Friday, Sep. 16, 2011

Professional wrestler Satoru Sayama, known in the ring as Tiger Mask, has donated 500 radiation detectors to kindergartners in Fukushima and Ibaraki prefectures.

On the prowl: The wrestler known as Tiger Mask shows radiation detectors in the city of Fukushima on Tuesday. KYODO PHOTO

On Tuesday, Sayama visited the city of Fukushima and handed the detectors to Akinobu Seki, head of a local association of private kindergartens.

The Fukushima nuclear disaster has contaminated the environment with radiation, especially around Fukushima Prefecture.

JYJ, a South Korean idol group, gave Sayama around ¥20 million raised though a charity concert and other events.

"Tiger Mask cannot leave children unattended. I'd like to keep helping them and encourage them by holding wrestling events," Sayama said.

Tiger Mask is the main character in a popular manga and TV animation series from the 1960s. In the comics, Tiger Mask is an orphan who becomes a professional wrestler and keeps donating money to the orphanage he was raised in.

On Dec. 25, 10 school bags were donated by someone using the alias of "Naoto Date," the real name of Tiger Mask in the manga series, to a child counseling center in Gunma Prefecture. This triggered a flood of anonymous donations of goods and money under the name of Naoto Date to child welfare facilities nationwide.

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