MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Slap. Pop. Pow. The sounds of the little, purple ball being slapped around could be heard during the 2011 Invitational Racquetball Tournament throughout the IronWorks Gym racquetball courts Saturday.
Japanese nationals and Marines alike were invited to the tournament to compete in three separate divisions: beginners, intermediate, and advanced.
Andrew Porche, the IronWorks Gym intramural sports coordinator, welcomed 14 competitors who came out.
Unlike tennis, in racquetball the only way to score is serving. There is also a lot more stop and go action with more bending and twisting.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re fast or nimble,” Jim Davis, an advanced division competitor, said. “If you know the angles, you’ll be going a long way.”
There were three competitors in the beginner division, six in the intermediate division and four in the advanced division.
For some, this was their first time in a tournament, let alone with unfamiliar opponents.
“This is the first time I’ve played in a tournament,” said Joel Castillo, a beginner division competitor. “I’ve only been playing a few years on and off. This will be a challenge for me.”
For this being Castillo’s first tournament, he proved he’s worth his weight in sea salt by outmaneuvering and outplaying the other competitors in the beginners division to get the first place trophy.
Hara Nobufumi, an intermediate competitor from Shunan, said the tournament was a great opportunity to test his skills against the Marines.
“Everybody here is very friendly,” Nobufumi said. “This kind of social exchange is an interesting experience.”
Nobufumi, however, wouldn’t be the one to win the intermediate division. Thomas Durning would come away with the win and the title.
Durning said the competitors were tough, but he had a fun time playing against them.
“I would love to come back and play in more events like this,” Nobufumi said. “I only know about Japanese culture, which is like a community. Coming here helps me to understand American culture and the community here.”
In the end, the ultimate showdown in the advanced division was between Davis and Shuji Yanai.
The tough match for the title was fierce. In the end, Davis would come out with the win.
“I’ve been playing racquetball for 30 years,” Davis said. “I was looking forward to the new competition.”
Davis used his years of experience to out angle Yanai during their match up.
“It was a really good experience playing against Shuji,” Davis said. “He’s been playing almost as long as I have. It was great to play against someone with that much experience.”
After all the action was done and the tournament champions decided, Porche handed the winners their respective plaques for their divisions and thanked everyone who participated.
“Compared to last year’s tournament, this was like the Super Bowl to a game of flag football,” Porche said.
The multicultural tournament ended with smiles and handshakes, and with the different communities conversing and sharing their collective knowledge.