Latest news with #MasakazuHori
Asahi Shimbun
12-08-2025
- Sport
- Asahi Shimbun
Hiroshima team accused of abuse leaves Koshien baseball tourney
The National High School Baseball Championship opened at Hanshin Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Aug. 5. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) NISHINOMIYA, Hyogo Prefecture—Koryo High School from Hiroshima withdrew from the 107th National High School Baseball Championship following criticism and threats on social media concerning reported acts of violence committed by players and staff members. The announcement on Aug. 10 made Koryo the first school to pull out midway through the annual summer tournament, aside from cases during the novel coronavirus pandemic. The tournament headquarters accepted Koryo's withdrawal. The popular and much-watched tournament at Hanshin Koshien Stadium is sponsored by The Asahi Shimbun Co. and the Japan High School Baseball Federation. Tsuda Gakuen Senior High School, representing Mie Prefecture, was given a default win over Koryo in their game scheduled for Aug. 14. Koryo won its first-round game over Asahikawa Shiho High School, representing northern Hokkaido, on Aug. 7. In March, the Japan High School Baseball Federation issued a stern warning to Koryo over an incident of violence without disclosing details. The school said Aug. 6 that a first-year team member was slapped on the cheek and chest and grabbed by the collar by his seniors in January. Details of the incident, some not officially confirmed by the school, had spread on social media before the tournament opened. Separately, allegations surfaced online on Aug. 7 that a team member had suffered physical and verbal abuse from the manager, coach and other players in 2023. A third-party committee established by the school is currently investigating the case. 'We take this situation very seriously,' Masakazu Hori, Koryo's principal, told reporters in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Aug. 10. 'Having withdrawn from the tournament, we will promptly carry out a fundamental review of our coaching system.' He said Tetsuyuki Nakai, manager of the baseball team, will be suspended from his coaching duties while the school investigates the team's management system and environment. As for reasons for the withdrawal, Hori cited significant disruption to the tournament's operation caused by defamatory social media posts, as well as damage to the 'honor and trust of high school baseball.' Saying that a bomb threat had been posted online targeting the school's dormitory, the principal emphasized that the school has given top priority to protecting the lives of students, faculty and staff, and members of the local community.
Japan Times
10-08-2025
- Sport
- Japan Times
Hiroshima school exits Summer Koshien tournament over bullying
A Hiroshima Prefecture high school hit by a bullying scandal has withdrawn from the hugely popular National High School Baseball Championship after a social media frenzy, officials said Sunday. An outcry over alleged violence earlier this year within the baseball team of Koryo High School in Hiroshima Prefecture prompted calls on social media for their withdrawal from the tournament, which is played at historic Koshien Stadium near Osaka and better known as Summer Koshien. "We have decided to pull out, and will swiftly conduct an overhaul of our education method," Masakazu Hori, the principal of the school, told reporters. It is reportedly the first time that a school has exited mid-tournament over a scandal related to player violence. Koshien tournament co-organizer, the Japan High School Baseball Federation, on Sunday described the bullying case as "extremely regrettable" and vowed to continue efforts to "eradicate violence, bullying and irrational hierarchical relationships." Koryo High said on Wednesday that an internal investigation had found a first-year student on the baseball team had been assaulted by four of his senior teammates at their dormitory in January. The acts of violence included shoving him in the chest and slapping him in the face, with the victim then transferred to another school in March following an apology by his assailants, the school said. The opening ceremony for the National High School Baseball Championship is held at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Tuesday. | Jiji Koryo High reported the assault to the federation, was given a reprimand in March and did not initially publicize the incident. But emotional social media posts detailing the case went viral earlier this month, triggering an outpouring of anger against the school. Unsubstantiated information then swirled online about other instances of violence allegedly involving Koryo's baseball team. Hori, the school principal, warned Sunday that the posts "include pure speculation not based on facts, and slanders against unrelated students. "Some of our students have been vilified and chased after, on their way to and from school," he said, adding that even a bomb threat had been received.
