Tokyo Hosts a Competition Where You Can Win by Sleeping

Tokyo hosted one of its most unusual competitions on October 5, 2026, when Koala JP brought Matt Race by Koala to SHARE GREEN MINAMI AOYAMA in Minato Ward. Rows of Koala mattresses were prepared for challengers who would attempt to sleep their way to a prize of 2.22 million yen. Contestants settled under blankets on their assigned mattresses.

Interest in the event had surged long before the day arrived. More than forty five thousand people applied during the two week entry period, pushing the lottery ratio past seven hundred sixty to one. Those selected were divided into three races, each structured as a two hour session with a ninety minute sleep scoring window, and about twenty participants per race. Before lying down, everyone performed nyuumin taisou, a simple warm up meant to ease the body toward rest. They also received randomized sleep items such as eye masks and earplugs, provided to influence sleep quality. Once the competition began, sleep monitoring devices measured depth, stability, time to fall asleep, and overall sleep quality. A supervising physician reviewed the data and calculated each participant’s sleep score.

The race was not simply a matter of drifting off. During the competition, planned sleep disturbances appeared without warning. Contestants had to maintain steady, high quality sleep even when the environment changed around them. The organizers wanted to test not only how well people could sleep, but how well they could continue sleeping when conditions were less than ideal.

A single top scorer was selected across all three races based on the monitored sleep metrics. The top scorer received the 2.22 million yen prize, chosen as a lighthearted nod to the Zzz symbol. The name Matt Race plays gently on the word mattress, a fitting touch for a competition built entirely around sleep. Additional prizes recognized sleep depth and sleeping posture, including the Jukusui Dive Award and the Negaeri Acrobat Award. The event concept, created by Afromance of Afro&Co., was built around a simple idea: if Japan struggles with sleep, perhaps turning rest into a sport could spark a new conversation about how people recharge. Afromance’s role as planner shaped the event’s playful and experimental format.

Koala JP is the Japanese arm of the Australian mattress brand Koala, known for simple designs and gentle comfort. The company focuses on products that suit compact Japanese homes, including mattresses that arrive in easy to handle packaging and offer stable support with low motion transfer. Their emphasis on sleep quality made them a fitting host for a competition built around the idea of measuring rest. Through Matt Race, Koala JP aims to draw attention to sleep habits in Japan and highlight the value of good rest.

The event took place at SHARE GREEN MINAMI AOYAMA in a space with surrounding greenery, and the layout allowed cameras to capture each race for livestreams on Niconico and YouTube. Viewers across Japan watched the competition as participants attempted to maintain stable sleep throughout the ninety minute scoring window.

Japan’s relationship with sleep gave the event an added layer of meaning. Long work hours, late commutes, and the common practice of inemuri, briefly dozing in public while remaining socially present, have shaped a society where rest is often limited. Matt Race by Koala offered a playful counterpoint, suggesting that sleep deserves attention, measurement, and even celebration. It turned an everyday act into a shared experience, inviting people to rethink how they rest.

Matt Race by Koala became a story that blended humor, creativity, and social insight. It may be one of the few competitions where participants leave feeling more rested than when they arrived.