Overview:
A shared love of baseball is bringing Palau and Japan’s Hokkaido prefecture closer together, as a visiting delegation donates equipment and cheers on young athletes under Koror’s scorching sun.
Shared passion for “yakyu” strengthens people-to-people ties despite distance and climate differences
By: L.N. Reklai
KOROR, Palau (April 13, 2026) — What do Palau and Japan’s northern prefecture of Hokkaido have in common? It is not the weather.
On April 11, temperatures in Hokkaido hovered in the mid 30’s to low-40s Fahrenheit, while Koror saw heat in the mid-80s. But despite the stark contrast, the two places share a deep passion for yakyu, or baseball — a love embraced by both young and old.
That passion was on full display Saturday, April 11, at Asahi Baseball Field, where young Palauan boys and girls trained under the hot midday sun. Unfazed by the heat, they listened closely to their coach, Riku Suzuki, a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) volunteer and coach with the Palau Baseball Federation.
From the stands, a visiting delegation from the Hokkaido Legislative Assembly watched with enthusiasm, cheering and laughing as the young players took the field. The delegation was in Palau to promote closer people-to-people ties and to support a sport deeply valued in both places.
Among the delegation was Yamane Masahiro, who led a donation drive to provide baseball equipment for Palau’s youth. Yamane is a former standout player, known for holding a home run record during his high school and university years.
“I was so happy to see the children smile and have a lot of energy at the field,” said Noritoshi Murata, a member of the Hokkaido Legislative Assembly and head of the delegation, during a donation ceremony at Asahi Ballfield. “We would like to see more of these kinds of activities and aim to create more opportunities for exchanges to strengthen the relationship between Hokkaido and Palau.”
Japan’s ambassador to Palau, Kasahara Kenichi, highlighted Hokkaido’s strong baseball tradition.
“Hokkaido is the home of one of the best baseball teams in Japan, the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters,” he said.
The professional team has produced notable players, including Shohei Ohtani and Yu Darvish, and is currently managed by former Major League Baseball player Tsuyoshi Shinjo.
Atley Kazuma of the Palau Baseball Federation accepted the donations on behalf of the Palau Youth Baseball League. The equipment included bats, gloves, balls and bags, all aimed at strengthening local baseball programs.
Young players expressed their appreciation to the visiting delegation, showing how a shared love for baseball continues to connect people from two very different parts of the world.