In order to widely promote Iwate's food culture both domestically and internationally through the famous "wankoba", the "Wankoba World Convention" was held for the first time in Morioka City.
In January, Morioka City was introduced by a leading American newspaper as one of the "destinations to go," and Iwate Prefecture held the tournament at Morioka Castle Ruins Park in Morioka City on January 1.
Prior to the Games, after the "noodle cut" was performed to cut soba noodles instead of ribbon cutting, Governor Tatsumasu and others held a demonstration of wankoba.
Approximately 8 people from eight countries and regions, including Japan, including China and the United States, participated in the inaugural competition, and were divided into a division for children of elementary school age or younger and a general category, and competed for the number of dogs left in two minutes each.
The participants ate one after another while receiving cheers from the audience, and the Japan team that won the general division had a total of 3 cups in total.
Mr. Hirohiro Sato, a member of the winning team, said, "I'm glad that we were able to achieve a good result as a representative of Japan, and we were able to eat deliciously until the end."
Reiko Kitatochi, International Tourism Manager of the Iwate Prefecture Tourism and Promotion Office, said, "I'm glad that the tournament was exciting, and I would like to use wankoba as one of the attractions of Iwate to attract visitors."