Humans of AISTS, Shinsaku Nishihara
When I was nine years old, I experienced the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in my hometown of Nagano, Japan. From that time on, I have developed a strong desire to work in a global sport event, that delivers inspiration and excitement to the world.
My enthusiasm for global sport competitions stems from my experience attending multiple world sport competitions, including FIFA 2018 Russia World Cup, Rugby World Cup 2019, etc.
The most memorable experience was some business trips to Latin America during my time, I was responsible for the Latin American market in an IT company. At that time, I wondered how I would be able to establish a rapport with customers in a situation where I could not speak the client’s native language. However, watching sports together and talking about the competitions (especially football and the Olympic games) helped me build close relationships with clients and local colleagues. I also observed first-hand how sport can bring people’s hearts and minds together, despite differences in their generation, religious and cultural backgrounds.
This led me to consider a career in international sports management. As a first step, I joined Yokohama F. Marinos, one of the major football clubs in Japan. While working at the club, I had the luckily opportunity to involve in Tokyo 2020 Olympics in a football venue. Unfortunately, my work at the Olympics ended in an unsatisfactory manner because the game was held without spectators. At the same time, I realized that there were knowledge and skill gaps that I needed to address to work well in a global sport management role. For this reason, I decided to join AISTS to expand my knowledge of the sport industry.
My days at AISTS are full of stimulation and discoveries, and I am enjoying them. I am very much looking forward to contributing to the sports world with the wonderful classmates, the staff, and the alumni I have met here.
This article is written by Shinsaku Nishihara.