17-year-old Boy Selected as Top Lucky Man of Year at Annual Race Held by Hyogo Pref. Shrine

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:29 JST, January 10, 2025

NISHINOMIYA, Hyogo — Nishinomiya Shrine in Hyogo Prefecture on Friday held a ceremonial race to select this year’s “lucky men.”

About 5,000 people ran along the roughly 230-meter approach to the shrine’s main building of worship.

The race dates back to the Edo period (1603-1867), and the first three to finish are declared fukuotoko, or the year’s lucky men.

The first fukuotoko this year was a high school student. Referring to the victims of the Noto region, which was hit by a series of disasters last year, the 17-year-old boy said, “I would like to share my good fortune with the people of Noto.”