Tokyo Weekender - November 2017

Horizon Labo founder Hibiki Iwano
could learn, so I dropped out to focus on the
business," he says. "In general, Japanese people
are afraid to take these kinds of risks, and
that's one of the main reasons you don't see
many start-ups here."
Another teen who has taken up the
challenge is Hibiki Iwano. Diagnosed with
Asperger syndrome, he struggled to keep up
with classroom activities at school, and found
it difficult to connect with others. So at age
13, he decided to quit, and within two years
was running his own coffee business. "I had
a hard time copying words written on the
board, and there were many things I couldn't
do that brought me down," he tells us. "I wanted
to focus on what I could do with my own
working style. I found that roasting coffee
was the ideal way of expressing myself." With
the support of his parents, Iwano launched
Horizon Labo this April. Located in Gunma
Prefecture, the shop became so crowded that
it has been temporarily closed, but the young
entrepreneur has since started selling his
beans online.
THE SPORTS SENSATIONS
Former international flanker for the Brave
Blossoms Katsuyuki Kiyomiya felt his son had
the physique to follow in his footsteps as a
rugby player. Instead, young Kotaro decided
to take up baseball. By the time he was 13, the
six-foot, 206-pound junior high school student
was already being compared to former New
York Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui, and touted
as the Japanese Babe Ruth. Now 18, Kotaro
is the most sought-after batter in the country
after deciding to turn pro rather than attend
university. He holds the unofficial high school
record of 111 home runs.
Another record-breaking teen making
headlines is Takefusa Kubo. The youngest goal
scorer in J-League history, he recently played
in both the U-20 and U-17 World Cups. Signed
by Barcelona in 2011, he scored 74 goals in
his first 30 games at their famed La Masia
youth academy. Three years later, he joined
FC Tokyo as the Blaugrana had violated FIFA's
international youth transfer regulations.
He can re-sign when he's 18, and the dream
for Japanese fans is to one day see him line
up for the Catalan club in the Superclásico
against Real Madrid's U-15 playmaker
Takuhiro Nakai.
In athletics, Yoshihide Kiryu became the
first Japanese sprinter to break the 10-second
barrier in the 100 meters, yet Sani Brown
is the name creating the biggest buzz. The
18-year-old completed a sprint double at the
national championships in June, and then
two months later became the youngest-ever
finalist in the 200 meters at the World Championships
(198 days younger than previous
record holder Usain Bolt). The half-Ghanaian
runner is currently enrolled at the University
of Florida.
At this year's World Table Tennis
Championships, Tomokazu Harimoto, just
13 at the time, caused the biggest upset when
he defeated Olympic bronze medalist Jun
Mizutani on his way to the quarter finals.
A naturalized Japanese player with Chinese
parents, he later became the youngest-ever
winner of an International Table Tennis
World Tour event, lifting the Czech Open aged
just 14 years and 61 days, while compatriot
Mima Ito took home the Women's Singles title.
The pair had a combined age of 30, and will
AT HIGH SCHOOL I FELT I REACHED A LIMIT IN TERMS
OF WHAT I COULD LEARN, SO I DROPPED OUT TO FO-
CUS ON THE BUSINESS
both be expected to challenge for medals at
the 2020 Olympics.
As will 17-year-old swimmer Rikako Ikee,
who won three golds at this year's World Junior
Championships. At next February's Winter
Olympics, snowboarder Ayumu Hirano will
be among Japan's best hopes of a gold in the
half pipe competition, while Marin Honda
is viewed as the current golden girl of figure
skating.
Despite just turning 20, Naomi Osaka
also deserves a mention. The young tennis
sensation defeated former world number
one Angelique Kerber at the US Open, and
last month beat Venus Williams at the Hong
Kong Open.
THE YOUNG ENTERTAINERS
Almost a decade on from being named in
the Guinness Book of Records as the world's
youngest ever professional guitarist, 17-yearold
Yuto Miyazawa is showing that he's not
just a skillful musician, but also a principled
human being. "I played several charity
concerts for refugees this year, donating all
the revenue to the UN Refugee Agency," he
tells Weekender. "Even though Japan accepts
few refugees, as individuals we can make a
difference." The mature teen started playing
guitar aged three after being mesmerized
by Queen's Brian May, and rose to fame
after performing on Late Night with Conan
O'Brien as well as twice on the Ellen DeGeneres
Show – where he also met his hero
Ozzy Osbourne. The former Black Sabbath
vocalist then invited the youngster to tour
with him. "Playing on such a big stage was a
great learning experience," Miyazawa says.
"I met many legendary artists including
[Judas Priest singer] Rob Halford who protected
me from a scary spectator."
While admitting it's not the kind of music
he usually listens to, Miyazawa believes
Babymetal has what it takes to make it to
the top. The teenage trio are seen by many
as nothing more than a passing fad, yet are
still going strong three-and-a-half years
on from their debut album. So far in 2017,
they've toured with Red Hot Chili Peppers
and Korn, and opened for Guns N' Roses
and Metallica. In the summer they launched
The Five Fox Festival, a series of shows with
gender, age and clothing restrictions. The
group have many celebrity fans, including
Slipknot's Corey Taylor who recently
revealed that his son got him into them.
For those who fancy something a little
mellower, Mao Fujita is worth a listen. The
18-year-old pianist has already picked up
numerous accolades during his short career,
and added to his extensive list this summer
when he was awarded the prestigious Clara
Haskil Prize, named after the renowned
Romanian pianist. The young prodigy, who
started playing music at the age of three, is
the third Japanese winner of the biennial
competition. Since making his debut with
the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra in
2010, he has been performing in solo recitals
and joint concerts around the globe.
When it comes to acting, Mei Nagano
is viewed by many as the country's rising
star of 2017. The 18-year-old has seen her
reputation grow since performing alongside
Ryohei Suzuki in the romantic comedy My
Love Story! and this year played the lead
role in the live film adaptation of popular
manga Daytime Shooting Star. Mana Ashida,
who appeared in Pacific Rim, remains
Japan's most famous teen actor. Known as
a bookworm, she's spent most of the year
focusing on her studies, though did feature
prominently in the 2017 mockumentary
Yamada Takayuki in 3D.
GNEX founder Yoichiro Mikami
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