Wonderful sports day / athletic festival

[Art] Cool illustration ideas for sports days and athletic festivals

Deputy Editor of RAG MUSICsasashina
Deputy Editor of RAG MUSIC. JFC-certified fact-checker. I’m Sasashina, a mom currently raising an elementary schooler and a preschooler. During my student years at Kyoto College of Science and Technology, I studied a wide range of fields including sound, lighting, and video technology, building a foundation in comprehensive stage production and creative expression. After graduation, I joined a music production company, where I still work, consistently building experience in production and engaging in a variety of music-centered tasks. Currently, I mainly handle articles for children, drawing on what I’ve learned about parenting and what I feel and discover through daily interactions with my kids. I hope my work can be of help to you, even in a small way!
A Vocaloid producer who is also a music writerAraki Jakkan
I’ve worked in a variety of roles—regardless of pro or amateur settings—including live event PA, cameraman for video and photography, restaurant staff, and logistics center staff. I now spend my days as a part-time writer. I’ve contributed to music and manga websites with feature/review articles, and wrote the liner notes included as a bonus for 1st PLACE Inc.’s “IA SUPER BEST.” As for my music background, I started playing guitar in junior high and focused on band activities during my school years. For over 15 years since then, up to the present, I’ve continued releasing original tracks as a Vocaloid producer. My areas of expertise are Japanese rock, Vocaloid, and manga.

Especially if you’re good at drawing, with sports day season approaching, your school might have asked you to design the cover for the sports festival pamphlet, right?

Designing illustrations that many people will see is tough!

You accepted the request but have no ideas… it happens all the time.

In this article, we’ve put together some cool illustration ideas related to school sports days!

Use the ideas here as inspiration and create your own original piece!

[Art] Cool Illustration Ideas for Sports Day/Athletic Festival (11–20)

Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan, which originated as a manga and later expanded into novels and an anime.

This dark fantasy follows humanity’s desperate search for survival while being chased by man-eating Titans, and its striking art style is widely recognized, especially among younger audiences.

How about using a parody of it for your sports festival panel idea? The font of the Attack on Titan title is also distinctive, so just mimicking that can easily create an authentic feel.

Give it a try!

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Comic panel style

@u4n44
A sports festival!? Ahh, youth!!#Illustration #art Sports Festival
♬ Halzion – YOASOBI

For those of you struggling with the design of your sports festival pamphlet, we recommend a comic-style layout with panel divisions.

It’s perfect for presenting the program as a story and introducing your school’s unique events! It might be challenging to condense a story into just a few panels, but it should be easier if you choose a clear theme, such as focusing on a single event.

Also consider using a technique like in videos: draw a large, eye-catching rear view of a person running to create impact.

If you’ve drawn manga before or just love manga, why not give it a try?

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in the style of an old folktale

A design based on the world of folktales is a unique idea that stimulates the imagination while emphasizing the theme of the sports festival.

By depicting universally known characters like demons, Urashima Taro, and Princess Kaguya, you can create visuals that blend familiarity with unexpected charm.

Incorporating Japanese elements into the background and props, and adding the title in brush-style lettering, will deepen the overall atmosphere.

Participants will feel as if they’ve become the protagonists of a story as they take on the events, which can strengthen the unity of the entire class.

You’ll be able to create a striking poster that combines visual intrigue with storytelling.

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Enbu-style

Illustrations styled like a performance that incorporate elements of Japanese culture—such as traditional attire, taiko drums, and kendo—create designs that express both beauty and intensity.

Use a powerful pose, as if capturing a moment from a performance, to compose the overall scene and evoke an atmosphere where you can almost hear the drums.

Employ backgrounds like sunsets or showers of cherry blossoms to convey a fusion of tradition and passion.

For the tagline, using kanji or brush-style fonts effectively emphasizes strength and focus.

Viewing the sports festival as a stage on which to express oneself with full effort, this design communicates that spirit and enables staging that values not only competition but also cheering and unity.

The result is a piece that comes together like a performance with hearts beating as one.

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dynamic animation

What are the two important points for being able to draw dynamic animation?

dynamic animation

For students who want to incorporate human movement into sports day pamphlet or poster designs to convey a sense of dynamism, I recommend using motion-rich animation.

When drawing people in motion, what you must pay attention to is the accurate depiction of movement.

If you don’t precisely understand the positions and motions of the hands, feet, torso, and so on, the drawing will look awkward.

If possible, ask a friend to perform the movements and refine your design while sketching from observation!

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Action scene animation/drawing

Action Fighting Sakuga MAD

Action scene animation/drawing

Recommended for those who want to draw dynamic illustrations for sports festival or field day pamphlets and posters! Why not use “action scene drawing” as a reference? It’s hard to draw clean action scenes from the start, so at first it’s fine to keep the details minimal—just enough to show the silhouette.

Composition is also important when drawing action scenes, so try studying videos to explore cool poses! It’s sure to result in a cool design.

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[Art] Cool Illustration Ideas for Sports Day and Athletic Festival (21–30)

starting dash

A start-dash design that captures the tension and passion of a school sports festival.

By boldly depicting the energy at the moment the runner kicks off the ground and the forward surge, it delivers a strong impact.

A realistic composition works well, but an abstract touch or artistic use of color is also recommended.

Incorporating motifs like a clock to symbolize time, as well as wind or light in the background, deepens the message of the courage to set off and the challenge toward the future.

The momentum that spreads across the poster will elevate the overall morale of the festival and create a commanding visual that inspires enthusiasm for the events.

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