On March 7th, the HIS badminton team alongside Nick Fazio, a current middle school teacher, took some days off school to compete in the WJAA badminton tournament held at Canadian Academy in Kobe. Nervous yet excited, the Huskies left Hokkaido and flew to Kobe in order to prepare for the first day of games.

Day 1

The first day was a round-robin series. Every team placed in each category fought each other in order to determine the format of the tournament that was going to be played the following day. Mixed emotions of stress, sorrow, and excitement roamed the gym halls of Canadian Academy as the games of day one took place. Ending the day off with some wins and losses, the Huskies drifted into a slumber, all in hopes of getting gold the next day.

Noah, Jiyou, and Joohye, our fellow high school badminton players

Day 2

The day started off with a very tense and anxious feeling. One loss and it was over. As the tournament match-ups were decided, all teams occupied the courts and another long day of badminton had started. Smashes were made here and there, anger, sadness, happiness, all kinds of emotions flooded the atmosphere as the games progressed. However, one by one, our Husky competitors were getting knocked out of the tournament. All we could do was cheer on those who remained. As the Huskies gathered for one last match to cheer on Joohye, a current 10th grader who was fighting for 3rd place, they all watched in unison as the final point was taken. Joohye had successfully taken 3rd place.

Joohye in her match for 3rd place

We interviewed Joohye to share her perspective on this year's tournament. 

How well did you perform this year?

Even though I wasn’t able to win this year compared to last year, I think I did pretty well, playing singles for the first time. Compared to doubles, it was more tiring and challenging since you were all alone but because of my teammate’s cheering, I was able to do my best. 

What did it feel like during the matches? 

I felt nervous and excited because I was able to play other teams, which I never did this year, and I was really nervous because I wasn’t sure if I was able to do my best and win any of my matches. 

We also interviewed Tata and Liam, who are both seniors here at HIS, in order to get a bit more of a perspective on the tournament as a whole. With the season over and the end of his Huskies career waning, Tata feels disheartened. His second family is coming to an end. On the bright side, he states that the team was more prepared and the games he played at the tournament were great. 

Tata and Audrey (who is also a senior) warming up for the tournament

Liam, on the other hand, focused on how much fun he had playing badminton and educating the younger middle school kids. Despite these happy memories, Liam regrets not joining the tournament. In the future, he will take full advantage of opportunities to join in competition. 

Liam playing badminton during PE class

Although the wall of competition is tough, the returning Huskies have high hopes to climb over it next year, claiming their titles as champions. 

Much appreciation to Mr. Rankin and Mr. Fazio for making this tournament possible. Many thanks to the Husky community who have supported us through our toughest battles. 

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