夏の全国高校野球「甲子園」がまもなく開幕

Welcome to Japanese Daily News. I'm Maya. Today is August first. Japan's most beloved summer sports event is almost here: the national high school baseball tournament, played every year at a famous stadium in western Japan. Let's listen.

Now let's break it down, sentence by sentence.

The national summer high school baseball tournament begins on August fifth at Koshien Stadium in Hyogo Prefecture.

It means a tournament, or a big competition.

This tournament is known as the summer Koshien. This year is the one hundred and eighth time, so it has a history of more than one hundred years.

It means history.

And on July twenty-eighth, forty-nine schools from all over the country were chosen as representatives.

It means a representative — the one chosen to stand for a whole group.

On August first, there is a drawing event to decide which schools will play against each other. Starting this year, the drawing is held online.

It means a lottery or drawing event, where matchups are decided by drawing lots.

This tournament is a classic sight of the Japanese summer. Many people watch the games on TV and cheer for the teams.

It means cheering, or supporting a team.

It is also famous that players on the losing team take home some dirt from the stadium field as a memory.

It means a memory — something you keep and remember fondly.

Let's listen to the whole story one more time.

Time for a short quiz. Listen and try to answer.

August fifth. That is when the games begin at the stadium in Hyogo.

Forty-nine schools, from every part of Japan.

That's all for today. The one hundred and eighth summer high school baseball tournament opens on August fifth, with forty-nine schools playing for the national title until the final on August twenty-second. Thanks for listening, and see you tomorrow.