22-year-old foreigner played on Japanese high school’s championship-winning team

Mainichi reports that a Senegalese exchange student lied about his age so he could play for a high school basketball team that ended up winning two national championships:

Diagne Thierno Seydou Nouro was over 22 when he played on the school’s 2004 All Japan Inter-High School Championship and 2005 All Japan High School Basketball Tournament-winning teams. The age limit set by the All Japan High School Athletic Federation is 19.

The date of birth on Nouro’s passport is Oct. 4, 1986. However, he was actually born on Jan. 4, 1982, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“The only way schools can check on the date of birth of students is by their passport,” said Kazutoshi Matsuo, Fukuoka Daiichi High School’s deputy principal. “We’d also gone through the proper (All Japan High School Athletic) Federation registration process.”

Nouro later played for a couple professional basketball teams in Japan before leaving to join a team in Morocco.

It is not uncommon for sports-centered Japanese high schools to seek foreign exchange students to strengthen their teams (gold medalist Samuel Wanjiru being one recent example). It wouldn’t be surprising if it turned out that Nouro’s family lied about his birthdate so that he could have a chance to become a professional athlete in Japan.

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Rated-R

How about we let that philipino chick stay, and throw this schmuck out?? I wonder how many underage highschool chicks he banged and won’t get prosecuted for, (not sure what fukuoka’s age of consent is tho.)
elimam

man, you always finish your articles with some wild assumptions!
it is not uncommon in Senegal to have a different date of birth in passport than the actual one. the reason is simply because most people just don’t register their children as soon as they are born, and they would do it when admitting their children to school, by that time, most parents do not remember the exact date. and you can add to that, all clerical errors at the time of registration.
i feel it is unlikely that his family tampered with his passport date of birth just so that he can play in Japan.

LB

After 4 or 5 years, in a society where the exact date of birth is not celebrated, I could understand being a couple of weeks off. Maybe even a month (“It was early summer, wasn’t it?”).

But FOUR YEARS!?!

One would think that after an experience like giving birth, one would at least remember what year it happened in.

The Overthinker

“Oh, HE was the one born the year the cow got sick! I though that was Mgumgume! No, wait, he was born the year after that – it was Jnguno who was born that year! With eighteen children, it gets confusing….”

Eddie

Overthinker – do you think all Africans live on farms? Do you think all Africans have at least a dozen siblings?

Have you always been a racist?
The Overthinker

Where in my statement did I say that ALL Africans live on farms? (though I bet most do). Where did I say that ALL have at least a dozen siblings? This is simply an example of how the date could be legitimately confused with someone four years younger. In fact, what I was thinking when I wrote that was the “Every Sperm is Sacred” scene from “The Meaning of Life.”

And to your third question, no; I have been educated in racism by experts: minorities with chips on their shoulders who see racism everywhere.
LB

“I have been educated in racism by experts: minorities with chips on their shoulders who see racism everywhere.”

Three points, nothing but net.
Eddie

Ovethinker – your comments are incredibly ironic because…. actually I’ll let you work out why.
The Overthinker

Do tell. Or else we might think you are resorting to the common debate tactic of implying inadequacy without actually having to be specific simply because you want to make a cheap debating point.

The Overthinker

How does the Ministry know his actual birth date?
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22-year-old foreigner played on Japanese high school’s championship-winning team

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