Passionate swordsmen! Men's Individual – Block 5.
In the Nara Inter-High Men's Individual 5th Block, the 平岡青空 player from Mie Prefecture (Mie, 3rd year, 2nd dan) is seeded and will appear from the second round. In the first round, the 横江光輝 player from Shiga Prefecture (Kusatsu Higashi, 3rd year, 3rd dan) and the 保坂颯志 player from Tokyo (Kokushikan, 1st year, 2nd dan) will face each other. The match will be held at Court 1.
The first three players in this block.
- No.13 平岡 青空三重県Seeded (advancing from the second round)Mie（三重）／3Year・二Rank.
- No.14 横江 光輝滋賀県Kusatsu Higashi（草津東）／3Year・三Rank.
- No.15 保坂 颯志東京都Kokushikan（国士舘）／1Year・二Rank.
Round 1: No.14 横江 光輝(Kusatsu Higashi) vs No.15 保坂 颯志(Kokushikan)
Round 2: Winner of round 1 vs. No.13 平岡 青空(Mie)
In the individual competition, the 96 competitors will be divided into blocks of three. One competitor from each block will receive a bye and begin competition in the second round. One competitor advancing from each match area will advance to the semi-finals.
Highlights
Seeded player 平岡
Mie High School’s 3rd-year student 平岡青空 has secured a seeded position and will enter the competition from the second round. They have a track record of third place in the Tokai Tournament and have overcome the Mie prefectural qualifiers, demonstrating their strength. As the representative of Mie High School, which emphasizes sincerity as its motto, a good match is expected.
Kusatsu Higashi・Player 横江
The Shiga Prefecture representative, 横江光輝 ( Kusatsu Higashi , 3rd year, 3rd dan), will compete in the first round. Kusatsu Higashi High School opened in April 1978 as a community-focused general academic high school, and established the only physical education course in the prefecture in April 1995. Among them, 横江選手 leads the kendo club and secured a spot in Inter-High.
Kokushikan・保坂 player
保坂颯志, a first-year student from Kokushikan High School representing Tokyo (2nd dan), will compete in the first round. Details regarding Kokushikan High School could not be confirmed through public information. All eyes are on whether 保坂 can overcome the wall of the upperclassmen.
Three players advanced from the prefectural qualifying tournament.
Mie, Shiga, Tokyo. These three broke through their respective prefectural preliminaries and secured tickets to Inter-High. As representatives of each, they will exert their utmost effort and aim for victory. A heated battle will undoubtedly grace the first match arena.
Live broadcast「Passionate swordsmen! Men's Individual – Block 5.」
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Messages of support for the participating schools and players.
平岡, 横江, and 保坂. Three athletes challenging this Inter-High, staking their entire kendo lives on it. Believe in the results of your practice, sharpen your focus for that single moment, and seize victory. The fact that you won the prefectural qualifiers is already something to be proud of. As representatives of Mie Prefecture, Shiga Prefecture, and Tokyo, please give it your all. We are rooting for you!
School Information
Mie（三重）
- Official name
- 三重高等学校
- Reading
- Mie
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Private (coeducational). A junior and senior high school with an affiliated Mie middle school.
- Location
- Mie Prefecture Matsusaka City Kubocho 1232
- History
- In April 1961 (Showa 36), the high school was established and relocated to the current location in August of the same year. The junior high school was established in April 1962. Coeducation was introduced in April 1974, and a six-year middle and high school system was adopted in April 1985. In April 1994, Mie High School and Matsusaka Women's High School merged. The new school building was completed in April 2008, and the six-year middle and high school system commenced. In April 2018, the operating entity became independent from Umemura Gakuen Educational Institution.
- School motto/philosophy
- School motto: "Sincerity and earnestness"
- Department.
- General studies (university preparatory course, advanced preparatory course, six-year course)
- Kendo Club
- The kendo club is a designated strengthening club of the high school. Winning the Mie prefectural qualifying tournament in 2026 (Reiwa 8), the men's team advanced to Inter-High, and is introduced in the Let's Kendo combination article as "Tokai Tournament 3rd place・Mie(Mie)". 平岡青空 and 田﨑寛舵 players participated in the men's individual event, and 別府紗衣 player participated in the women's individual event. The history and national tournament results of the kendo club alone could not be confirmed in publicly available information.
- Notes
- A school nationally known as a baseball powerhouse. This tournament features competition in the men's team, men's individual, and women's individual categories.
Kusatsu Higashi（草津東）
- Official name
- 滋賀県立草津東高等学校
- Reading
- Kusatsu Higashi
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Shiga Prefectural (Co-educational)
- Location
- 8-65 Nishishibukawa 2-chome, Kusatsu City, Shiga Prefecture.
- History
- Opened in April 1978 as a general academic high school focused on serving the local community. In April 1995, it established the only physical education course in the prefecture.
- Department.
- General studies and physical education (40 students per grade, the only one in Shiga Prefecture).
- Kendo Club
- Winning the Shiga Prefecture qualifiers for the Reiwa 8 academic year, they will participate in Inter-High as a women’s team. 田中夢真 (3rd year, 3rd dan) will participate in the women’s individual event, and 横江光輝 (3rd year, 3rd dan) will participate in the men’s individual event. No nationwide tournament results for the kendo club alone could be confirmed in publicly available information. As a school, they produced Yui Ohhashi, the gold medalist in the women’s 400-meter individual medley at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics (graduated in fiscal year 2013), and the soccer club was runner-up at the 79th All Japan High School Soccer Tournament in 2000.
Kokushikan（国士舘）
- Official name
- 国士舘高等学校
- Reading
- Kokushikan
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Private (Educational Corporation Kokushikan)
- Location
- 4-32-1 Wakabayashi, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo
- History
- Founded in November 1917 by Shibata Tokujiro as a private school. The Kokushikan High School department was established in 1919, and Kokushikan Junior High School was established in 1925. In 1953, the name was reverted from Shitoku Gakuen to the original name of Kokushikan, and in 1994, coeducation was introduced for both the junior and senior high schools.
- School motto/philosophy
- Sincerity, Diligence, Insight, Spirit
- Department.
- Full-time and Part-time Courses, General Studies
- Kendo Club
- He participated in the boys' individual competition at the Inter-High for the 2026 academic year. With the goal of "pursuing the traditional 'correct kendo'," he is dedicated to his training with a motto of spiritual cultivation and character development.
- Notes
- History, school motto, and location are to be investigated (TODO).
・National High School Kendo Tournament Official Website (Tournament Updates) ↗
・Let's Kendo [Matchups] August 2nd - 5th, 73rd All Japan High School Kendo Tournament / Nara Inter-High 2026. ↗
・Notion Participating Schools Library Mie ↗
・Notion Participating Schools Library Kusatsu Higashi ↗
Which fact comes from which source?
- Block formation, seeding (No. 13), first round (No. 14 vs. No. 15), and match arena (No. 1) were determined according to the bracket in the official PDF “R8奈良総体≪男子個人戦≫” and the rule of odd-numbered blocks having the top seed/even-numbered blocks having the bottom seed.
- The names, prefectures, schools, grade levels, and ranks of three players are available in data/2026/kumiawase.json (based on the official PDF).
- School profiles for each school will reuse verified information from existing organization/individual articles (gakko_gaiyo) or be sourced from the Notion participating schools library and Wikipedia.
- The individual competition qualifying spots are two per prefecture, which determines the structure of the bracket.
- Note: The pronunciation of players' given names has not been confirmed, so only the family name is announced in the video audio.
Please note that the commentary and analysis are AI-generated content based on the facts listed above. As this is before the tournament, there is no description of the matches, attacks and defenses, or wins and losses. Please excuse any errors in reading or notation.