Ryōzō Hiranuma's Bust and His 77th Birthday Celebration

2021/04/26

Image: The unveiling ceremony of the bust on May 29, 1955; Athletic Association students marching through Hiyoshi Stadium in the rain.

Ryōzō Hiranuma (1879–1959) is known as the father of citizen sports and the foster parent of the Juku Athletic Association. A student of Fukuzawa, Hiranuma belonged to the baseball club during his university years, serving as the cleanup hitter and third baseman. He was an all-around athlete who participated in as many as 26 sports, including judo, kendo, tennis, and gymnastics, earning him the reputation of being a "department store of sports." In 1938, on the occasion of his 60th birthday (Kanreki), a "Kanreki Celebration Competition" was held at the Meiji Jingu Gaien. Stories remain of how he wore an athletic shirt gifted to him in place of the traditional red vest (chanchanko) and ran the 100-meter dash in exactly 15 seconds.

A bust of Hiranuma stands at the track and field stadium on the Hiyoshi Campus within Keio (the bust, originally built on the main stand side, was moved to the back stand side during the renovation of Hiyoshi Stadium for the 150th anniversary of Keio University in 2008). It was erected in 1955 to celebrate Hiranuma's 77th birthday (Kiju).

On May 29, 1955, a 77th birthday celebration combined with the bust unveiling ceremony was held at the Hiyoshi Campus. Despite the heavy rain, according to a report in the "Athletic Association Monthly," it was a grand event: "Starting at 10:30 AM, led by the Athletic Association flag, 1,700 athletes and members from 31 clubs in order of their founding—starting with Judo and Kendo—along with the specially participating Keio University Cheerleading Team, began a brave march in uniform or school dress to the music of the Yokohama City Hall Brass Band." Hiranuma, wearing the white blazer gifted by President Kōji Ushioda at the February celebration mentioned later, stood on the platform in the rain to receive congratulations. After the march, the statue was unveiled by his granddaughter, Noriko.

Prior to the event at the Juku, on February 26 of the same year, a 77th birthday celebration was also held at the Kanda National Gymnasium, organized by over 700 people from 11 sports organizations Hiranuma had supported, including the Japan Sport Association, the Japan Association of Athletics Federations, and the Tokyo Big6 Baseball League. On this occasion, a bust created by Saburo Yoshida, a member of the Japan Art Academy, was presented to Hiranuma. This bust was then donated by Hiranuma to the Keio University Athletic Association and came to be erected at the Hiyoshi track and field stadium. In November of that year, Hiranuma became the first person from the sports world to receive the Order of Culture.

Our great senior Hiranuma, who Shinzo Koizumi truly described as a "child of sports," still quietly watches over the members of the Keio University Athletic Association as they work hard every day at Hiyoshi.

(Nobuhito Yamamoto, Director of the Keio University Athletic Association, Professor at the Faculty of Law)