Donations raised from this year’s event will be equally divided among ten local non-profit organisations in the Kanto and Tohoku regions.

Hiroyuki Kobayashi, co-chairperson of FIT For Charity Run 2011 Organising Committee, said: “FIT For Charity Run has been positively contributing to the Tokyo community since 2005. This year, not only do we support local Kanto NPOs but also NPOs conducting restoring and rebuilding efforts in the Tohoku region. Again this year FIT has set new records for number of companies and participants. This is a true testament to the ability of the financial industry to bond together to make a significant impact to our local community organisations.”

Co-chairperson Weronika Anasz added: “While the role of non-profit organisations in solving local issues is increasing, particularly following the Great East Japan Earthquake, FIT For Charity Run’s fund raising ability can be more meaningful. The continued support from volunteers from participating companies and the generous support of in-kind donors enable FIT For Charity Run to donate a high percentage of funds raised directly to the charities.”

You can find out more about this year’s charities here, and full race results here.

Saito Michio, Principal – Meisei Gakuen.

Kanto

• Friendship Camp
• Junior Achievement Japan
• Kuraki Mother and Child Welfare Association
• Saisei Gakusya
• Support21

Great East Japan Earthquake

• Caring for Young Refugees
• ETIC
• Fair Trade Tohoku
• Network Orange
• One Family Sendai

We will be offering participants the chance to take part in the following events: 10km run, 5km fun run, 2.5km walk, 4×100m inter-company relay and kids sprint. 

Those working in the financial industry or in financial-related sectors and their families and friends can participate in the event. Participation requires companies to register and to manage applications from its employees.

Date:  Sunday, 6 November 2011 (rain or shine)

Time: 09:00 – 13:00

Venue: National Kasumigaoka Stadium and the Outer Garden of Meiji Shrine (Meiji-jingu Gaien), in Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
(closest stations: Sendagaya or Shinanomachi Station on JR Sobu Line; Kokuritsu-kyogijo Station on Toei Oedo Line and Gaienmae Station on Ginza Line)

Programme:

The sixth FIT For Charity Run took place on November 7 2010, at Tokyo’s National Kasumigaoka Stadium. In 2010 and once again broke records for participation, as 6,716 individuals from 101 financial services and related foreign and domestic organisations came together to raise approximately JPY 68 million for ten local charities.　Thank you all for your kind support.

The FIT For Charity 2010 Charity Presentation Ceremony was held on 2 February 2011 at Thomson Reuters Markets KK in Akasaka, to present the donations raised through the FIT event held on 7 November 2010 at the Kasumigaoka National Stadium.

The 2010 FIT For Charity Run saw the numbers of participating companies rise to 101, and the number of individual participants and volunteers to 6,716, both a new record.

The donations raised by sponsors and participants topped 68.0 million yen, with approximately 90% of this figure being divided evenly among the ten selected charities. 
At the Presentation Ceremony, the representatives of the 2010 selected charities presented plans for how the funds will be utilized and expressed their appreciations for the support.

The FIT2010 Organising Committee also took the opportunity to convey their thanks to all the representatives from the participating companies and all the participants for their support with the 2010 event.

FIT For Charity is a powerful expression of the financial industry’s collective commitment to making a positive contribution to the community, to foster teamwork within firms and to build relationships across the industry. Not only does it support the activities of charitable organisations within the community through donations, but also by providing a platform to inform and educate people about their activities.

Information on our 2011 event will appear on this site in the next few months and we look forward to everyone’s participation in another great day.

Read a full review of the event here (PDF)

Awards were given to the fastest runners in the 10km run and 5km fun run events and the relay as well as to the top fundraising organisation and the runner with the best costume.

Male 10km run: Yoshio Tahara (Goldman Sachs) 35:16

Female 10km run: Nataly Darbon (Crédit Agricole Group) 41:56

Male 5km run: Tomohiro Mizukoshi (Goldman Sachs) 17:41

Female 5km run: Haruka Matsuo (HSBC Group) 20:43

400m relay team winner: KPMG Group 47:42

Best costume: Takuya Takahashi (Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities)

Biggest fund raiser: UBS Group

For more information, please click here.

The necessity of warming up and cooling down is not limited to before and after exercise but also can be useful in daily life. “FIT vol.1 WARM UP” enhances your concentration effectively so can be essential before an important job. After achieving high performance, listen to “FIT vol.2 COOL DOWN” and it eases your tension and relaxes the nerve system. Why don’t you listen to FIT CDs when you warm up and cool down on the day of the FIT for Charity Run?

To order FIT CDs, click here.

Visit our website for FIT CDs.

Place Tokyo

“FIT For Charity Run empowers people to learn about and support their local community, while embracing a healthy lifestyle.”
Place Tokyo

Place Tokyo aims to foster a community environment for people living with HIV/AIDS by providing direct support, educational activities on prevention, as well as research and training.

Those living with HIV/AIDS in Japan face many challenges – despite the significant improvement in treatment, the majority struggle with severe intolerance. In this environment, since its establishment in 1994, Place Tokyo has worked to empower those living with HIV/AIDS as full members of society. For Place Tokyo, Place in this way stands for Positive Living And Community Empowerment (PLACE).

Place Tokyo is composed of a network of two hundred individuals, who support those living with HIV/AIDS by providing counseling, guidance and shelter. In addition, Place Tokyo researches HIV infection and methods of reducing its spread. Based on this, Place Tokyo works to establish a more comfortable environment for those undergoing examination and treatment, and has produced and circulates an educational pamphlet called the Safer Sex Guide, while also managing three websites on related topics.

Place Tokyo’s Ikushima-san commented, “Japan is intolerant when it comes to HIV/AIDS for two reasons.

First, people believe that HIV/AIDS is an issue for developing countries and, as a result, the reality of increasing HIV infection in Japan goes unrecognized.”

Second, HIV/AIDS is perceived as an issue to be handled by the medical industry, not general society.

Social preconceptions and misunderstandings are made worse by the sexually transmitted nature of the disorder – there is even a tendency to regard infection as the infected persons’ fault.”

He added, “Given this reality, it remains difficult for those living with HIV/AIDS to make their voices heard and stand up for their rights. As a result, our services have been well-received and as demand has increased, Place Tokyo has seen a strain on its resources. The support of FIT For Charity Run 2009 had a substantial positive impact.”

Regarding how the funds were spent, he said, “The donation was used towards Place Tokyo’s relocation, as it had exceeded the capacity of its existing facility. In addition, Place Tokyo is in the planning stage to use the remaining funds to revise its educational materials for reissue in a more contemporary media, such as video.”

Ikushima-san concluded, “FIT For Charity Run empowers people to learn about and support their local community, while embracing a healthy lifestyle. FIT For Charity Run 2009 allowed Place Tokyo to build new connections across the community, and these have grown on through the year, leading to lectures and workshops on HIV/AIDS at FIT For Charity Run member companies. Place Tokyo sincerely hopes to continue to build on this involvement with similar initiatives in the future.”

Place Tokyo, Ikushima-san

Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People

“FIT For Charity Run reminded me that the energy we draw from others gives us the strength to live our own lives.”
Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People

Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People was established in 1996 as a non-profit organization serving both the hearing impaired and abandoned pets. Through the foundation, abandoned pets are trained as Hearing Dogs, which assist the hearing impaired in living their daily lives – letting them know of sounds of potential significant importance that they would not otherwise hear, such as a fire alarm or crying baby.

The organization lends these dogs to the hearing impaired and provides free aftercare. The dogs themselves are generally secured from special shelters for abandoned pets with strong potential to return to secure homes.

“Hearing Dogs are partners that bring happiness to the hearing impaired, allowing them to overcome physical and social hurdles. In other words, these dogs bring strength, in a way that people are not always able”, said Ms. Moto Arima, from Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People.

Despite the importance of this support, the cause is far from widely recognized in Japan. Although a certification system was finally introduced in 2003, only fifty Hearing Dogs have been trained locally since 1982.

Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People has from its foundations aimed to inform people of the roles and significance of these dogs.

“In order to properly nurture understanding of their importance, we offer training and lectures, as well as secure the support of similar organizations worldwide”, added Ms. Arima.

Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People saw FIT For Charity Run as an attractive opportunity to make more people aware of Hearing Dogs.

“Needless to say, running a small charity requires a lot of support, and FIT For Charity Run was vital in allowing us to continue our work. In securing a nomination as a beneficiary charity, we were reassured that we are beginning to secure understanding that we do make a difference”, said Ms. Arima.

Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People’s Tokyo office manages training and aftercare, users and supporters, as well as promotional activities. The donations secured from FIT For Charity Run 2009 were used for the maintenance of the office, particularly regarding IT needs. Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People also published an Introduction to Hearing Dogs in Manga (マンガの聴導犬解説書) and the Japan Hearing Dog Pamphlet (日本聴導犬協会の三つ折りパンフレット), which is distributed to people with hearing disorders and relevant organizations. The donations were also used for workshops and demonstrations targeting FIT For Charity Run member companies, as well as organizations for people with hearing disorders.

Ms. Arima was asked to act as a presenter at last year’s awards ceremony, and she commented that she was touched when the dogs appeared on the big screen.

“FIT For Charity Run is a community-focused event that promotes healthy living and philanthropy among Japan’s financial industry. I was energized by the site of the runners taking off from the start line – it reminded me that it is the energy that we draw from others that provides us with the strength to live our own lives.”

Moto Arima, Japan Hearing Dogs for Deaf People