Japanese tattoos on foreign athletes in the Paris Olympics are attracting attention on the internet in Japan.
The tattoos on the arm of Casimir Schmidt of the Netherlands, who finished 13th place in the gymnastics men’s individual all-round, grabbed attention. When his arm was shown on live TV show, it was tattooed with the popular Japanese characters Kinopio from Nintendo’s Super Mario series and Mew from Pokemon.
Shane Casas, a member of the US national team who competed in the men’s 200 m individual medley swimming race, was also a hot topic. His abdomen is tattooed in Japanese “‘不名誉より死” or “Death Over Dishonor.” The phrase is a line from the US film King Kong: The Giant God of Skull Island, in which Japanese guitarist MIYAVI appeared, and is a well-known Japanese phrase among overseas fans.
Furthermore, in men’s volleyball, attention was drawn to the tattoo on the right forearm of Darlan Souza, a Brazilian national team member known for his love of Japanese anime. It is marked “思い出なんかいらん” or “I don’t need memories,” a quote from the very popular Japanese high school volleyball anime “Haikyu!!” In addition, the face of the anime character Rengoku Kyojuro from “‘Demon Slayer” was carved on his upper arm, and also performed the movement of the anime “‘Naruto” as part of his routine before serving, which excited the internet as a hardcore anime fan.
Other Japanese tattoos are also found on a Danish badminton player. She has a Japanese castle, the Olympic logo and the word “‘東京 (Tokyo)” on her left forearm.
