The Waseda-Keio Rivalry 100th Anniversary Monument

2017/03/03

Many Keio University alumni may have never set foot on Tsunamachi Field. Located near Mita Campus behind the Tsunamachi Mitsui Club, its origins date back to 1903 (Meiji 36) when the athletic field on Mita Hilltop Square became too small. President Eikichi Kamata purchased land owned by Marquis Shigeaki Hachisuka and designated it as Keio University's new athletic field.

Today, it is home to the Tsunamachi Budokan, which houses a Judo Gymnasium, kendo hall, and kyudo range, as well as a sumo dojo and karate dojo. It serves as a base for various Athletic Association clubs and is also used for physical education classes and club activities for the Chutobu Junior High School.

The Waseda-Keio Rivalry 100th Anniversary Monument stands on this Tsunamachi Field. The first Waseda-Keio baseball game was held at Tsunamachi Field on November 21, 1903 (Meiji 36). In response to a letter of challenge received from the Waseda University baseball team on the 5th of the same month, the Juku baseball club replied, "Your school and our school must by all means play a match." Thanks to the efforts of captain Kiyoshi Miyahara (who later became the first chairman of the Japan Amateur Baseball Association, now the Japan Amateur Baseball Federation) and ace pitcher Yaichiro Sakurai, Keio University won 11 to 9. This victory marked the beginning of a long-standing battle between the two rival schools.

The game drew a crowd of about 3,000 and was such a good match that it was decided the Waseda-Keio rivalry would be held once each in the spring and fall starting the following year. However, in 1906 (Meiji 39), when the series became a best-of-three format starting from the previous fall, the score was tied at one win each. On November 11, the day the third game was scheduled, the fervor of both schools' cheering squads reached a fever pitch, creating a situation where anything could happen. After consultation, Keio University and Waseda University decided to cancel the game.

It seems there was a great commotion on Mita Hilltop Square at the time. According to the memoirs of Sei'ichiro Takahashi, who was a student and dormitory head at the time, the situation escalated to the point where President Kamata, after canceling the Waseda-Keio rivalry, demanded that the dormitory head leave the dormitory to take responsibility for the unrest among the residents (from "Mita-hyoron (official monthly journal published by Keio University Press)," included in "Shinpen Zuihitsu Keio Gijuku"). Afterward, the Waseda-Keio baseball games were not held for about 20 years until their revival in 1925 (Taisho 14).

As for this Waseda-Keio Rivalry 100th Anniversary Monument, an unveiling ceremony was held on November 21, 2003 (Heisei 15), exactly 100 years to the day of the first Waseda-Keio rivalry game. At the ceremony, the exchange of the letter of challenge from Waseda and the reply from Keio was reenacted. A commemorative game was later held at Meiji Jingu Stadium on the 26th.

Thus, Tsunamachi Field was the origin of the historic Waseda-Keio rivalry. The first of the Waseda-Keio Rugby Games was also held at Tsunamachi Field on November 23, 1922 (Taisho 11). The ban on sports exchanges between Waseda and Keio, which had been in place since the 1906 (Meiji 39) baseball game, was lifted with this rugby match.

There is no doubt that Tsunamachi Field is a place that holds a significant position in the history of Japanese sports. (The Editors)