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Please note that the World Cosplay Summit 2008 is now over.
World Cosplay Summit 2008
Love Manga? Cosplayers of the world unite in Naogoya!
Cool Japan!
The World Cosplay Summit was first held in Nagoya in 2003. The idea of the summit was to illustrate the massive popularity of Japan's manga and animation abroad through the world's cosplayers, who bring this animation to life. It was also to make sure that Japanese people themselves did not forget how cool this aspect of their homegrown culture really is!
The World Cosplay Summit has become such a major event that it is now endorsed by the Japanese Government. Last year's 2007 World Cosplay Summit welcomed in the participation of Denmark, South Korea, and Mexico, bringing the total number of countries involved in the summit to 12. The now well-established Cosplay Parade, held in Osu, Nagoya, which has historically attracted the largest number of national and international cosplayers, had 200 participants last year. The main event, the Cosplay Championship, saw the 10,000-strong audience captivated by the highest-quality performances seen to date in any country.
The Cosplay Summit, which has given rise to so much drama and excitment already, will once again be held in Nagoya this August. Come and see history in the making at the 2008 World Cosplay Summit!
Osu Cosplay Parade:
Cosplayers will parade through Osu's shopping arcade for about one hour.
World Cosplay Championship:
Competitors chosen from 13 countries (including Japan) will compete to be crowned the World's No. 1 cosplayers (individual/group), and the world's best cosplay country will also be decided.
2/3 August 2008
2 August: Osu Cosplay Parade
3 August: World Cosplay Championship
Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture
Osu Cosplay Parade:
Osu Shopping Arcade (Osu, Naka-ku, Nagoya City)
World Cosplay Championship:
Oasis 21 (1-11-1 Higashizakura, Higashiku, Nagoya-city)
Nagoya City center is 28 minutes from Central Japan International Airport (Centrair) by train.
Leaving from Tokyo, Nagoya can be reached in around two hours by shinkansen.
Leaving from Kyoto or Osaka, Nagoya can be reached in about one hour by shinkansen.
Osu Shopping Arcade:
Easy access from Osu Kannon Station (Tsurumai Line), Yaba Cho Station (Meijo Line) or Kamimaezu Station (Tsurumai/Meijo Lines).
Oasis 21:
Easy access from Sakae Station (Meijo Line).
Thirteen countries: Brazil, China, Germany, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy, South Korea, Mexico, Singapore, Thailand, USA, Japan.
Each country will have one team of two cosplayers to represent them.
(N.B. - Japan will have two teams participating: one chosen from the Tokyo preliminary and one from the Osaka preliminary.)
2008 Cosplay Summit 3-day Tour (Starts & ends in Tokyo)
2008 Cosplay Summit 3-day Tour (Starts in Tokyo, ends at Centrair, Aichi)
2008 Cosplay Summit & Cool Japan 7-day Tour (Starts in Tokyo, ends at Centrair, Aichi)
2008 Cosplay Summit & Cool Japan 7-day Tour (Starts & ends in Tokyo, with Airport Transfer)
2008 Cosplay Summit & Cool Japan 7-day Tour (Starts & ends in Tokyo, without Airport Transfer)
Related websites
There are loads of great places to visit around the World Cosplay Summit event venue. The one place that really has it all is Osu. There you can find a huge selection of fashionable second-hand clothes shops, PC shops, and maid cafes. If you feel like stretching your legs, go to Meiji Mura Museum and experience old-school Japan. Come and find your "Moe" in Nagoya!
Opened in Osu in 2001, this is the largest such area in the whole of Nagoya and its surrounding region. Here you can find high-tech goods shops selling digital audio equipment, digital cameras, figures and video games, as well as PCs. And for those of you who want to tickle your "Moe" taste buds, check out one of the many maid cafes, cosplay cafes or anime shops. Indulge yourself!
Address: 3-12-35 Osu, Naka-ku, Nagoya City
Access: Five minutes' walk from Kamimaezu Station (Tsurumai/Meijo Lines)
Meiji Mura Museum is an open-air museum/theme park which brings together a number of historical building, many of which have been designated Important Intangible Cultural Assets. You will really feel that you have slipped back in time when you try the old-style food and rental clothes on offer.
Nagoya Castle: home to Japanese Shogun Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Come and see Japan as it looked through the eyes of the nation's ruler!
