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New York Ikuei Gakuen’s jump rope club team, the Japanese Children’s Society (JCS), competed at the AMJRF National Championship 2026 (7th Annual American Jump Rope National Championship), held in Buffalo, New York from Tuesday, June 17 through Saturday, June 20, 2026, and won a total of 43 medals — 13 gold, 16 silver, and 14 bronze.
With roughly 900 athletes from about 30 teams across the country competing (approximately 2.5 times last year’s turnout), JCS placed among the top finishers across multiple age divisions, and all 14 traveling members stood on the podium — a new school record.
JCS traveling members striking their finishing pose in the team Team Show event (Buffalo, NY, June 2026)
＜About the AMJRF Tournament＞
The American Jump Rope Federation (AMJRF) is the official U.S. jump rope governing body recognized by the International Jump Rope Union (IJRU). The 7th annual 2026 championship was held at Buffalo State University in Buffalo, New York, with roughly 30 teams and over 900 athletes from across the country taking part (per the school’s own research, about 2.5 times last year’s turnout).
The City of Buffalo successfully secured the event as one of its 2026 signature events. With over 750 attendees, 1,250 hotel room-nights, and more than $1 million in projected economic impact, it became a citywide event in every sense.
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750+
Attendees
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1,250 nights
Hotel stays
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$1M+
Local economic impact
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＜Local TV Stations Covered This Tournament Too＞
This year’s tournament received major advance coverage from Buffalo’s leading television and radio stations, drawing attention as a nationwide sporting event. Here’s the news footage from Buffalo ABC affiliate WKBW-TV, which covered the tournament.
※This embeds the local station’s video as-is, so a local ad plays at the start — thanks for your understanding. Unfortunately, JCS wasn’t featured in this particular broadcast, but here’s hoping for next year!
＜Here’s How the Local Media Covered It＞
During the tournament, on Thursday, June 19, 2026, a jump rope demonstration was also held at the Buffalo Juneteenth Festival — a moment that made this tournament memorable not just for the competition, but for its connection with the local community.
＜JCS Medal Summary＞
43 Medals in Total — A School Record
＜Event Glossary＞
| Code | Event Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ◆ Double Dutch (DD) Events | ||
| DDSS | Double Dutch Speed Sprint | A 3-person team (2 turners + 1 jumper) competing on total jumps within 30 seconds. |
| DDSR | Double Dutch Speed Relay | A 4-person relay team competing on total jumps while rotating jumpers. |
| DDC | DD Challenge (1×30) | 2 turners + 1 jumper, competing on the combined total of three 30-second attempts. |
| DDPF | Double Dutch Pair Freestyle | A freestyle event performed by 4 athletes who rotate roles. Judges score difficulty, performance, and execution. |
| DDSF | Double Dutch Single Freestyle | A freestyle event performed by 3 athletes who rotate roles. Judges score difficulty, performance, and execution. |
| ◆ Single Rope (SR) Events | ||
| SRSS | Single Rope Speed Sprint | An individual event turning their own rope, competing on total jumps within 30 seconds. |
| SRDR | SR Double Unders Relay | A 2-person relay alternating double-unders for 30 seconds, competing on combined total jumps. |
| SRSE | Single Rope Speed Endurance | An individual endurance event measuring total jumps sustained over 3 minutes. |
| SRSR | Single Rope Speed Relay | A relay speed event with baton-style hand-offs among 4 athletes, 30 seconds each. |
| SRIF | SR Individual Freestyle | An individual freestyle single-rope routine, judged on difficulty, performance, and execution. |
| SRPF | SR Pair Freestyle | A 2-person freestyle single-rope routine, judged on difficulty, performance, execution, and synchronization. |
| SR TU | Single Rope Triple Unders | An event measuring triple-under jump count and difficulty. |
＜Medal Results List＞
| Event | Category | Place | Members |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold Medals (13 total) | |||
| DDSS | Male 12-13 | 🥇 1st | Shimato Ishikawa・Kaishin Lin・Sohta Nakajima |
| DDPF | Male 14-15 | 🥇 1st | Shimato Ishikawa・Kaishin Lin・Osuke Naito・Sohta Nakajima |
| SRDR | Male 12-13 | 🥇 1st | Kaishin Lin・Sohta Nakajima |
| SRSR | Male 14-15 | 🥇 1st | Shimato Ishikawa・Kaishin Lin・Osuke Naito・Sohta Nakajima |
| 🥈 Silver Medals (16 total) | |||
| DDSS | Male 12-13 | 🥈 2nd | Hiroto Kitayama・Kaito Minami・Ryotaro Mine |
| DDSS | Mixed 14-15 | 🥈 2nd | Akari Amemiya・Daichi Kitayama・Aoi Minami |
| DDSS | Male 19+ | 🥈 2nd | Yuki Fukai・Daimu Ishikawa・Yusuke Tanno |
| DDSR | Mixed 12-13 | 🥈 2nd | Hiroto Kitayama・Kaito Minami・Ryotaro Mine・Yuri Tanno |
| DDSF | Male 19+ | 🥈 2nd | Yuki Fukai・Daimu Ishikawa・Yusuke Tanno |
| 🥉 Bronze Medals (14 total) | |||
| DDSR | Male 14-15 | 🥉 3rd | Shimato Ishikawa・Kaishin Lin・Osuke Naito・Sohta Nakajima |
| SRDR | Male 12-13 | 🥉 3rd | Shimato Ishikawa・Hiroto Kitayama |
| SRDR | Mixed 12-13 | 🥉 T-3rd | Osuke Naito・Yuri Tanno |
| SRSS | Male 12-13 | 🥉 T-3rd | Hiroto Kitayama (individual) |
| SRSS | Male 16-18 | 🥉 3rd | Daimu Ishikawa (individual) |
| SRSR | Mixed 12-13 | 🥉 3rd | Hiroto Kitayama・Kaito Minami・Ryotaro Mine・Yuri Tanno |
※Results are listed according to the official tournament record (Verified Results) published by the organizer (AMJRF). Since that record itself is published under athletes’ real names, this article follows the same convention.
※For SRDR Male 12-13 (Entry #1141), AMJRF’s official record lists 4th place, but the athletes were awarded bronze medals for 3rd place at the ceremony and are currently in possession of those medals. We have requested that AMJRF confirm this discrepancy (this article lists the result as 3rd place, based on what was awarded at the ceremony).
＜Other Results (Non-Medal)＞
| Event | Category | Place | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| DDSS | Mixed 30+ | 4th | JCS team |
| DDSR | Mixed 14-15 | 4th | JCS team |
| DDSR | Male 19+ | 6th | JCS team |
| DDC | Various categories | T-4th–T-40th | Multiple entries |
| DDPF | Mixed 12-13 | 4th | JCS team |
| DDPF | Mixed 14-15 | 10th | JCS team |
| DDSF | Mixed 12-13 | 5th | JCS team |
| DDSF | Mixed 14-15 | 8th | JCS team |
| Team Show | All categories combined | 8th | JCS (14 athletes) |
| SRDR | Male 12-13 | 7th | JCS team |
| SRDR | Male 14-15 | 6th | JCS team |
| SRDR | Female 14-15 | T-15th | JCS team |
| SRDR | Male 19+ | 6th | JCS team (2 athletes) |
| SRSS | Male 12-13 (multiple) | 5th–T-10th | Multiple individual JCS entries |
| SRSS | Female 11Y | 9th | JCS (individual) |
| SRSS | Male 30+ | 5th–6th | Multiple individual JCS entries |
| SRSR | Mixed 19+ | 17th | JCS team |
| SRIF | Male 14-15 | 16th | JCS (individual) |
| SR TU | Mixed 30+ | 4th | JCS (individual) |
※The above are non-medal results. Entries marked “Scratch” (withdrawn) have been omitted.
Traveling members visited Niagara Falls during the trip (Buffalo expedition, June 2026)
＋ SPECIAL COLUMN (Bonus)
The Dads Take On Nationals — 4 Medals Earned Between Work Shifts
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Two fathers of JCS athletes competed alongside their children at this year’s tournament. Kiyotake Ishikawa and Daiki Naito — both working professionals — trained for the competition in whatever weekends and spare moments they could find. The pair won silver (2nd place) in the Mixed 30+ Single Rope Double Unders Relay. In individual events, Kiyotake Ishikawa also took bronze (3rd) in Male 30+ SRSE, and Daiki Naito took bronze (3rd) in Male 30+ SRSS — bringing their combined total to 4 medals (counted separately from the 43 medals won by the 14 traveling members). The sight of the two of them smiling with medals around their necks became one of the biggest highlights of the tournament, for the children and the whole venue alike. |
The two fathers walking with silver medals around their necks (left: Daiki Naito, right: Kiyotake Ishikawa). AMJRF 2026 National Championship / Buffalo, NY |
Read the full official press release (PDF)
