Tokushima: Athletes Compete at Japan’s 1st Official Obstacle Course; Sport to Become Official Event at 2028 L.A. Olympics

The Yomiuri Shimbun

11:06 JST, December 28, 2024

YOSHINOGAWA, Tokushima — With the popularity of obstacle course races spreading due to the Japanese TV program “Sasuke,” the first official obstacle racecourse in Japan was built in Yoshinogawa, Tokushima Prefecture. Obstacle race is a competition in which contestants race against the clock while overcoming various obstacles.

The Yoshinogawa racecourse features 12 obstacles, including an about 4-meter-high wall and a rope swing, placed along a 100-meter course. The sport will be officially adopted as a modern pentathlon event at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. In Japan, the Japan Obstacle Sports Association will oversee the sport.

While the association was aiming to build a course that met international standards, the chairman of a construction company in Yoshinogawa invested in and built the course. The Yoshinogawa course was completed in April.

The first competition attracted about 3,000 people, and about 20 hotels in the city were nearly fully booked. The city government wanted to support the project and provided such assistance as sending its employees to the competition as staff.

The 1st Japanese Championships in Obstacle Course Racing were held in October, and about 80 people from Japan and overseas tried to clear the 12 obstacles.

A city official said they hoped Yoshinogawa would produce an Olympic athlete.