Competitive karuta

Competitive karuta is the official Japanese form of karuta, a card game played with uta-garuta cards under the format and rules of the All Japan Karuta Association. Its roots go back to the start of the nineteenth century, when rules differed from region to region. They were unified early in the twentieth century by the newly formed Tokyo Karuta Association, and the first competitive tournament was held in 1904. The national association was founded in 1957 after an attempt in 1934, and it has run men's tournaments since 1955 and women's since 1957. Estimates put the number of competitive players in Japan at ten to twenty thousand. Because winning demands agility and memory, it is regarded as a kind of sport. The national championship is held every January at Omi Shrine in Otsu, with the Meijin title for men and the Queen title for women, and a high school championship is held each July. The first international tournament took place in September 2012.