A new inclusive combat sport, "Low Vision Boxing," in which people with low vision and sighted people fight guided by light and sound, is being developed by TBWA HAKUHODO together with Yoichi Ochiai, Director of the Research and Development Center for Digital Nature and Professor in the Faculty of Library, Information and Media Science at the University of Tsukuba, and social entrepreneur Shunsuke Narisawa, known as the "World's Brightest Visually Impaired Person."
The project aims to hold a special match at "KNOCK OUT REBELS SERIES.16" on Saturday, December 5, 2026, at KNOCK OUT Tokiwa Arena in Fukushima. A crowdfunding campaign on "READYFOR" starts on Thursday, October 1, 2026.
READYFOR project page: https://readyfor.jp/projects/low-vision-boxing
An Inclusive Combat Sport Where People With Low Vision Can Fight in Earnest by Light and Sound
Low Vision Boxing is a new sport in which sensors and devices are built into the gloves, body protectors, ring space and more. Spatial information is converted in real time into other senses, such as light and sound, and passed to the fighters, so they can fight while sensing the distance to and movements of their opponent.
Roughly 70 to 80 percent of visually impaired people in Japan are said to have low vision, meaning difficulties in how they see, such as not getting enough visual acuity, having a narrow field of view, or being sensitive to glare. While various para sports have been created and sports that visually impaired people can take part in have become popular, there is still no combat sport in which they can "fight in earnest" in the same way as sighted people (people without a visual impairment). Low Vision Boxing was conceived by Narisawa, who has low vision, and Ochiai, based on the idea that "everyone has an instinct to fight." Development began with the goal of using technology to create an "inclusive combat sport" in which people with low vision can fight in earnest against sighted people under fair rules.
Four "Invisible" Types of Information Converted Into Light and Sound by Special Equipment
The visual information needed in combat sports was divided into four categories: recognizing the opponent's position, recognizing the opponent's attacks, determining whether one's own attacks hit, and grasping one's own position. To let people with low vision obtain this information, the team developed special gear that integrates LEDs, acceleration sensors, pressure sensors and vibration modules, along with ring equipment that emits 3D audio. By detecting the opponent's position and movements with light and sensors and passing the information to the fighters in real time, the project aims to eliminate the difference in how fighters see, and to achieve both safety and competitiveness.
"SPORTS PRESENTATION (SPP)": Using Technology to Evolve the Combat Sports Spectating Experience
Low Vision Boxing also works on updating the experience of spectators, not only the fighters. The match is held in the dark, and the project aims to let spectators feel the action in the ring more intuitively through technology, using the light of the LEDs attached to the gloves, audio that conveys distance and movement, and hit detection displayed in real time. The goal is a new combat sports experience in which both people familiar with combat sports and first-time viewers can enjoy the excitement of the fighters' tactical exchanges and punch trades.
Spreading the Sport and Applying the Technology to Other Fields
For the first Low Vision Boxing competition, a special match between professional kickboxer Eisaku Ogasawara and Narisawa is planned at "KNOCK OUT REBELS SERIES.16" on Saturday, December 5, 2026, at KNOCK OUT Tokiwa Arena in Fukushima. Preparations are underway while the equipment, rules, safety management system and presentation methods are verified. Starting with this match, the team is considering full-scale promotion of the sport as well as its use in training, sparring and more.
The knowledge and technology gained through the development of Low Vision Boxing will also be applied to various fields in the future, based on "DESIGNED FOR ONE, SCALED FOR EVERYONE.," a basic principle in the field of inclusive design. Game creator Yukio Nozawa, who has made more than 50 games that can be enjoyed with sound alone and has many fans in Japan and overseas, has joined as a special advisor, and the project aims to expand many people's possibilities through knowledge and technology together with him.
Low Vision Boxing Special Match Details
- Date: Saturday, December 5, 2026
- Event: KNOCK OUT REBELS SERIES.16
- Time: Doors open 12:00 PM / Start 1:00 PM
- Matches: Shunsuke Narisawa vs. Eisaku Ogasawara, and others
- Venue: KNOCK OUT Tokiwa Arena, Fukushima (963-4601, Yamane 鰍5-29, Tokiwa-machi, Tamura City, Fukushima Prefecture)
- Access: About 20 minutes by car from Funehiki Station on the JR Ban-etsu East Line (about 25 minutes from JR Koriyama Station to Funehiki Station)
Low Vision Boxing is scheduled to be held as a special match within the above event.
Due to unavoidable circumstances such as snowfall, the match content may change, or the match may be postponed or canceled.
Crowdfunding Details
- Project name: [Yoichi Ochiai x Shunsuke Narisawa] We Want to Make the First Match of a New Combat Sport Fought With Light and Sound a Reality
- Site: READYFOR (https://readyfor.jp/projects/low-vision-boxing)
- Period: October 1 (Thursday) to November 15 (Sunday), 2026, until 11:00 PM
- Goal: ¥4,000,000
- Format: All-in (the project goes ahead even if the goal is not reached, with the organizers covering the shortfall themselves)
- Use of funds:
- Development and implementation of Low Vision Boxing (equipment costs, setup costs, personnel costs, safety management costs, verification costs, etc.)
- Publicity for the project (still photography, video shooting and production, PR costs, etc.)
- Preparation costs for future technology development and research
- Main rewards:
- Low Vision Boxing report video: ¥10,000
- Low Vision Boxing sticker: ¥15,000
- Low Vision Boxing towel: ¥20,000
- Invitation to watch the Low Vision Boxing match: ¥25,000
- Low Vision Boxing experience session (planned in Tokyo): ¥80,000
- Poster signed by Yoichi Ochiai: ¥100,000
- Gloves signed by Yoichi Ochiai, Shunsuke Narisawa and Eisaku Ogasawara: ¥130,000
- Session with Shunsuke Narisawa (for individuals): ¥50,000
- Lecture by Shunsuke Narisawa (for companies): ¥400,000
- Supporter courses: ¥30,000 / ¥50,000 / ¥100,000 / ¥300,000 / ¥500,000 / ¥1,000,000
- Organizer: Low Vision Boxing Executive Committee (project lead: Shunsuke Narisawa)
- Completion date: March 31, 2027
Project Members and Comments
Shunsuke Narisawa ("World's Brightest Visually Impaired Person")
Born in Saga Prefecture in 1985. Under the catchphrase "World's Brightest Visually Impaired Person," he has worked alongside more than 60 companies and projects in Japan and overseas as a management consultant and artist. He has run multiple corporations for over 10 years, and now mainly has dialogues with business owners and supports them in rethinking their lives and their management.
What I want to break with this challenge are preconceptions about visual impairment and combat sports. Rather than "I can't do it because I can't see," I want to prove in the ring that "even without sight, you can take on a challenge." Your support will become the power that turns this challenge into a new possibility for society. Please join us as a companion.
Eisaku Ogasawara (Professional Kickboxer)
Belongs to KNOCK OUT Cross Point Kichijoji. He has won numerous titles in Japan and overseas, including the 2nd KNOCK OUT-RED Featherweight Champion, the inaugural KNOCK OUT-RED Super Bantamweight Champion, the ISKA World Bantamweight Champion (K-1 rules) and the WPMF World Super Bantamweight Champion.
Even for me, who has continued kickboxing for 19 years, this match is a first-time experience. Precisely because it is a new challenge, I am looking forward to seeing what kind of scene will emerge. Please come and watch over this new step with us, and support it.
Yoichi Ochiai (Director of the Research and Development Center for Digital Nature and Professor in the Faculty of Library, Information and Media Science, University of Tsukuba)
Born in 1987, he began his work as an artist around 2010. He develops works with motifs of materialization and transformation in boundary areas and a longing for mass. He is a Professor at the University of Tsukuba, Director of the Research and Development Center for Digital Nature, and a Theme Project Producer for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
For humans, moving the body and competing with others is one of our fundamental activities. I feel great meaning in this project, which seeks to diversify the way sports are played and to create an environment where people with low vision and sighted people can face each other in earnest in the same ring. It is also a challenge to expand the possibilities of boxing itself by making use of sound, bodily sensation, and the distance and presence of the opponent, rather than relying on vision alone. We are gathering companions who will take on this challenge with us, so that people with low vision and sighted people can compete together and create a new sports culture.
大久保彰 (Kickboxing Trainer)
Through Low Vision Boxing, I want to expand an environment where, even with a visual impairment, people can take on challenges in earnest with peace of mind and believe in their own potential. As a trainer, I will do everything I can to support each person's challenge, so that this activity leads to new possibilities. We appreciate your warm support and cheering.
松枝史憲 (Visually Impaired Kickboxing Practitioner)
I take part in the Low Vision Boxing activities as a sparring partner. I would like everyone to see people making what "can't be done" possible through technology and their own hope and effort. I want to convey courage and hope, and to spread the technology to other fields as well. We appreciate your warm support.
筒井彩華 (Doctoral Program, Year 2, University of Tsukuba)
田中賢吾 (Doctoral Program, Year 3, University of Tsukuba)
Zhao Yinan (Doctoral Program, Year 4, University of Tsukuba)
Together with people with visual impairments, we have been researching ways to make it easier to enjoy sports and physical activities. To realize a match between a person with low vision and a sighted person, the rules, equipment and match environment must be carefully designed while ensuring safety. However, we believe that having fighters who see differently face each other in the same ring can show possibilities for boxing that have not existed before. We do not want this challenge to end as a one-time match, and we hope to connect it to a future in which everyone can take part in sports according to their own body and way of seeing. We would be glad if you would support this new step with us.
Yukio Nozawa (Software Engineer / Special Technical Advisor)
Born in 1997. While working in software development for financial systems as his main job, he carries out a wide range of individual activities. He has developed several web services used by visually impaired people and has taken part in group projects such as "Audio Game Center."
