3 days ago
Yakko Welsh Onion Tossing World Championships held in Kochi Prefecture
Don't play with your food, unless it's a competitive sport.
Every year, the strongest competitors in Kami City, Kochi Prefecture, gather to determine who has the grace, might, and dexterity to throw a Welsh onion as far as possible. This year will mark the eighth Yakko Welsh Onion Tossing World Championship in which 60 men, women, and children will put their ability to propel produce to the test.
Sure, that might be a little small to call a 'World Championship' but if the MLB can do it, so can they. The sport itself is certainly easier said than done as Welsh onions, or 'negi' as they're known in Japan, are very long and flimsy, making them very ill-suited as projectiles. The local variety known as yakko negi is especially wobbly with a thickness of only half a centimeter (0.2 inches) and length of 60 centimeters (two feet), with a very small white section where its center of gravity normally would lie.
▼ A news report on the Yakko Welsh Onion Tossing World Championship
These technical hurdles didn't dissuade the competitors from giving it their all in this event designed to help revitalize and repopulate the area. This year it was held at the Saoka District Community Center, formerly known as Saoka Elementary School before it closed due to a lack of children.
Each contestant was able to select two yakko negi and throw each one from a 65-centimeter-high (26-inch-high) platform to see who could send it the farthest within a designated playing field. In the men's division, defending champion and world record holder Koji Ishizaki blew his competition away and secured his fifth title with a throw of 16.56 meters (54.3 feet). Despite the win, it was a personal disappointment for Ishizaki to not beat his own World Record of 17.83 meters (58.5 feet).
The 34-year-old former high school baseball player and SDF member also once held a Guinness World Record for longest thrown garlic chive at 15.88 meters (52.1 feet) at a similar competition in Konan City of the same prefecture. However, his record was broken by Australian Oscar Lynagh, a serial Guinness Record attempter who threw one for 18.60 meters (61 feet) in Melbourne.
Ishizaki is far from giving up and shares his wisdom with everyone in the hopes of bringing the record back to Japan. He says the key is to find the straightest possible onion with a firm core that extends far up into the leaf area. Also, many people might be tempted to put a spin on their Welsh onion, but Ishizaki recommends keeping your wrist locked and throwing it as if just pushing it forward. Ishizaki loves Welsh onions, leeks, and chives in his off-time and often buys them at the market, where he can further appreciate their physical properties as well as their taste.
▼ Ishizaki demonstrates his throw.
In the women's division, Sumika Kondo won with a throw of 13.36 meters (43.8 feet) and in the children's division Yuto Tamura, who also happens to be Ishizaki's nephew, won with a 13.10-meter (43-feet) throw rivaling the adults.
The Saoka Area Regional Development Promotion Council said they understood why some people might find food-throwing competitions inappropriate but felt it was the best way to get the world to know about yakko negi and where it's grown. If you're reading this in another country, then mission accomplished.
Source: Asahi Shimbun, KUTV, Guinness World Records
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