Teams play in rubbish competition - 27th October 2023

'Spogomi' is a sport about rubbish. It started in Japan in 2008. 'Spo' means sport. 'Gomi' is rubbish in Japanese. Players pick up rubbish on the streets.

It helps the environment and your health. Sivasit Wanarungson likes Spogomi.

"We are runners, we love running. And Spogomi, Spogomi means sport and 'gomi' means garbage. We love to collect and separate the waste and we love sporting. So I think this activity matches for us."

Spogomi players work in teams. There are three people in a team. Each team has a one kilometre area.

The rules are simple. You can't leave your area. You can't run, you have to walk. You can't go onto private land.

Teams have one hour to pick up rubbish. Then, they have 20 minutes to organise the rubbish. Paper, plastic and glass have to go into different bags. Teams get points for every kilo of rubbish. The most points wins!

Spogomi's very popular now. The first Spogomi world cup's in Japan this year.

Spogomi has an important message too. Our rubbish goes into the sea. This is a big problem. Takayasu Udagawa works for the world cup organisers.

"We created the Spogomi because the marine litter problem is becoming a serious problem all over the world. The litter is not from the sea but from the land. The trash littered goes into the ocean through the rivers, so we have to pick up the trash."