Student Wall-Racing's Second Round Wraps Up, Safety Record Still Unblemished
The autumn qualifying rounds of the student wall-racing tournament, which opened on September 5, completed all second-round matches on the 8th. There have still been no injury reports since safety briefings became mandatory, with Toyosu Technical HS and first-time entrant Tatsumi Metropolitan HS both advancing to the third round, which is expected to be scheduled later this week.
The student wall-racing federation announced on the 8th that all second-round matches in the autumn qualifiers, which had reached their midpoint as previously reported, were completed that day. Toyosu Technical HS, which previously reported a win over Aomi Girls' HS, took its second win of the second round as well, extending its opening streak to four straight victories. Tatsumi Metropolitan HS, a first-time entrant that had already pulled off an upset in the first round, won again in the second round to become the only debut school to reach the third round. "We're genuinely feeling the wall get thinner for first-time schools," a federation spokesperson said.
The mandatory safety briefings and wall-familiarization sessions introduced this season, previously reported, continue to show results: there have been no injury reports across the tournament as of the 8th. Several falls have occurred, but all were arrested by safety harnesses, with no case requiring withdrawal or hospital transport. "With numbers like these, there's no reason to scale back the training program next season either," the federation reiterated.
Edagawa Metropolitan HS, eliminated in the first round, has returned to its regular practice schedule at the old Shinonome floodgate wall after meeting its stated goal, previously reported, of having "all nine members come down safely." Its coach, a 41-year-old math teacher with no competitive climbing background, said, "For next season, we're starting by reviewing every bit of footage from this one."
Matchups and scheduling for the third round are expected to be announced later this week. As previously reported, the final will be held in November at Kameido Second Wall. According to the federation, the field of 187 participating schools has now been narrowed to 32 heading into the third round.
