Following revelations of power harassment in scandals involving the Nihon University football team coaching staff, the amateur boxing and gymnastics association and other bodies of authority across the Japanese sports world, on Sept. 7 the tabloid magazine Friday reported accusations of power harassment abuse by Masaaki Watanabe, 55, head coach of Hakone Ekiden powerhouse Nittai University. "I never want to see that guy's face again," the magazine quoted one former team member as saying. "As long as he's the head coach I can't run for this team. I really wanted to run Hakone one more time. If anyone would hire me I wanted to keep running for a corporate team. But instead I've come to hate running itself."
On Sept. 7 Nittai University responded to the abuse allegations against Watanabe, 55. According to the university's Public Relations department, the school is currently in the process of verifying the facts of the situation and plans to question Watanabe directly in the near future. The investigative committee will then decide upon the appropriate course of action.
On Sept. 3 Nittai sports director Junichi Yokoyama submitted a document regarding the allegations of abuse against Watanabe, initiating the factual verification process. There had been no previous allegations to the university of power harassment by Watanabe since he became head coach in 2015. The alumni association overseeing the school's sports teams and clubs has launched a hearing to interview students about their experiences but has not yet issued a statement to students explaining the current problem.
Watanabe became head coach at Toyokawa Kogyo H.S. in 1993 but left that position after a scandal involving corporal punishment and mental abuse of student athletes. According to the Aichi Prefectural Board of Education, there were 33 cases of abuse against Toyokawa Kogyo student athletes by Watanabe during the period from 2008 to 2012, including a 2009 incident in which he beat team members with a broom badly enough for them to require stitches and a 2012 incident in which he seriously damaged a student's eardrum. Watanabe received a four-month suspension as a result. At the same time, the school's PTA gathered 38,000 signatures asking that he remain in his position at Toyokawa Kogyo in recognition of his transformation of its ekiden team into one of the country's best.
After transferring to Nittai Ebara H.S. to teach physical education, Watanabe was hired by his alma mater Nittai University in 2015 to become ekiden head coach. Six months after he became head coach, Nittai's star senior, 2014 National University Half Marathon champion Hideto Yamanaka, and four other team members quit the team.
Questioned on the 7th at the ongoing National University Track and Field Championships, Inter-University Athletic Union of Kanto (KGRR) vice-chairman Hiroyuki Higuma indicated that the KGRR intends to issue Nittai University a request for a formal investigation of the allegations. "The situation at the moment is only a response to the details as they are reported," Higuma said. "We would like to receive an official report [from Nittai] and then consider its contents. We hope to see it on our desks as soon as possible."
Depending upon the factual findings of the investigation, it is possible that there may be consequences for the Nittai University ekiden team's upcoming season. "I have never heard of allegations of power harassment before," said Higuma. Carefully choosing his words, he added, "Taking action based upon allegations would be going about things backwards. First of all we need to establish the facts of the situation."
source articles:
https://www.hochi.co.jp/sports/etc/20180907-OHT1T50054.html
https://friday.kodansha.ne.jp/sport/105364
https://www.hochi.co.jp/sports/etc/20180907-OHT1T50092.html
translated by Brett Larner
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