Official

This time, we accessed by car, but "Holiday" Fruit Tree Kingdom Higashine Sakurabo Marathon "will be held! As introduced in "Running at Harumi Wharf Park", a certified tour from Tokyo Station is organized for runners, and tournament officials and locals are greeted at Tendo Station and Cherry Higashine Station at the Shinkansen arrival station.
From 14:30, the "Cherry Higashine Ekimae Welcome Ceremony" was held, and it was crowded with runners who arrived in Higashine City on a certified tour.

At this ceremony, guest runners Tetsuhiko Kin (professional running coach), Mako Chiba (world track and field medalist), and Tsuguharu Hagiwara (sports caster, Japan representative of Nagano Olympic Ski) were also on stage.
The venue was excited with advice for the day of the marathon and a bright and laughable talk.

After the ceremony, Ai Otsuka's song "Cherry" played, and guests and participants leave.
We boarded a shuttle bus for marathon participants, which runs free of charge from the east exit of the station, and moved to the cherry Higashine Onsen "Higashine City Indoor Multipurpose Court", which will be the venue for the "welcome reception".
On the way, I saw the image character "Tanto-kun" of Higashine City, which has something like a town fire extinguisher, and involuntarily photographed it.♪

At the venue, not only cherry sales, but also local people set up stalls and booths, and enjoyed tamakonjac, more and more, local sweets and locally brewed sake.

This reception, which was held by the event DJ Ketchup's light talk and moderator, began with an energetic opening attraction by the members of the Hanagasa Circle "Shimen Souta" at Yamagata University.
Many of the participants were fascinated by the traditional culture unique to Yamagata Prefecture, and they were photographing a lot of photos and videos. I am one of them!

Next, there were greetings from the tournament officials, guests, and sponsor companies.
Mayor Higashine Tsuchida will hold the event on half the scale this time, celebrate the 100th anniversary of Sato Nishiki last year, and seven years have passed since Higashine Cherry was registered in the Geographical Indication (GI) Protection System. He talked about the charm of Higashine City, including that.
In addition, Mr. Takahashi introduced that this tournament, which is characterized by Higashine citizens who cooperate as volunteers and children who support cheerfully, is also called the "Hospitality Marathon".

The regular guest runners of this tournament talked about paying attention to heat stroke and the great hospitality anyway, and Mr. Chiba, who has a wonderful smile and is nicknamed "Chiba-chan", said, "It's a "competition" that runs together. "
After that, greetings with laughter from sponsor companies, such as "supporting employees", "in the half marathon, slowly uphill from the front of the company", "running with your own watch", etc.
The city was working together to excite the tournament, and I felt warm hospitality to runners from all over Japan.

After the greeting, a talk event by guest runners.
Listening to the introduction of the course, the temperature and precautions on the day of the tournament, and the stories of local children who supported the aid and the roadside, the tension and excitement for the next day increased.
During the Q & A session, there are some useful stories about physical care and meals on the day of the tournament.

In addition, the rock-paper-scissors tournament, where luxurious prizes such as accommodation tickets, cherries, and products provided by sponsor companies are also very exciting!
I didn't have much opportunity to participate in the rock-paper-scissors tournament since I was an adult, so I enjoyed it.

Aya added to such a stage is the flower "Benibana" from Yamagata Prefecture.
The vases of the table for eating and drinking were also used to delight visitors.

After the welcome reception, commemorative gifts will be distributed, and a welcome fireworks will be launched from 19:30, and the day before the tournament will be exhausted!
The next day, I left the venue while thinking of running while thanking the people involved in the tournament and everyone in Higashine City.

However, as a correspondent of the Chuo-ku Tourism Association, visiting "Ginza's willow" is indispensable, and before returning to the hotel, we stopped by Higashine City Hall.
Regarding why Ginza willows are planted in Higashine City, I would like you to see "[11th Excursion Series] What is the charm of a friendship city, Higashine City?" Willows that were small were also growing.♪

Skanda, enshrined in the precincts of Okanonji Temple, received power from the willows of Ginza, which stretches toward the sky robustly in Higashine City, and we came to the next day's tournament!

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※This tournament has been introduced with permission from the Executive Committee of the Fruit Tree Kingdom Higashine Sakuranbo Marathon.

[The 11th Excursion Series] What is the charm of a friendship city, Higashine City (January 2019)
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