It was 148 years ago when Kanaye Nagasawa, the first Japanese national to live permanently in the U.S., arrived in Santa Rosa, unknowingly creating a lasting bond between his hometown of Kagoshima, Japan, and the city of Santa Rosa.
Blitzboks return to Springboks stomping ground in Japan Image: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
The Blitzboks team heading to the Tokyo Olympic Games will hope their time in Kagoshima City also leads to gold when they conclude their preparations in south west Japan in July.
Kagoshima City opened its arms to Rassie Erasmus s Springboks ahead of the Rugby World Cup in 2019 and the team s fine tuning there in no small way helped pave the way to their success at the tournament.
The fact that the Boks arrived just under two weeks ahead of all their major competitors and could acclimatise handed them a competitive advantage in Japan.