I visited NTT’s “Reinventing the Sports Viewing Experience” exhibition.

This exhibition uses the power of technology, art, and design to reinvent new ways of watching sports that everyone—regardless of disability—can enjoy.

“Rugby Connected Through Tactile Sensations.”
Spectators watch the game while holding a rugby ball that vibrates and lights up in sync with the players’ movements.
The ball changes color to match the team currently in possession. Viewers’ reactions are also projected onto a screen, fostering a sense of unity among those around them.

“Tennis You Feel in the Palm of Your Hand”
When you place your hand on a small tennis court table, you can feel the impact of the ball strike in the palm of your hand.
Enjoy tennis through visuals, sound, and touch.

“Judo Translation”
Two translators pull on a tenugui (traditional Japanese hand towel) in sync with the movements of the two competitors during a match. They convey the movements and intensity of the action to a visually impaired person seated in the center.
It’s fun even if you’re not familiar with judo.

　
“Reinventing Multisensory Spectating”
When you grip a soft ball connected by a rubber hose, another person’s ball inflates. This allows you to convey excitement.
The challenge here is to reinvent spectating by adding tactile information to sports viewing, which has traditionally relied on sight and sound.

And then there’s “Kirari”!
Thanks to ultra-wide footage—created by real-time compositing of images from multiple 4K cameras—we were treated to an incredibly immersive and powerful visual experience, just as if we were watching the game live in the stadium.
You never move your eyes from side to side like this while watching a game on a screen, so it’s a viewing experience completely different from anything before!

　
At the venue, we were guided by Dr. Junji Watanabe of NTT.
Through “Sports Social View,” a project promoted by NTT and Tokyo Institute of Technology, they are taking on the challenge of identifying the essence of sports—rather than simply conveying what happens on the field through language—and expressing and sharing that essence as a new experience felt through the body.
It’s described as “an attempt to ‘see’ the essence of sports not with the eyes, but through bodily sensation.”
And I also received copies of the new book by Junji, Dominique, Ogata, and everyone else… Thank you so much!