[Source: Hindustan Times]
In a reversal of fate, life majestically imitated art as sports anime gods smiled down on Team Japan for the Olympic men′s volleyball preliminary round Pool C match against Argentina.
The perfect homage to Haikyuu anime didn’t slip the attention of the Shonen title’s fans. The massive fandom instantly sounded the alarm for the unexpected 2024 Olympics moment on social media as the show’s exceptionally loved opening theme song “Fly High” was heard playing at the South Paris Arena not only during the practice sets but also whenever Team Japan scored a winning point. The Japanese team ultimately registered a victory against Team Argentina on July 31 (3-1) following a previous loss during their face-off against Germany on Saturday.
The beloved anime anthem’s historic presence at the multi-sports competition in Paris again stands as a testament to Haikyuu’s influential impact. It has previously earned praise from volleyball’s top athletes like Yuji Nishida while sparking widespread interest in the sport, inspiring them to pursue the competitive route.
Though often viewed as a declining sport, the Haikyuu manga’s birth in 2012 in Weekly Shonen Jump Magazine turned everything around. Releasing in 2016, “Haikyuu!! Documentary: We Became Stronger with manga!” documented how countless players found the needed push to take up volleyball after they started reading Haruichi Furudate’s stories.
The Japan Times reports that former Japanese national team captain Masahiro Yanagida was also “immensely grateful” for how the fictional work of art triggered an unprecedented phenomenon. The outlet also notes that high-school volleyball club membership for boys skyrocketed from 35,000 in 2012 to 50,000 in 2024.
However, even beyond the song being played at the Olympic venue, fans couldn’t shake off the unbelievable levels of similarities the real-life moment shared with one of the final subplots of the manga. Some of the most adored characters from Haikyuu, Hinata, Kageyama and others faced off against Oikawa in a similar showdown between Japan and Argentina at the Olympics. Even though the match was never visualized on the manga pages, it finally became a reality with real-life pro athletes at the Paris Olympics 2024.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics also played the anime soundtrack to boost the home team’s morale. However, history repeating itself in Paris was not on sports or anime fans’ bingo. Nevertheless, the 2024 Olympics delivered an unforgettable highlight.
