About Yukigassen
Of course it would be the Japanese who came up with something like this.
Inventors of products and technologies like the bullet train, DVD’s, and the Vibrating Alarm Pillow (Google it), the Japanese manage to constantly take an existing idea and somehow make it cooler. In Canada we all live up to our waist in snow and develop a sixth sense for avoiding oncoming snowballs thrown by friends and enemies alike, but it was the Japanese who took this pastime and made it into a sport.
With a literal English translation of “Snow Battle,” Yukigassen was developed over 20 years ago in Japan when regional officials were trying to figure out a way to keep tourists interested in visiting even when the land was covered in a blanket of snow. It caught on quickly in Japan and stayed within the borders for several years until a group from Finland stumbled onto the tournament. This was the tipping point, as the sport exploded across Holland, Norway, Sweden, Australia and has finally made its way to the wonderful winter tundra of the Canadian prairies
- The first ever tournament was held in Japan in 1989 and featured 70 teams and 7,000 spectators
- An actual Yukigassen Federation was created in 1993
- The largest ever tournament was held in Japan in 2004 and featured 190 teams and 28,000spectators (in one round of games over 50,000 snowballs were thrown)
- Yukigassen was introduced in Finland in 1995 where the European Championships are now held
- There are official Yukigassen tournaments in Japan, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Holland, Australia, and now Canada
>> To see Yukigassen in action, check out our Videos section...
About Yukigassen
Of course it would be the Japanese who came up with something like this.
Inventors of products and technologies like the bullet train, DVD’s, and the Vibrating Alarm Pillow (Google it), the Japanese manage to constantly take an existing idea and somehow make it cooler. In Canada we all live up to our waist in snow and develop a sixth sense for avoiding oncoming snowballs thrown by friends and enemies alike, but it was the Japanese who took this pastime and made it into a sport.
With a literal English translation of “Snow Battle,” Yukigassen was developed over 20 years ago in Japan when regional officials were trying to figure out a way to keep tourists interested in visiting even when the land was covered in a blanket of snow. It caught on quickly in Japan and stayed within the borders for several years until a group from Finland stumbled onto the tournament. This was the tipping point, as the sport exploded across Holland, Norway, Sweden, Australia and has finally made its way to the wonderful winter tundra of the Canadian prairies
- The first ever tournament was held in Japan in 1989 and featured 70 teams and 7,000 spectators
- An actual Yukigassen Federation was created in 1993
- The largest ever tournament was held in Japan in 2004 and featured 190 teams and 28,000spectators (in one round of games over 50,000 snowballs were thrown)
- Yukigassen was introduced in Finland in 1995 where the European Championships are now held
- There are official Yukigassen tournaments in Japan, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Holland, Australia, and now Canada
>> To see Yukigassen in action, check out our Videos section...