The Asahi were a Japanese-Canadian baseball team established in 1914. The team went on to great success, particularly in the 1930s, winning numerous tournaments and championships. The team was based in Vancouver's Oppenheimer Park, in the city’s Japantown. The team was disbanded due to its members being dispersed across Canada due to the Japanese Canadian internment during World War II. The team was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003[1], and the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.[2] The team was designated an Event of National Historic Significance in 2008, with a plaque unveiled in Oppenheimer Park on September 18, 2011. (the 70th anniversary of the Asahi's last game)
Jari Osborne directed a 2003 documentary about the team, Sleeping Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story. Produced by the National Film Board of Canada, the documentary combines archival film and dramatic recreations, along with interviews with the last of the Asahi. The 50 minute film garnered four awards including a Rockie Award for Best Sports Program at the Banff Television Festival and a Golden Sheaf Award.[3][4]