Japan's Women's National Blind Football Team Sponsored by Tanaka Kikinzoku Group Wins First International Competition

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TOKYO, May 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd., the Tanaka Kikinzoku group's holding company headquartered in Tokyo, is sponsoring Japan's women's national blind football team as part of support it has extended to the Japan Blind Football Association (hereinafter JBFA) since this past April.

Tanaka's corporate logo is displayed on the right sleeves of national team members' uniforms.

Since blind football was introduced to Japan in 2001, female players had been forced to play with male players because there were not many female players. Moreover, a gap in physical strength and ability between men and women and a lack of an adequate training environment and facilities made it difficult for female players to continue playing the sport.

The JBFA, which is certified as an NPO, launched activities in 2014 to scout for female players and train them, and launched Japan's women's national blind football team on April 1, 2017, after trying to overcome various challenges.

In May 2017, the team participated in the International Blind Sports Federation (hereinafter IBSA) Women's Blind Football Tournament, the first international women's blind football event, in Vienna, Austria.

(Photo1: http://prw.kyodonews.jp/prwfile/release/M104368/201705021434/_prw_PI1fl_GCDn5sJ8.jpg)

(Photo2: http://prw.kyodonews.jp/prwfile/release/M104368/201705021434/_prw_PI2fl_T35DA0aE.jpg)

(Photo3: http://prw.kyodonews.jp/prwfile/release/M104368/201705021434/_prw_PI3fl_KVaz5mI6.jpg)

The Tanaka Kikinzoku group, which has been exploring the potential of precious metals and trying to develop and produce precious metal goods on a global scale, has empathized with the JBFA and Japan's women's national blind football team, both of which are striving for better performances by moving beyond the bounds of sports for the handicapped, and became a sponsor for the team.

The Tanaka Kikinzoku group is determined to contribute to the development of blind football and the promotion of sports for handicapped people.

The female Japanese team who participated in the "IBSA Women's Blind Football Tournament 2017" held from May 3 to 7 won the championship. The results of the national team's games are as follows:

Japan 2-0 England-Greece selection team
Japan 2-0 Russia-Canada selection team
Japan 1-0 IBSA selection team
Final  Japan 1-0 IBSA selection team

Ranking
1st: Japan
2nd: IBSA selection team
3rd: Russia-Canada selection team
4th: England-Greece selection team

About IBSA Women's Blind Football Tournament 2017

IBSA Blind Football Tournament 2017, held in Vienna, Austria, from May 3 to 7 under the auspices of the IBSA, is the first international blind football tournament for female players. Players and staff members from 16 countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Canada, Mexico and Japan) participated. Japan, England-Greece selection team, Russia-Canada selection team and IBSA selection team (composed of members excluding athletes from Japan, England, Greece, Russia and Canada) played with one another in a round-robin league competition (each game 10 minutes half). They then played a third-place game and a final game according to their rankings in the league competition.

About Japan's women's national blind football team

Japan's national team was launched on April 1, 2017. Since blind football was introduced to Japan in 2001, female players had been forced to play with male players. A gap in physical strength and ability between men and women made it difficult for female players to continue playing the sport. The team was formed after training sessions, which the JBFA launched in 2014 with the aim of scouting for capable female players and training them, subsequent games in July 2016 involving players selected through this process, and a training camp for prospective members of Japan's national team that kicked off in January 2017, among other events.

About JBFA, an incorporated NPO

The JBFA is training and developing Japanese national team players and conducting an awareness-raising campaign on diversity with the aim of "achieving a society in which visually impaired people and non-handicapped people can naturally coexist through blind football."
Chairperson: Misako Kamamoto
For details, visit the following website: http://www.b-soccer.jp/

About Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd.

(the holding company that supervises the Tanaka Kikinzoku group)
Headquarters: TOKYO BUILDING, 7-3, Marunouchi 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
(100-6422) Japan
Representative Director & CEO: Akira Tanae
Founded: 1885
Established: 1918
Capital: 500 million yen
Consolidated group employees: 3,476 (as of March 31, 2016)
Consolidated group net sales: 1,026.7 billion yen (FY2015)
Group's main activities:
Strategic and efficient group management and management guidance for group companies as the holding company at the center of the Tanaka Kikinzoku group

Website: http://www.tanaka.co.jp/english/ (group)
http://pro.tanaka.co.jp/en/ (industrial products)

About the Tanaka Kikinzoku group

Since its foundation in 1885, the Tanaka Kikinzoku group has built a diversified range of business activities focused on precious metals. Tanaka is a leader in Japan in terms of the volume of precious metals handled. Over the course of many years, the Tanaka Kikinzoku group has not only manufactured and sold precious metal products for industry, but also provided precious metals in such forms as jewelry and resources. As precious metal specialists, all group companies within and outside Japan work together with unified cooperation between manufacturing, sales, and technological aspects to offer products and services. In addition, in order to make further progress in globalization, Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo welcomed Metalor Technologies International SA as a member of the group in 2016.

As precious metal professionals, the Tanaka Kikinzoku group will continue to contribute to the development of an enriching and prosperous society.

The five core companies in the Tanaka Kikinzoku group are as follows.
- Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd.
- Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K.
- Tanaka Denshi Kogyo K.K.
- Electroplating Engineers of Japan, Limited
- Tanaka Kikinzoku Jewelry K.K.

Note on the year of group establishment
* On April 1, 2010, the group was reorganized with Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd. as the holding company.

SOURCE Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.tanaka.co.jp/english/