"OCEANS Feel So Good AWARD 2024" Winner Announcement Ceremony

2024.10.22

Men's lifestyle magazine "OCEANS" will be holding the "OCEANS Feel So Good Award" to select the person with the best face of the year.The BEST Wellbeings 2024The awards ceremony for the "Fes" was held on October 20, 2024, at the central plaza of Futako Tamagawa Rise in Tokyo, with actor Kentaro Sakaguchi, artist/model Rikako Sasaki, International Olympic Committee member Yuki Ota, and Plan•Do•See Co., Ltd. President and CEO Shohei Asaba taking to the stage.

■ "OCEANS" Chief Editor Hara Ryota

For 18 years since its launch, OCEANS has been a magazine that has proposed lifestyles for people who shine both on and off the job. Therefore, for the awards, we decided to set the theme as "Wellbeings," which means shining on both sides. We wanted to select the winners together with everyone, not just ourselves, so we selected the winners together with four people active in various industries.

■SEIKO PROSPEX Special Award: Actor Kentaro Sakaguchi

I am delighted to receive such an honorable award. I feel as though the various works I have done up until now have been acknowledged to some extent by everyone. The time when I feel most at peace at work is when I am meeting people. Eating and talking with friends, family and coworkers fills me with fulfillment and also helps me relieve stress. It is a time that I cherish.

The challenge I want to take on in 2025 is "language." My first leading role in Korea has given me more opportunities to use "words" in various languages and for communication. Working as a team with people from different cultures and countries, working towards a common goal, has made me realize how important it is to communicate as much as possible when creating a work. I think it will be very important to continue using "words" to communicate with others next year and to be able to properly listen to their opinions.

Seiko Watch Hiroyuki Yamazaki / Kentaro Sakaguchi

■OCEANS Feel So Good AWARD Winner

<Artist and Model Rikako Sasaki>

I never thought I'd receive such a wonderful award in my lifetime, so I'm very happy. I was a member of the group "ANGERME" for 10 years. I graduated from the group in June, but I want to continue to be someone who can bring light and dreams to others in my own way. And because we only have one life, I want to live it the way I want.

I've been an idol since I was in elementary school, so I've had many opportunities to interact with people since I was little. Now that I'm an adult, I realize that people's hearts, like mine, are not very strong and are very fragile. That's why I think it's important to "consider the other person's feelings and compromise" in order to maintain relationships between people. I've always valued relationships between people, so I think it would be good to live my life cherishing those emotional aspects as well.

Next Wellbeing Action "I want to see more of the unknown world"

I'm currently working solo, and I think the world I see is expanding more and more, both at work and in my personal life. I feel like I've graduated and the second chapter of my life has begun, so I hope to continue seeing different worlds and growing as a person.

<Shohei Asaba, President and CEO of Plan・Do・See Co., Ltd.>

I'm very grateful to receive this award. Wellbeing is a very important issue at my company, but I hadn't really thought much about my own personal wellbeing. This award gave me the opportunity to think deeply about what wellbeing means to me. It also made me feel even more grateful for my family and those close to me.

Things that seem difficult or painful when you're young usually turn into interesting things as time goes by. Don't run away from them, think of them as a time capsule experience, and enjoy them to the fullest, even the pain. I'm sure that these experiences will be good ones in the long run, so I would be happy if you could turn your experiences in that way.

Next Wellbeing Action "Travel around Japan"

When we think of traveling, we tend to look overseas, but from an overseas perspective, Japan is a country with potential for growth in the field of tourism and is said to be an interesting country. However, we feel that we don't really understand Japan. Since we are in the tourism industry, we would like to first travel all over Japan ourselves, understand it, and spread the word that "Japan is such an interesting country."

<Yuki Ota, Member of the International Olympic Committee / Executive Director of the International Fencing Federation>

It's been eight years since I retired, and I never thought I'd receive an award like this after that. I believe I was able to receive this award thanks to the athletes who performed well at the Paris Olympics. The kids who started fencing when I was an athlete are now shining as world champions. I'm extremely happy to have been able to witness such a wonderful event at the Paris Olympics, and to receive this award today.

I didn't have any youthful moments as a student, and I spent most of my time on fencing, which is how I got to where I am today. I'm not saying that I approve of everything that happened, but I believe that no matter what field you're in, "choosing something means giving up something else." If you have a dream or goal that you want to achieve, I'd be happy if you pour your passion into it.

Next Wellbeing Action "Building a bridge between Japan and overseas"

When I saw the world in various ways at the Paris Olympics, I felt that I had only seen one side of the Olympics. At the same time, I felt that there was a possibility that we could use something as wonderful as sport to build a bridge between Japan and the world, so I would like to work on that from now on.

Interviewed by Student Newspaper Online on October 20, 2024 by Ikehama Momoka, a third-year student at Sophia University and Koshiyama Rinno, a second-year student at Toyo University

Yurie Watanabe, 1st year student at Josai International University / Rinno Koshiyama, 2nd year student at Toyo University / Momoka Ikehama, 3rd year student at Sophia University / Haruna Shoji, 2nd year student at Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences / Takashi Yoshida, 4th year student at the University of Tokyo