9 Jan 2021
A Japanese cheerleading squad danced and cheered to raise commuters’ spirits outside a major Tokyo metro station on Thursday as the national capital headed into a one-month coronavirus lockdown.
“Let’s go, fight!” the four-woman squad shouted as they pumped shiny golden pom-poms into the chilly morning air at Shimbashi Station, a major interchange rail station in central Tokyo.
“I think it’s wonderful what they’re doing in the current situation,” office worker Tomoko Tsudanuma, 48, told Reuters on Thursday outside Shimbashi Station.
“I’ll be working at home from next week and it’s hard but I feel encouraged from watching this kind of activity,” she said of the cheer squad’s energetic performance, which included upbeat music and brightly colored outfits. The cheerleaders also engaged some commuters with pep talks and fist pumps while wearing masks.