•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   
•    EYEWITNESS   

Tokyo. Japanese sports stars who donated generously to help victims of March’s massive earthquake and tsunami say the giving was not all one way, with many drawing inspiration from the strength of those affected.

Makoto Hasebe, a midfielder for leading German football team Wolfsburg, visited the Pacific coastal town of Minamisanriku over Christmas to see an area that was all but washed away by the monster waves.

He arrived with a donation of 95 million yen ($1.2 million) to help rebuild a kindergarten. “I paid the visit believing I could be of some help,” said the 27-year-old, who captained Japan’s national side to a record fourth Asian Cup at the start of 2011. “But it worked the other way around. I drew strength from the smiles on the children’s faces.”

Golf icon and heart-throb Ryo Ishikawa said his game had changed after he vowed at the Masters in April to donate all his prize money from the domestic tour and the four world majors this year to tsunami victims.

“I have since felt a certain sense of responsibility,” he said. Ishikawa ended the season in December without a win, but recorded his best result in a major when he came 20th at the US Open.

The 20-year-old, who holds a number of lucrative sponsorship contracts, also threw in 100,000 yen for every birdie or better he made, taking his contribution to 133.5 million yen.

Under the slogan “Gambare [Hang on], Nippon!” Japan stood united during a year marked by tragedy that Emperor Akihito labelled “truly distressing.” Its people earned praise from around the globe for their uncomplaining attitude in the face of calamity.

Massive donations of cash and provisions of labor poured in from all walks of life to Japan’s northeast, where a 9.0-magnitute quake and the resulting tsunami left 20,000 dead and sparked the worst nuclear crisis in a generation.

Hasebe’s gift, bolstered by proceeds from his million-selling book and charity events, was not far off the 100 million yen donated by Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, one of Japan’s best paid baseball exports.

Olympic gold medal hopefuls Kosuke Kitajima and Kohei Uchimura said they initially felt helpless in the face of the massive disaster, but drew inspiration from victims in their build-up to the London Games. Kitajima, who won gold medals for the breaststroke in 2004 and in 2008, has visited the tsunami-ravaged Miyagi region twice, and hosted a number of charity events.

“I had a chance to swim with children who had lost their pools,” said the 29-year-old. “The time I spent with them became my treasure. It gave me power to move forward toward next year.”

Meanwhile three-time world all-round gymnastics champion Uchimura said he had felt uneasy about doing something as seemingly frivolous as gymnastics after witnessing the scale of the tragedy.

But at a July charity event that he hosted, the 22-year-old told his audience he had “been performing with the victims in mind.”

The unimaginable struggle of disaster victims may have inspired athletes to push themselves to the “physiological limit,” said Nobuyuki Nakajima, a professor of sport psychology at Tokyo’s Juntento University.

“The impact has greatly motivated and encouraged athletes,” he said. Nothing exemplifies that motivation more to the Japanese public than the performance of the Japanese women’s national football team, who lifted the Women’s World Cup in July.

Coach Norio Sasaki showed his unfancied team images of the devastation before their shock 1-0 quarterfinal win over hosts Germany, saying he wanted to bring “mental stability and courage” to his players. His squad beat Sweden in the semifinal before overcoming hot favorites the United States on penalties in a close and gripping final.

Agence France-Presse