Will a new heroine be born again this year? 'The 58th All-Japan Women's Competitive Karuta Championship'

The All-Japan Karuta Association (Location: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo), in co-sponsorship with Awara City, will hold the '58th All-Japan Women's Competitive Karuta Championship' as a project to commemorate its 30th anniversary as a corporation. This tournament is a glamorous stage where many past Queens also participate. In the venue, filled with the dignified atmosphere unique to competitive Karuta, high-speed battles are fought over cards with differences of 0.01 seconds. 64 top female players from across the country will participate in the A-class tournament held on Sunday the 7th, competing in a tournament format. Notable players include current title holders and experienced title winners such as Queen Seiran Yajima (Keio Karuta Kai), Vice-Queen Misuna Nishimaki (Keio Karuta Kai), and 68th-term Queen Naho Inoue 6-dan (Waseda University Karuta Kai). In recent years, with the remarkable growth of young players, the All-Japan Women's Championship has become a stage where new heroines are born almost every year. Last year's winner, Rin Tomaru 5-dan (Maebashi Karuta Kai), 56th tournament winner Miina Nozoe 6-dan (Minase Tsubasa Kai), and 55th tournament winner Akari Hara 5-dan (Otsu Akinota Kai) all significantly increased their presence after winning this tournament. Expectations are high for the breakthrough of next-generation players this year as well. On the other hand, one cannot take their eyes off former Queens such as Yuri Arakawa 8-dan (Kyoto Ogura Karuta Kai), Tsubasa Tsubota 7-dan (Tokyo Azuma Kai), Ere Yamashita 8-dan (Tokyo Meisei Kai), and Yuri Yamazoe 8-dan (Kyoto Ogura Karuta Kai). Their presence, having fought at the top for many years and being admired by young players, along with their beautiful, sharp, and supple card-taking style, is one of the scenes that symbolizes this tournament. Seeing the serious matches between top players across generations is also the real thrill of this tournament.