Hirez Appointed Official Gold Partner of Japan Deaf Badminton Association, Supporting Deaf Athletes and the Promotion of Deaf Sports
Hirez Inc., a provider of GPU cloud services "GPUSOROBAN," announced its sponsorship as an Official Gold Partner of the Japan Deaf Badminton Association. This partnership aims to support the popularization and development of deaf sports and deaf badminton. Furthermore, Yua Katayama, a Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics gold medalist, has joined Hirez as a new graduate in 2026, further strengthening the company's commitment to creating an environment where athletes can thrive in both sports and their careers.
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- 📰 Published: May 1, 2026 at 22:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 1, 2026 at 13:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 1, 2026 at 13:49 (18 min after Collected)
Hirez Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Yoshiyuki Shikura; hereinafter "the Company"), which operates the GPU cloud service "GPUSOROBAN," is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the Japan Deaf Badminton Association (Location: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Kota Onuki; hereinafter "Japan Deaf Badminton Association") as an Official Gold Partner.
The Japan Deaf Badminton Association is the governing body for badminton for the hearing impaired in Japan. It was established in 2002 with the aim of promoting and developing sports for the hearing impaired through badminton, and contributing to the sound physical and mental development of the wider public.
Under its corporate philosophy of "doing interesting things that people can be proud of," Hirez sympathizes with the Association's activities for deaf sports and has decided to sponsor them as an Official Gold Partner for fiscal year 2026. Furthermore, Yua Katayama, a Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics gold medalist, has joined the company as a new graduate in 2026. Taking this as an opportunity, we will further promote and develop deaf sports and deaf badminton, and work even harder to create an environment where athletes can excel in both competition and work.
Comment from Yoshiyuki Shikura, Representative Director, Hirez Inc.
"It is a great honor to begin our sponsorship of the Japan Deaf Badminton Association. With Yua Katayama, a Deaf Badminton Japan representative, joining our company as a new graduate in fiscal year 2026, I have once again realized the potential of sports and the importance of creating an environment where everyone can take on challenges."
"Ms. Katayama is also from Ayagawa Town, Kagawa Prefecture, where we opened a data center in March 2026. Through this sponsorship, we will support the development of deaf sports and, by leveraging our ties with the region, contribute to regional revitalization through sports and the creation of a society where diverse talents can flourish."
(Reference) Press Release
Yua Katayama, Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics Gold Medalist, Joins Hirez
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000130.000058027.html
About Japan Deaf Badminton Association
Name: Japan Deaf Badminton Association
Established: April 1, 2002 (Incorporated March 2018)
Number of Directors: 8
Number of Members: Approximately 90 (as of December 2025)
Location: 2-2-15 Hamamatsucho, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Affiliated Organizations: All Japan Federation of the Deaf Sports Committee, Japan Paralympic Committee Japanese Sports Association for the Disabled
Business Activities:
(1) Fostering friendship among members
(2) Holding competitions and training courses
(3) Improving badminton skills, providing coaching, promoting, and strengthening the sport
(4) Sending athletes and coaches to international competitions
(5) Providing information and exchanging opinions for mutual understanding through badminton
(6) Collecting research materials and conducting surveys related to badminton
(7) Collaboration and mutual exchange with the All Japan Federation of the Deaf Sports Committee
(8) Other matters necessary to achieve the objectives of this corporation
Official Website: https://jbad.or.jp/
About Hirez Inc.
Since 2019, Hirez has operated GPU data centers specializing in AI development and provides the GPU cloud service "GPUSOROBAN."
June 2022: Received NVIDIA "Best CSP Partner of the Year" award
April 2024: Certified under the "Cloud Program" supply assurance plan by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
February 2026: Small-scale demonstration project for Green AI data center construction in the Kingdom of Bhutan adopted for the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's FY2024 Supplementary Global South Future-Oriented Co-creation, etc., Project Subsidy (Small-scale demonstration/FS project)
About GPU Data Centers specialized in AI development
Hirez has established data centers in 5 locations in Ishikawa, Kagawa, and Saga prefectures, utilizing idle facilities such as disused schools in rural areas. By operating with unique construction know-how that leverages regional characteristics, it suppresses environmental impact and promotes GX (Green Transformation). It also contributes to the government's "Watt-Bit Collaboration" initiative, which aims to develop digital infrastructure to promote domestic economic growth and connect data center decentralization to regional revitalization.
• August 2019: Shiga Town No. 1 Data Center opened in Ishikawa Prefecture as a GPU-exclusive data center.
• August 2022: Shiga Town No. 2 Data Center, Japan's largest, opened in Ishikawa Prefecture.
• December 2024: Takamatsu City Data Center, the first in the Chugoku-Shikoku region, opened in Kagawa Prefecture.
• August 2025: Genkai Town Data Center, Japan's first utilizing a disused school, opened in Saga Prefecture.
• March 2026: Ayagawa Town Data Center, the second in the Chugoku-Shikoku region, opened in Kagawa Prefecture.
(The text ends here for GPUSOROBAN).
The Japan Deaf Badminton Association is the governing body for badminton for the hearing impaired in Japan. It was established in 2002 with the aim of promoting and developing sports for the hearing impaired through badminton, and contributing to the sound physical and mental development of the wider public.
Under its corporate philosophy of "doing interesting things that people can be proud of," Hirez sympathizes with the Association's activities for deaf sports and has decided to sponsor them as an Official Gold Partner for fiscal year 2026. Furthermore, Yua Katayama, a Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics gold medalist, has joined the company as a new graduate in 2026. Taking this as an opportunity, we will further promote and develop deaf sports and deaf badminton, and work even harder to create an environment where athletes can excel in both competition and work.
Comment from Yoshiyuki Shikura, Representative Director, Hirez Inc.
"It is a great honor to begin our sponsorship of the Japan Deaf Badminton Association. With Yua Katayama, a Deaf Badminton Japan representative, joining our company as a new graduate in fiscal year 2026, I have once again realized the potential of sports and the importance of creating an environment where everyone can take on challenges."
"Ms. Katayama is also from Ayagawa Town, Kagawa Prefecture, where we opened a data center in March 2026. Through this sponsorship, we will support the development of deaf sports and, by leveraging our ties with the region, contribute to regional revitalization through sports and the creation of a society where diverse talents can flourish."
(Reference) Press Release
Yua Katayama, Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics Gold Medalist, Joins Hirez
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000130.000058027.html
About Japan Deaf Badminton Association
Name: Japan Deaf Badminton Association
Established: April 1, 2002 (Incorporated March 2018)
Number of Directors: 8
Number of Members: Approximately 90 (as of December 2025)
Location: 2-2-15 Hamamatsucho, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Affiliated Organizations: All Japan Federation of the Deaf Sports Committee, Japan Paralympic Committee Japanese Sports Association for the Disabled
Business Activities:
(1) Fostering friendship among members
(2) Holding competitions and training courses
(3) Improving badminton skills, providing coaching, promoting, and strengthening the sport
(4) Sending athletes and coaches to international competitions
(5) Providing information and exchanging opinions for mutual understanding through badminton
(6) Collecting research materials and conducting surveys related to badminton
(7) Collaboration and mutual exchange with the All Japan Federation of the Deaf Sports Committee
(8) Other matters necessary to achieve the objectives of this corporation
Official Website: https://jbad.or.jp/
About Hirez Inc.
Since 2019, Hirez has operated GPU data centers specializing in AI development and provides the GPU cloud service "GPUSOROBAN."
June 2022: Received NVIDIA "Best CSP Partner of the Year" award
April 2024: Certified under the "Cloud Program" supply assurance plan by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
February 2026: Small-scale demonstration project for Green AI data center construction in the Kingdom of Bhutan adopted for the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's FY2024 Supplementary Global South Future-Oriented Co-creation, etc., Project Subsidy (Small-scale demonstration/FS project)
About GPU Data Centers specialized in AI development
Hirez has established data centers in 5 locations in Ishikawa, Kagawa, and Saga prefectures, utilizing idle facilities such as disused schools in rural areas. By operating with unique construction know-how that leverages regional characteristics, it suppresses environmental impact and promotes GX (Green Transformation). It also contributes to the government's "Watt-Bit Collaboration" initiative, which aims to develop digital infrastructure to promote domestic economic growth and connect data center decentralization to regional revitalization.
• August 2019: Shiga Town No. 1 Data Center opened in Ishikawa Prefecture as a GPU-exclusive data center.
• August 2022: Shiga Town No. 2 Data Center, Japan's largest, opened in Ishikawa Prefecture.
• December 2024: Takamatsu City Data Center, the first in the Chugoku-Shikoku region, opened in Kagawa Prefecture.
• August 2025: Genkai Town Data Center, Japan's first utilizing a disused school, opened in Saga Prefecture.
• March 2026: Ayagawa Town Data Center, the second in the Chugoku-Shikoku region, opened in Kagawa Prefecture.
(The text ends here for GPUSOROBAN).