Kotaro Matsushima and his electric play is leading Japan forward both on and off the pitch

The greatness of sport is irrefutable. No public platform does more to foster inclusiveness and social justice than sports and if you need proof just ask Japanese rugby star Kotaro Matsushima. Of course, he doesn’t have time to answer seemingly inane questions like this right now because he is too busy helping Japan achieve unprecedented sporting glory at the Rugby World Cup. It’s also not in his nature to get into the sociological impact of his burgeoning public profile because he is a humble, team-first guy. In other words, he’s a rugby player.

But in reality, Matsushima is so much more. Yes, he is a turbo-charged winger who is a threat any time he touches the ball and set a Japanese record when he became the first national player to score three tries in a World Cup match over Russia in the tournament opener. While he didn’t score against Ireland in Japan’s seminal 19-12 victory, he was still a force giving the Irish fits with his speed.

However, with the exception of tennis star Naomi Osaka, he may also be the most prominent hafu in Japan right now. The term hafu is just what it sounds like, half Japanese and half foreign lineage, and more often than not is used in a negative connotation particularly in a country where a pure ethnic background has long been ideal.

For his part, Matsushima told the Japan Times a few years back that he has had virtually no issues of prejudice growing up in Japan. “I think I was very fortunate and I was pleased about that,” he said. Others, however, have not been quite so fortunate.

Ironically, part of the reason Matsushima may have been spared the hazing that has befallen so many of mixed ethnicity is because of rugby.

Athletes of all stripes speak of how their team is “like a family”, but few sports forge the familial bond among teammates like rugby. The sheer physicality of the game demands that you have each other’s back no matter what the situation.