15 March 2011 - Message from the All Japan Archery Federation's President

Message from the All Japan Archery Federation's President Tokyo (JPN) – 15 March 2011   To All World Archery Family,   On behalf of all members of the All Japan Archery Federation, I would like to express our appreciation from the bottom of my heart to the FITA President, Council Members, Secretary General, and all other friends of the FITA family for their sincere condolences and sympathy.   As many people around the world may have seen and heard of the disaster through television or other sources, the earthquake and tsunami of the largest scale ever in our history stroke the Tohoku (north-eastern) region of main land Japan on Friday, 11 March in the afternoon. It is reported 9.0 on the Richter scale. Not only many people were dead or missing but also many cities and towns disappeared from the earth. Although the situation is still continuing and we cannot grasp the total damage of this disaster, we are afraid that the casualty comes over several dozens of thousands and the huge amount of financial and material loss will be estimated. We do not yet receive reports from local archery associations of the region but we eagerly wish the less damage. As our office in Tokyo was not stroke directly, all functions work well as usual.   Historically, we have suffered numerous numbers of earthquakes but have overcome them again and again because all of us understand that we are not able to escape from this earthquake archipelago. As the proverb says, "Life has its ups and downs". From now on, all Japanese people must confront this incredible difficulty. And needless to say, all members of our federation are ready to challenge it not only in social area but also in activity for archery.   Here, we proudly declare, "We Never Give Up".   Shinzo ABE President of the All Japan Archery Federation