Japanese Pro Snowboarder Rides Through Shinto Shrine, Sparking Debate

There have been a lot of reports of foreign tourists doing stupid and disrespectful things while visiting Japan. From doing pull-ups on a Shinto shrine’s torii gate to urinating on shrine grounds, every week seems to bring a new story of traveler shame.

But as we should all know by now, “stupid and disrespectful” is a character flaw that transcends borders. One man drove that home recently with a stunt in Hokkaido at a Shinto shrine that’s causing heartburn for the head priest and city officials.

The report from HTB News in Hokkaido says that the Japanese pro snowboarder (whom it doesn’t name) uploaded a video of himself in December to his social media. The clip shows him boarding down a hill within Oyachi Shrine in Sapporo’s Atsubetsu District. At one point, he rides up a wall, generating sparks from his board. The video also shows him jumping a sign before boarding off onto the street.

Clip of unnamed snowboarder snowboarding on the wall of the Oyachi Shrine in Sapporo, Hokkaido
Sparks fly from the snowboarder’s board as he tackles a stone wall.

The video was just discovered recently, it seems, by HTB. When they asked head priest Mitsuhashi Hitofumi about it, he confirmed that the individual hadn’t sought permission from the shrine for the maneuver.

“This could leave marks on the wall. The wall’s old, and there’s no way we can guarantee this is safe.”

According to HTB, the snowboarder’s also filmed himself riding down railings across Sapporo. City officials interviewed by the news org say the unsanctioned use of city property may be illegal.

HTB reached out to the snowboarder in question for comment. The man didn’t reply as of press time. However, the report says that he has since deleted the shrine video from his feed.

Beyond a little discussion on social media, the video doesn’t seem to be generating the sort of attention you’d expect from such a disrespectful act. To be sure, many people are lambasting the snowboarder for his disrespect – and the newspaper for hiding his identity. However, a few commenters are defending the maneuver as “cool.”

City officials say some tourists also engage in disrespectful and dangerous behavior, such as skiing down stairs. They’re calling on all residents and visitors – foreign and domestic alike – to knock it off.

More Shinto Shrines Ask Visitors To Leave Their Dogs at Home

Japan isn’t having a lot of kids. In lieu of kids, more people are turning to pets. But the little critters are causing a nuisance at some Shinto shrines – leading more shrines to ask folks to keep their fur babies at home.

Japan has had something of a “pet boom” since the Showa era. The trend’s decreased a little in recent years; the number of dog owners is slightly down this year (by around 48,000) compared to last.

However, dogs remain popular – as does taking your faithful companion along with you on outings. Travel site Travel Voice says over 60% of people they surveyed want to take their dogs with them when they travel. (Only 19% of cat owners aid the same thing. Which, knowing cats, is totally understandable.)

Bo Cafe, a cafe for french bulldog lovers in Kamitakada, Nakano, Tokyo.
Bo Cafe, a cafe for french bulldog owners and lovers in Kamitakada, Nakano, Tokyo.

That’s led to a boom in cafes and other locales that allow dog owners to bring their best friends. Some are also taking them to locations such as Shinto shrines to participate in rituals such as Hatsumode.

Some large shrines – notably Meiju Jingu in Tokyo’s Harajuku and Ise in Mie Prefecture – have forbidden animals for a while (seeing eye dogs are an exception). However, many shrines haven’t had an explicit prohibition against bringing doggoes on shrine grounds. That’s led visitors to practice a “better to seek forgiveness than ask permission” approach to pet visits.

However, in recent years, more shrines have instituted a strict “no pets” rule. Mitsumine Shrine in Saitama drew social media attention when it instituted a ban in 2019. Since then, Kirishima Jingu in Kagoshima Prefecture and Minase Jingu in Osaka have followed suit.

This year, Yaotomi Shrine in Aichi Prefecture followed suit. Yaotomi’s ban is notable because the island of Takeshima on which it sits is all regarded as shrine grounds – meaning that pets are forbidden from entering the island at all.

The reason for the ban? People being obnoxious with their dogs.

Shinto shrines are lovely, picturesque places that fit in seamlessly with their natural surroundings. Many of the shrines say they’ve received numerous complaints about pet owners causing issues by trying to get the perfect Instagram moment with the shrine’s natural beauty as a backdrop. People also complain that dog owners aren’t picking up their animal’s poop or dousing their urine with water (which is considered common courtesy in Japan).

Angry pet owners say their dogs are their family and that most pet owners are responsible. However, some shrine officials say that, given the complaints from other parishioners, they feel they have no choice.