吉村 of Ibaraki! Women's Individual 8th Block
The first match area, Block 8, will feature 髙瀬冬羽 from Kendai Takasaki in Gunma Prefecture, 山田芽依 from Aterazawa in Yamagata Prefecture, and seeded player 吉村絆那 from Moriya High School in Ibaraki Prefecture. Aterazawa High School is a strong school with a track record in national tournaments. The three players who won their prefectural qualifying tournaments in Gunma, Yamagata, and Ibaraki will compete against each other.
The first three players in this block.
- No.22 髙瀬 冬羽群馬県Kendai Takasaki（健大高崎）／3Year・二Rank.
- No.23 山田 芽依山形県Aterazawa（左沢）／3Year・二Rank.
- No.24 吉村 絆那茨城県Seeded (advancing from the second round)Moriya（守谷）／3Year・二Rank.
Round 1: No.22 髙瀬 冬羽(Kendai Takasaki) vs. No.23 山田 芽依(Aterazawa)
Round 2: Winner of Round 1 vs. No. 24 吉村 絆那(Moriya)
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 吉村
Ibaraki Prefecture's Moriya High School 3rd-year student 吉村絆那 will enter the tournament from the second round as a seeded player in the 8th block of this tournament. With a skill level of second dan, they will control the match with their inherent composure. Details could not be confirmed with publicly available information.
Kendai Takasaki・髙瀬選手
From Kendai Takasaki High School in Gunma Prefecture, player 髙瀬冬羽 is a third-year student and holds a second-dan rank. They will participate in the 2026 Women's Individual Competition. Details regarding Kendai Takasaki High School could not be confirmed with publicly available information.
Aterazawa・山田選手
From Aterazawa High School in Yamagata Prefecture, 山田芽依 is also a second-dan student in their third year. Aterazawa High School is a strong school with a history of winning the women's team event at the National High School Kendo Tournament. They achieved national dominance in 1992 and 1998. They have proven their ability by advancing through the prefectural qualifiers.
Strong school・Aterazawa High School
Aterazawa High School opened in 1948 as Takamatsu High School, and was later renamed Aterazawa High School. It moved to its current location in 1985 and was reorganized into a comprehensive high school in 2013. The school’s philosophy is “to pursue school wellbeing and develop capable people who will support the local community.”
Three players advanced from the prefectural qualifying tournament.
Gunma, Yamagata, and Ibaraki. Three competitors who advanced to the national stage after winning their respective prefectural qualifying tournaments. Expectations are high to see what kind of kendo these women, who have honed their skills through rigorous training, will demonstrate in the first match.
Live broadcast「吉村 of Ibaraki! Women's Individual 8th Block」
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Messages of support for the participating schools and players.
髙瀬冬羽 player, 山田芽依 player, 吉村絆那 player. Each of your kendos is the culmination of your efforts to date. On this stage, please fully demonstrate your brilliance. The competition arena you stand in alone is not a place of solitude. The soil of your hometown, the passionate gaze of your coach, the cheers of your teammates, and the warm smiles of your family are strongly supporting you. Gunma Prefecture, Yamagata Prefecture, Ibaraki Prefecture. As kendo practitioners representing each prefecture, please wield your shinai with pride and strength. Beyond winning or losing, cherish this moment as a treasure for your lifetime. We are cheering for you!
School Information
Kendai Takasaki（健大高崎）
- Official name
- 健大高崎高等学校
- Reading
- Kendai Takasaki
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Private (Takasaki University of Health and Welfare)
- Location
- 531 Chudairui-cho, Takasaki City, Gunma Prefecture
- History
- Founded in 1936 as the Fukuso Wayosei Girls' Academy. Renamed Sudo Higher Technical Arts School in 1954, and the Gunma Women's Junior College Affiliated High School was opened in 1968. In 2001, it was renamed Takasaki University of Health and Welfare Takasaki High School and became coeducational.
- School motto/philosophy
- The school motto is "Gratitude, Service, and Friendship."
- Department.
- Full-time Course, General Department (Special Advanced Course, Advanced Course, Academic Course, Athlete Course)
- Kendo Club
- The girls' kendo club is a designated powerhouse club. The "Major Achievements" section of the official website lists "Inter-High (24 team appearances, 3rd place 3 times)," "All Japan Selected Tournament (24 team appearances, 3rd place 1 time)," and "Kanto Tournament (29 team appearances, 2nd place 3 times)." In the 2025 academic year, they reached the team top 16 and individual top 8 at the 72nd All Japan High School Kendo Tournament. The club motto is "Kokki Chishin." (Note: Wikipedia lists 3rd place in the high school general sports festival twice, which differs from the official website).
- Notes
- History, school motto, and location are to be investigated (TODO).
Aterazawa（左沢）
- Official name
- 山形県立左沢高等学校
- Reading
- Aterazawa
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Yamagata Prefectural (Coeducational)
- Location
- 816-3 Yamano, Fujida, Oaza Ooe, Nishimurayama District, Yamagata Prefecture.
- History
- Opened in April 1948 as Yamagata Prefectural Takamatsu High School, with a branch school established in July of the same year Aterazawa. Became Yamagata Prefectural Aterazawa High School with the high school consolidation in 1952. Relocated to the current Fujida area in 1985, and reorganized into a comprehensive high school in 2013.
- School motto/philosophy
- The school’s guiding principle is “to pursue the well-being of the school and to develop capable individuals who will contribute to the community.”
- Department.
- Comprehensive Studies (Liberal Arts, Business, and Orchard Horticulture courses)
- Kendo Club
- The women's kendo team is one of the strongest in the nation. They won the women's team event at the National High School Kendo Tournament in 1992 (39th time) and 1998 (45th time), and were runners-up in 1983 (30th time) and 1987 (34th time). They recorded 28 consecutive wins at the prefectural high school general athletic meet until fiscal year 2010, where their winning streak was broken in the semi-finals against Yamagata Johoku in fiscal year 2011. In the Yamagata Prefecture qualifying round for the kendo competition of the National Sports Festival in June 2026, Aterazawa High School team finished second, and the Yamagata Prefecture selection team with four additional members won. This tournament will feature the women's team and women's individual events (山田芽依 player・猿山桃花 player).
- Notes
- "Aterazawa" is read as "aterazawa," a difficult-to-read school name. The only high school in Ooe Town.
Moriya（守谷）
- Official name
- 茨城県立守谷高等学校
- Reading
- Moriya
- Division/Category of Establishment
- Public (Ibaraki Prefecture)
- Location
- 70 Oki, Moriya City, Ibaraki Prefecture
- History
- A high school that opened in the northern part of Moriya City in 1983.
- School motto/philosophy
- The educational policies consist of three items: "striving to improve academic ability and fostering an attitude of proactive learning," "observing social rules and fostering an attitude as a person with a rich heart," and "fostering an attitude to cultivate physical and mental health."
- Department.
- Full-time Course, General Studies
- Kendo Club
- The Kendo club is one of the strongest in the country. They won the girls' team event at the Inter-High Kendo Championships in 2005, 2007, 2011, 2012, and 2023, and won the girls' event at the All Japan High School Kendo Selected Tournament in 2005 and 2023. The tournament records on the official website include 3rd place in the girls' team event at the 68th All Japan High School Kendo Tournament in 2021, victory at the Kaiseiki National High School Girls' Kendo Tournament in 2018, and the team victory at the 66th Kanto High School Kendo Tournament in 2019 (the 15th title in 3 years).
- 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 Aterazawa ↗
Which fact comes from which source?
- Block arrangement, seeding (No. 24), first round (No. 22 vs. No. 23), and match arena (No. 1) were determined according to the combination chart in the official PDF “R8奈良総体≪女子個人戦≫” 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.