TOKYO - While shaved heads remain the norm for boys in the highly traditional world of Japanese high school judo clubs, efforts are under way to attract students who may have been turned off by the idea of being unable to wear their preferred hairstyles. Cosmetics maker Mandom Corp. has launched a project encouraging student judoka to express themselves through their hairstyles, aiming to address a decline in participation attributed to young people's aversion to the customary buzzcut. "We can't fall behind the changing times," a judo official said. "Hopefully, the project helps improve the image of judo." In late July, a group of mostly Tokyo-based hairstylists visited the judo team of Takagawa Gakuen high school in Yamaguchi Prefecture to perform haircuts and styling according to requests. Students, most with shaved heads, watched with interest as their teammates took on completely different looks. Captain Yuma Kagamiyama tried a hairstyle with the sides of his head shaved and longer hair on top. "I feel reborn," the 18-year-old said with a grin. Since taking up judo in the second grade of elementary school, he had always shaved his head to fit in with the other judoka. Now Kagamiyama sets his hair with wax before stepping onto the tatami mat, and he has felt the change, saying, "The new hairstyle has made me want to train even harder." Mandom surveyed the judo divisions of high school sports federations across Japan last November and December and found that about 80 percent of respondents believed the induction haircut had led to the decline in the judo population. The number of high school students registered with the country's judo governing body has dropped from about 38,000 in 2004 to some 16,000 in 2024, with the downward trend showing no sign of stopping. When Keio won the national high school baseball championship in 2023 for the first time in 107 years, its players attracted attention for their free-spirited hairstyles. At the Paris Olympics last year, Japanese judo star Hifumi Abe won his second straight men's 66-kilogram gold medal while sporting light-brown locks favored by many Japanese youngsters. "We're no longer in an era where a shaved head indicates someone is highly motivated," said Masahide Ariizumi, head coach of Takagawa Gakuen high school's judo club. "If we don't have a broader perspective, we will lose more judoka, and the level of competition will drop." Mandom plans to expand the "club hair salon" project nationwide. Kosei Inoue, the former head coach of the Japanese men's national judo team, has spoken about the importance of fostering independence and respecting diversity through discussions about hairstyles. "What do we aim for, what do we learn, and how do we grow? It's not a question of whether a shaved head is good or bad, but rather, it's very important to develop students who can make their own decisions," Inoue said.