Koshien Exchange Match First director Kiryu "believe to the end" August 16 23:21

41-year-old director Sosuke Imaizumi who led Kiryu Daiichi High School in Gunma. "Believing to the end" the players who have been accustomed to using the app, and conducted command in an exchange match.

Former director suddenly retired “Protecting my alma mater”

Director Imaizumi, who was in his 3rd year after his inauguration, finished his first command at Koshien and said, "Third graders were persistently fighting to the end. I believed in the players to the end and I believed that they would hit me and sent them out." ..

After a close battle, he couldn't win, but his trust in the players he had coached from the beginning was unwavering, he said in a post-match interview.

I was appointed as a director one week before the autumn prefectural convention two years ago. While the players were upset by the sudden retirement of the former coach who also achieved the national championship, I accepted the director to protect the baseball club of my alma mater.

The goal is a team where players can think and act on their own.

Communicate with apps

The app was first introduced for communication with smartphone generation players. Players can easily report which part of their body is hurt and how tired they are.

Captain Tomoya Hirose said, “It was easier to convey pains and minor worries that were difficult to say,” and revealed that the distance from the coach was getting closer.

"Only thanks"

Two years have passed since Imaizumi took office. Although I decided to participate in Senbatsu, it was decided to cancel the tournament due to the influence of the new coronavirus.

During the self-restraint of club activities, the players decided to leave the dormitory and spend their time at home, but the app helped.

In the conversation with the director on the app, the word that Hirose wrote many times was "thank you".

Being able to play baseball, spending time with friends, having a director who thinks about them seriously. Hirose welcomed the match against the powerful Akashi commerce with a different feeling.

Kiryu Daiichi was batted by captain Hirose as a two-out second and third base in the eighth inning after scoring one point. However, he struck out. I couldn't get a result and lost the match.

Still, Hirose was smiling after the match.
"When I thought of the people who took care of me, it was mysteriously stronger than usual. Still, I couldn't finish it. The director thought only about himself. He's really grateful. It was so fast for three years, but it was really fun."

Director Imaizumi also looked happy. "I've seen players all the time, but it's the efforts of the players who have come this far, nothing else. I'm really thankful for bringing me here."

Kiryu Daiichi players who Imaizumi has been seriously facing since he took office. So the director "believed to the end."

The players also turned their gratitude into power and fought all the way through Koshien. It was summer when I felt a wonderful bond.

(Kojien Interview Team Takanori Nakato, Reporter)