"BUNBU RYODO" Student-Athlete Scholarship Initiative With Nathan Chen
airweave, the top-selling brand of premium mattresses, toppers, and pillows from Japan, announced the launch of a new scholarship program to support young athletes trying to balance their studies with competition. Figure skater Nathan Chen, who is aiming to compete in his second Olympic Games next year, will help launch the initiative with airweave and receive an honorary scholarship. As part of this initiative, Chen will also join our scientific research on the effects of sleeping on airweave with the guidance of Stanford University's Professor of Sleep Medicine, Dr. Emmanuel Mignot.
To announce the scholarship initiative and sleep study, Nathan Chen (L) and Dr. Mignot (R) joined airweave Founder & CEO Motokuni Takaoka virtually at a media event in Tokyo.
Airweave's Youth Development & The Japanese Principle of “Bunbu Ryodo”
airweave is known for supporting top athletes of all ages with their bedding designed to improve sleep and recovery. With their new scholarship program, airweave will further support youth perusing athletic and academic excellence, a Japanese expression known as “Bunbu Ryodo,” and hope their efforts in youth development will encourage other companies to take more actions as well. This is the second scholarship initiative for the brand, having previously awarded young dancers at the Paris Opera Ballet School’s Summer School program from 2015 to 2018.
On the launch of the new scholarship initiative, airweave Founder & CEO, Motokuni Takaoka, says “We first met Nathan in the summer of 2019, when he came to Japan to perform in an ice show. At that time, Nathan showed a strong interest in our sleep research and spoke enthusiastically about the significance of studying at a university. This led us to establish a scholarship program to support young athletes who, like Nathan, aim to strive in their sport and studies.”
Nathan Chen Joins Sleep Study
Since its inception, airweave has been conducting research with various researchers and educational institutions on the effects bedding materials have on movement (tossing and turning), sleep depth, and athletic performance. As a student in the Yale School of Statistics and Data Science, Chen will use his academic skills to collect and analyze data on his own performance as an athlete and changes in sleep quality while sleeping on airweave. Stanford University professor, Emmanuel Mignot, a leading expert in sleep medicine, will be participating in this research and guiding the entire study.
Takaoka presenting our sleep study, published by Scientific Reports, showing improved athletic performance in subjects who slept on airweave vs. those who slept on traditional foam and spring mattresses.
