Action is being taken by schools taking part in Japan’s annual spring baseball tournament to safeguard cheerleaders against upskirting.

Some have introduced shorts for the youngsters to wear, while others have used strategically placed teachers to block would-be voyeurs.

The competition, being staged at Koshien stadium near Osaka involving 32 schools, is meant to showcase youth sporting talent and act as a potential recruiting ground for professional baseball clubs, but has become marred in recent years with the taking of sexualised images.

Female cheerleaders, often dressed in sleeveless tops and short skirts, are photographed without their consent and the pictures then posted online.

In response, girls from Takasaki High School in Gunma prefecture, northwest of Tokyo, performed in shorts this week.

Takasaki teacher Kohei Shiozawa told the public broadcaster NHK: “Voyeuristic photos can potentially cause lifelong emotional damage to our students.”

Airi Ozawa, the head of the school’s cheerleading team, told the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper: “At first, I thought a skirt would be better, but when I actually wore [shorts] and started cheering, I felt a sense of unity as the outfits matched the baseball team uniforms.

“And they were easy to move about in.

“Now I can dance with peace of mind.”

In addition, teachers from the school are patrolling the stands at Koshien with signs asking spectators to not photograph students.

Earlier this week, teachers from another school positioned themselves between the cheerleaders and spectators to deter voyeurs.

Read more on Sky News:
Friend and interpreter for star baseball player sacked after ‘massive theft’ claim
Japan’s same-sex marriage ban ruled unconstitutional
City on alert after ‘toxic’ cat jumped into vat of chemicals

Concern over secret photography has spread to other sports in Japan, including gymnastics, athletics and synchronised swimming.

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

In 2020, the Japan Olympic Committee described upskirting and other forms of secret photography targeting female athletes as “despicable”, warning that it would allow stadium officials to check images taken by spectators during the Tokyo Games.

The sportswear manufacturer Mizuno has developed a special fabric it says will deter voyeurs from secretly using infrared cameras that produce a “see-through” effect.

The firm plans to make the material commercially available for athletics kits, sports bras and swimsuits, according to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper.

Related posts:

Children as young as 11 ‘being beheaded’ amid Islamist insurgency in Mozambique Before and after images show devastation caused by Germany floods Putin set to decide whether to recognise separatist regions in Ukraine as independent North Korea confirms Kim Jong Un’s new missile launch and releases photos The high-profile Russians who have fled Putin’s regime, quit their jobs and refuse to support Ukraine war Heavy snowfall causes 13 dead and more than 10,000 homes without power in Japan Pele’s family spending Christmas in hospital after football legend’s cancer progressed ‘Fire tourists’ urged to keep away as blazes force hundreds from their homes in eastern Spain Four people ‘critical’ after explosion in Paris sparks fire and reduces buildings to rubble ‘We don’t know what they are’: Search for origin of ‘noises’ will continue in sub hunt, Coast Guard says World entering ‘more dangerous period’ as countries massively up military spending Haiti PM to resign as powerful gang leader calls on international community to give the country a ‘chance’