Outrage Over Cyberbullying of Women’s Volleyball Players — Athletes Respond With a Calm Appeal

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The story

Japan’s women’s volleyball team won silver at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, but after a straight-sets loss to China in the final, team members revealed on social media that they had been targeted with slanderous abuse. The Japan Volleyball Association also issued a statement on September 25 warning against such behavior. On a 5channel (Geinou/Sports News+) thread, users who learned of the abuse voiced outrage, while opinions split over whether “just don’t look at it” is an adequate response, and where exactly the line falls between criticism and harassment.

Outrage Over Slander of Women’s Volleyball Players: “I’m Sick of This,” “It’s Just Too Awful…” — Players Calmly Appeal: “What You See Isn’t Everything”

Japan’s women’s national volleyball team won silver at this month’s Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, bringing this stretch of national team activity to a close.

After a straight-sets loss to China in the final, players revealed on social media that they had been subjected to slander and abuse, among other things, prompting the Japan Volleyball Association to issue a warning in a statement on the 25th. Volleyball fans also voiced anger at this callous behavior.

Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here

What people said

3AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:26
Same goes for threads like this one
just because it's written in Japanese doesn't mean the poster is Japanese
People immediately jump to China or Korea when you say that
but that's not necessarily true either
6AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:28
Volleyball has a lot of fans who root for individual players, and it's oddly popular with middle-aged men and women — that's probably why this kind of thing happens so much
7AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:31
Celebrities should just quit social media
If you're going to use it, block or ignore your DMs
29AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:45
Re: #7
This isn't something "just don't look at it" can fix
15AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:38
Even Nakata gets "hibochu" treatment now — that's Reiwa for you (hibochu: net slang for 誹謗中傷, "slander/harassment")
What a lame world we live in
17AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:39
Reading this article, honestly the player's own words feel a bit harsh too
Could you choose your words a little more carefully and keep it milder
18AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:41
Can't be helped — that's the only impression you get from something like that
21AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:42
Volleyball, along with baseball, has the image of being one of the last sports where corporal punishment/hazing still lingers
22AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:43
The crowd hasn't grown up one bit in decades
Would they have the guts to bang inflatable cheer sticks like idiots on Wimbledon's Centre Court?
35AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:50
Volleyball's different from baseball or soccer —
it's one nail-biting rally after another
In baseball terms, it's like watching the second baseman, shortstop, and outfielders
pull off spectacular plays nonstop
a sport you never get tired of
Maybe getting fans so fired up is what makes some of them go overboard
39AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:53
Re: #29
Just don't look at it
If you absolutely have to look, the only option is to sue over every single instance of slander
87AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:45
Re: #39
When it's a matter of morals and manners, "don't like it, don't look" doesn't apply

Would you tell someone to just not look at the idiots who cross their legs or slouch on the train (isn't there even a slur for these people?)
40AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:53
If it's genuinely slander and not just criticism, they should just take legal action
The association should foot the bill
41AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:53
Yeah, they are weaker compared to the men's team
42AnonymousSep 26, 2026 01:54
Re: #41
The men's team got knocked out in the preliminary round of the World Championship
and lost in straight sets to both Turkey and Canada on top of that
The women made the quarterfinals
Volleyball is a sport you need to win at the Olympics and Worlds
46AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:00
Re: #41
You also have to factor in that in Asia, women's volleyball tends to be tougher since there are more strong teams
78AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:25
If anything, rather than pushing for a real-name system on the internet, I feel like it'd be better to encourage celebrities to stay off anonymous social media
Just stick to real-name platforms
86AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:45
Re: #78
Why are you trying to spin this into "as long as the person themselves doesn't see it, it's fine to broadcast anything to the whole world on other platforms"
"Just don't look at it" is a line that only the people doing the harassing get to say
84AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:38
会叫的狗不咬人 (Chinese proverb)
A barking dog doesn't bite

People who bark loudly and act tough, or who nag constantly, often don't actually have much real ability — or never actually do anything
90AnonymousSep 26, 2026 02:46
Re: #84
Politician: "Oh, you mean 5channel? (lol)"

Background and Key Points of Debate

Online slander directed at athletes has repeatedly become a social issue in recent years, and countermeasures have advanced — for instance, the penalty for the crime of insult was increased (effective 2022), and revisions to the Provider Liability Limitation Act have simplified the process for disclosing the identities of posters. Even so, the abuse hasn’t stopped, largely because of the high degree of anonymity and a structure in which posts spread widely while the line between criticism and slander stays blurry. Within the thread, opinions were divided over whether this can simply be dismissed with “just don’t look at it,” whether it should be left to celebrities to protect themselves, or whether the platforms and the way information spreads need to change — a divide that recurs again and again whenever public figures face this kind of abuse, not just in this case. Note that in compiling this article, posts amounting to baseless slander against real individuals or containing sexual content have been excluded.

*This article was compiled by excerpting and summarizing the 5channel (Geinou/Sports News+) thread “[Women’s Volleyball] Outrage Over Slander: “I’m Sick of This,” “It’s Just Too Awful…” — Players Calmly Appeal: “What You See Isn’t Everything”.”

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