Volleyball in Japan | Fear shrugged off

The media labels Rui Takahashi in Japan as a “rare role model.” Photo: IMAGO/AFLOSPORT Rui Takahashi is known in Japan as a big, strong guy, as someone who fits every cliché of what a man should be: With his 1.85 meters tall and his muscular body, he stands out far above the average Japanese man. And as a volleyball professional, he always gave the impression - without doing anything - that he was a dream partner for the predominantly female audience in the arena stands. Athletes are often romantically admired in Japan.

But this Rui Takahashi from the top club Osaka Suntory Sunbirds recently broke an unwritten rule: "I am gay and belong to a sexual minority," Takahashi explained on Instagram. »Ever since I was a child, I have been afraid to confront a certain aspect of my personality. I struggled with it and denied myself," writes the 26-year-old. But also: “I have internalized the realization that it is okay to be myself.”

For Japan, this case is almost like an earthquake. Takahashi is believed to be the first male professional athlete in the East Asian country to openly come out as gay. The Asahi Shimbun, the second largest newspaper in the country and known for liberal reporting, described him in an article as a "rare role model." The Mainichi Shimbun, also a major newspaper, asks: “Will the culture of masculinity change now?”

»Since I was a child, I have been afraid of having to deal with a certain aspect of my personality.«

Sports sociologist Kei Okada from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto seems to believe so. "Japan finally has an openly homosexual male athlete," Okada praised Takahashi's move to the Asahi Shimbun. "This is a very significant step forward." Okada suspects that in the future other athletes could feel encouraged to take similar steps and thus normalize sexual diversity. So far this has hardly been the case.

Unlike in several Western countries, women in sports in Japan have had a particularly difficult time declaring themselves LGTBQ. In 2021, the then former national soccer player Kumi Yokoyama came out as a trans man. Yokoyama gained courage during his stints at clubs in Germany (1. FFC Frankfurt) and the USA. In 2017, ex-volleyball player Nanae Takizawa came out as a lesbian, also after her active career.

This makes Rui Takahashi's move seem even bolder. "For all those who have difficulty accepting themselves - regardless of their reasons and backgrounds - I would be happy if my self-reflection and my thoughts in my own words could be a small impetus for change," Takahashi explained. »I will develop further through volleyball while remaining true to myself as Rui Takahashi.«

After all, the culture of masculinity in Japan is also largely influenced by sports culture. Openly homophobic hostilities are heard less often here than in Western countries. People who identify as LGBTQ also have less to fear for their physical integrity in Japan than elsewhere. But when a celebrity conforms to somewhat less archaic images of masculinity, their sexuality is often quickly questioned.

"Maybe he's gay!", for example, the well-known actor and director Takeshi Kitano speculated on Japanese television a few years ago. He spoke about Yuzuru Hanyu, who won several gold medals in figure skating for Japan and is the country's most successful athlete in his discipline, and in the eyes of some observers seemed a bit feminine. What supposedly spoke for Kitano's thesis: Hanyu's trainer was gay, and Hanyu also liked the comic character Pooh the Bear.

An often latently mocking mood for people who deviate from conservative norms has led to the country's roster of stars being strikingly homogeneous: women in the pop business are almost always thin and appear rather cute, as the cliché expects them to be. Male athletes appear polite, but at the same time they act like tough guys.

The number of people in the public who identify as queer is again strikingly low. When Tokyo hosted the Summer Olympics in 2021, a record number of LGBTQ athletes took part. However, there was not a single person from the host country among them. And this despite the fact that one of the games' mottos could be translated as "unity in diversity." But many Japanese athletes apparently still didn't dare to come out.

“We still have to fear that we will lose our jobs if we come out,” explained Olivier Fabre, French-born and head of the Pride House during the Tokyo Games, as part of the 2021 Olympics. A survey by the Kyodo news agency showed at the time that around a quarter of people in the country who identified as LGBTQ had already been involuntarily outed. Around 80 percent had also experienced discrimination at work or at school.

But now it seems quite possible that the change that “Mainichi Shimbun” is suggesting will be triggered by Rui Takahashi’s coming out. The sports newspaper "Sanspo", which focuses more on sensational news, has already dedicated a comparatively detailed story to Takahashi, with a focus on the process of his coming out. “The trigger was a conversation with Ran,” headlines the newspaper. Ran, Rui's younger brother, supported the athlete as well as his immediate surroundings at the club.

The story is important because it suggests, at least in a positive way, that Rui Takahashi did not have to feel alone in his situation. And that means a lot, especially in Japan. In the East Asian country, homosexuality is not illegal, but it is largely invisible. Even though large LGBTQ parades and demonstrations like “Pride” have grown over the past few years, the Tokyo event remains rather small. Gay marriage also remains illegal in Japan, the only G7 country to do so.

Hiroki Ogasawara, a sociology professor at Kobe University who observes the interaction between sport and society, has hardly seen Japan's professional athletes as social role models: "Athletes are only seen as entertainers. Politics is seen as a matter for experts. It is practically not the case that female athletes comment on social politics - the role model role is reduced to combative commitment within the context of sport.

Rui Takahashi could now shine in this way. “I will continue to devote myself fully to volleyball,” he said via Instagram. And anyone who stands out with their achievements in the hard-working Japanese society quickly enjoys respect. Since the audience of the Japanese professional league SV League is more female, Takahashi - at least according to the clichés - probably has to fear fewer homophobic comments than athletes in other disciplines.

But perhaps he will soon no longer be such a "rare role model." From a sporting perspective, Rui Takahashi has so far been in the shadow of his brother Ran Takahashi, who is one year younger than him and who this year left the Osaka Suntory Sunbirds, where Rui Takahashi continues to play, to join LKPS Lublin in the Polish league, which is very strong in volleyball. However, the brother and sister stick together through the YouTube channel “RanRui”, where they try delicious coffee and read emails from fans.

The near future will show to what extent Rui Takahashi will now open up a whole new group of fans and thus bring new audiences to the still young Japanese professional league SV League. A new round of fan mail could be coming soon.

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