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Local-Area
Collaboration Projects and Aichi
Weeks
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After watching each players swing, Linares offered some advice. |
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The municipalities and residents
of Aichi Prefecture have launched
a variety of Local-Area Collaboration
Projects designed to make EXPO
2005 AICHI exciting and fulfilling
and to turn its success into
an advantage in local development.
Of special note are the projects
in two categories: the one is
called Aichi Hospitality project
and, the Cities, Towns, and
Village Events.
In the Aichi Hospitality project,
the cities, towns, and villages
of the prefecture have been
paired up with countries that
are official participants in
the EXPO. Each municipality
will give a community-wide welcome
to visitors from the country
it is teamed up with, striving
to promote international exchange.
And when the National Day of
the country comes, the concerned
community will do all it can
to support the planned events.
In the Cities, Towns, and Villages
Events, local governments will
entertain visitors by staging
festivals and traditional performing
arts on the Aichi Festival Plaza
in Aichi Pavilion Nagakute.
The plaza will also be the stage
for a variety of other events:
those arranged by local citizens
groups, more than 400 of which
responded to a public appeal
for participation; those organized
by Aichi’s sister states
(Jiangsu, China, and Victoria,
Australia); and those sponsored
by the prefectural government.
With different themes having
been set for each of the six
months, we can look forward
to 185 days of constantly changing
events taking place on the plaza.
Among the official events of
EXPO 2005 are days that have
been designated as “prefecture
days,” and Aichi Prefecture
has been granted two Aichi Weeks,
the first April 23–29 and
the second September 13–19.
An executive committee organized
by the prefecture’s municipalities
(excluding Nagoya) has taken
the lead in organizing these
events, which will make use
of the entire exposition site
to advertise the prefecture’s
attractions. The week in April
will draw on the combined talents
of the 7 million prefectural
residents to stage powerful
and entertaining events designed
to give visitors a glimpse into
“Aichi’s heart and
soul.” The week in September
will attempt to give concrete
expression to the exposition’s
operational concept of a “Grand
Intercultural Symphony,”
and events displaying Aichi’s
readiness for the global age
are being organized with the
cooperation of the media.
Iwakura’s
grass-roots baseball diplomacy
On July 10 Iwakura City sponsored
a baseball practice session
for youngsters at the city’s
Sports and Culture Center featuring
instruction by a star Cuban
player. A total of 192 elementary
and middle school students,
principally members of municipal
sports clubs and school baseball
teams, got the chance to spend
some time with Omar Linares
and three other players from
the professional baseball team
the Chunichi Dragons.
In the Aichi Hospitality project,
Iwakura is the municipality
selected to host Cuba. Thus
far the municipal authorities
have been working to acquaint
residents with Cuba’s history
and culture by, for instance,
opening Cuban exhibitions and
regularly carrying a “Cuba
column” in the city’s
newsletter. This grass-roots
“baseball diplomacy,”
which became a reality when
Linares managed to find time
to fit it into his busy schedule,
was one of the city’s biggest
events in a friendship program.
Linares is a famous baseball
player in Cuba. He is a veteran
of the Cuban national team,
and he became the first player
in the history of Cuba’s
baseball league to win the triple
crown (leading the league in
batting average, home runs,
and runs batted in). Since signing
up with the Chunichi Dragons
in 2002, he has gained quite
a following in Japan, as well,
and earned a good reputation
for both batting and fielding.
Linares’s main duty on
the day was to provide batting
instruction to middle school
students. Working one-on-one
and speaking through an interpreter,
Linares advised the young players
to relax and reminded them to
keep their eyes on the ball
to the very last moment. From
time to time he would show them
what he wanted by taking a few
swings himself. When he liked
what he saw, he could be heard
to remark, “Okay, you’re
doing great.” One ninth
grade boy said after the session,
“I was really excited about
meeting Linares. At first I
was a little nervous, and I
was overwhelmed by how big he
is and how grand he looks. I’m
going to keep on playing ball,
never forgetting his advice.”
During the closing ceremony
Linares offered these words:
“It gives me great pleasure
to know that you all will be
learning about Cuba through
the exposition. I took part
in today’s activities for
the sake of exchange between
our two countries. I hope that
while you’re still young
you’ll practice and study
as hard as you can and that
someday you’ll become outstanding
athletes.” Afterwards a
great throng of youngsters crowded
around him, eager to shake his
hand and get his autograph.
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