A unique event was held in mid-June in Moriyama, Shiga Prefecture, where participants played volleyball in a muddy rice paddy.
Organized by a local youth association, the annual Paddy Festival in Moriyama used to be held in August but was moved to June for the first time this year as part of heat stroke prevention measures. A total of 21 teams took part, involving 120 participants from Shiga Prefecture and elsewhere.
The game was held in a special court, measuring 5 meters in width and 5.5 meters on each side of the net, in a muddy rice field. Four-member teams competed against each other in the preliminaries to reach the final tournament round.
The players gave their all, some diving straight into the mud while others kept slipping and falling. Enthusiastic spectators cheered them on, shouting encouragements such as "Get muddier!" and "Jump further!"
Yuta Tani, a nurse in his 20s from Otsu who participated with four colleagues, said, "It's an extraordinary experience getting to step into a rice paddy. At first, I was a bit hesitant about going into the mud, but once I dived in there, it was so much fun!"
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