TOKIO joins forces for the 24th rice planting event on “The! Iron-Armed! DASH!!”! The Fukushima-born sumo wrestlers, the Ohnami Brothers, also appear as the strongest helpers.

■ The sumo wrestlers, Wakamotoharu and Wakatakakage’s Onami brothers, spread fertilizer instead of salt!?

On June 2nd, “The! Iron-Armed! DASH!!” will air the 24th year of rice farming in “DASH Village.” Shigeru Joshima, Taichi Kokubun, Masahiro Matsuoka, and other TOKIO members will be planting rice for the 24th time. In addition, the strongest helpers will also appear.

The 24th rice cultivation has begun in Otama Village, Fukushima Prefecture. In preparation for the rice planting that is about to begin, Kokubu headed to Katsurao Village, an hour’s drive east from the rice terraces of Otama Village, where rice was grown until two years ago. The purpose of the trip was to get some compost to spread on the rice terraces.

Kokubun was reunited with local livestock farmers, Mr. and Mrs. Yoshida, and was given five tons of nutritious compost made from cow dung and straw. He expressed his gratitude, saying, “We will put it to good use!”

To carry five tons of compost to the rice fields, Kokubun needs help from the strongest manpower he can find: the Onami brothers Wakamotoharu and Wakatakakage from the Arashio stable of sumo wrestling.

The Onami brothers, originally from Fukushima, volunteered to help with rice farming, saying they wanted to “give back to their hometown.” After spreading the compost, they were asked to do some additional physical labor, and a mini battle broke out between the competitive brothers.

On the day of rice planting, TOKIO’s leader Shigeru Joshima and Matsuoka came to the rice terraces to check the feel of the soil, which is full of Katsurao Village compost, and gave it a perfect score, saying, “It really sticks to the soil!” Matsuoka immediately went to work making rice seedlings.

This year’s seedlings were grown in a nursery shed built for the first time by Morimoto Shintaro (SixTONES), who is in his fourth year of rice farming, but how will the roots take hold? Friends from Fukushima also rushed over, and the 24th rice planting begins.

Program Information

Nippon Television Network“The! Iron Arm! DASH!!”
June 2nd (Sun) 19:00-19:58
Cast: TOKIO, Shintaro Morimoto (SixTONES), Haru Wakamoto, Takakage Wakataka (Araiso stable), and others

“The! Iron-Armed! DASH!!” program site
https://www.ntv.co.jp/dash/