction of

the stadium began in April 2017. The Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium is the only

newly built facility of the 12 Rugby World Cup venues. It has a permanent capacity for

6,000 spectators, however during next year’s tournament 10,000 additional temporary

seats will be added, bringing the total capacity of the stadium to 16,000 for the two Rugby

World Cup fixtures.

Tekenori Noda, Mayor of Kamaishi City said:

"Today has been an incredible day for Kamaishi. To have played the opening match in

this beautiful stadium, completed with the support and vision of so many people, is a

dream come true. Thank you to our friends from Yamaha Júbilo who have once again

shown their commitment and solidarity with the people of Kamaishi. We now look

forward to welcoming people from across the world to Kamaishi during Rugby World

Cup 2019 and beyond."

Akira Shimazu Rugby World Cup 2019 Organising Committee President & CEO said:

"Congratulations to the people of Kamaishi in taking this important step forward with

the opening of this wonderful rugby stadium. Kamaishi will be one of the great stories of

Rugby World Cup 2019 and I am delighted that the tournament will help to bring this

inspiring story of survival, resilience and reconstruction to the world."

World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont said: "The opening of the Kamaishi Recovery

Memorial Stadium marks a very special moment on the journey to Rugby World Cup

2019. The stadium stands as a testament to the indomitable spirit of the people of

Kamaishi and will act as a beacon of hope and inspiration for generations to come,

providing an important legacy for the future of this region of Japan that has rugby at its

heart.

"Rugby World Cup will bring four top international teams, thousands of fans and the

attention of the world to the region next year and promises to be one of the highlights of

the event. World Rugby will continue to work closely with the organising committee and

the Iwate Prefecture to ensure that the venue is a success, both for the Rugby World Cup,

and for the future of the region."

The Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium will host Fiji versus Uruguay in Pool D on 25

September, 2019, followed by the Pool B match on 13 October between Namibia who

secured their place at Rugby World Cup 2019 yesterday, and the winner of the repechage

tournament, which will take place in November in Marseille, France.

Rugby World Cup 2019 will be the first time the tournament will be held in Asia. Over

400,000 foreign visitors are anticipated to travel to Japan to be a part of this once in a

lifetime event.

With 48 matches played across 12 host cities stretching from the northern island of

Hokkaido, to the southern island of Kyushu, visiting fans will get to experience the

amazing regional diversity Japan has to offer while being a part of the world’s premier

rugby tournament.

The next opportunity to secure tickets begins on September 19 with the opening of the

General Ticket Sales Ballot open to the general public. Fans who have been unsuccessful

in securing tickets so far are encouraged to keep trying as tickets are still available for

all matches and in all categories, across the entire tournament.

-END-

Formedia enquiries please contact:

Nicholas van Santen

International Communications Manager

Rugby World Cup 2019 Organising Committee

Nicholas_van_santen@japanrugby2019.or.jp

＋81 (0)90 2167 2019

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