About
What is 1252 Project?
1252 Project is an educational program that addresses various menstrual issues faced by female athletes. Partnering with top athletes, medical facilities, and educational fields, we aim to help students to gain the right information, advisory, and guidance about menstrual problems.
An athlete’s body needs appropriate conditioning to perform at its best during seasonal games and competitions. However, approximately 12 weeks out of 52 weeks (one year) of a female athlete’s body suffer from various menstrual symptoms that affect their performance.
Because the menstrual cycle and how it effects the body differ from person to person, this issue has been a “problem to be solved secretly and individually” for a long time. With the help of top athletes and experts in the medical and education fields, we will create an educational platform to gain the right information, advisory, and guidance about menstrual problems tailored for athletes.
We plan to provide online and on-site classes and seminars.
Our goal is to ensure that all female student athletes have accurate knowledge, access to support, and are able to lead a competitive life that allows them to reach their full potential.
Topics
Instagram（@1252project）
🌏 Where does the name “1252 Project” come from? 🌏
For athletes, managing your condition around training seasons and competition schedules is essential.
Across the 52 weeks of a year, about 12 of those weeks come with period and the physical changes that follow—
a reality many female athletes cannot simply avoid.
“12” and “52” —
Put together, they become “1252.”
It represents our commitment to helping every young female athlete feel safe, supported, and able to shine in her own way.
And 1252 Project will keep standing with you 💪🏻✨
#1252Project
#FemaleAthletes
#PeriodsAndSports
🌏1252 Project at the Osaka–Kansai Expo 🌏
This summer, 1252 Project hosted a special class, “Periods and Sports”, at the Osaka–Kansai Expo “Sustaina Dome (CUCO-SUICOM Dome).”
University students – including many male students – joined and learned: 👇
✔️ How periods can affect athletic performance
✔️ Basic knowledge about PMS, amenorrhea and nutrition
✔️ The importance of open conversations and a supportive environment
Never Stop Playing sports representative director and former Olympic swimmer Hanae Ito (@hanaesty) shared her own experiences, emphasizing that:
“Periods are not just a ‘women’s issue’ — they’re something coaches, teams and society as a whole need to understand.”
Students then split into groups to discuss:
“How should future coaches face and support the menstrual challenges of female student athletes?”
From the group work, ideas like these came up:👇
・Asking players to share information about their cycle when they join a team
・Using an app to visualize and track daily condition
There were even male students saying,
“Men need to understand this too — and be able to talk about it.”
That attitude of learning beyond gender was so powerful.
And moments like this —
students starting conversations on their own, sharing their ideas —
that’s what will spark real change in the future of sports 💪
1252 Project will keep sharing knowledge and tools with athletes, coaches and educators,
so female athletes feel seen, supported and able to keep playing at their best.
#1252Project
#OsakaKansaiExpo
#KeepSportsGoing
#FemaleAthletes
#PeriodsAndSports
【1252 Project in action📚】
We held a training session for high school girls’ sports coaches in eastern Saitama
as part of ongoing work through 1252 Project 🏫
Speaker was Olympian and athlete career expert, Yuka Murofushi.
She shared insights that help coaches support athletes better—
Especially when it comes to periods and performance ✨
💬 What if your period hits on the day of a big game?
💬 What if your cycle gets irregular?
So many young female athletes feel like:
“I have no one to talk to...” or “I can’t find good info.”
That’s exactly why we’re focusing on teachers and coaches—
The people closest to the athletes.
By bringing knowledge into classrooms and training spaces,
we’re helping create real change.
We’ll keep working to create an environment
where every young female athlete gets the right support—
and can unlock her full potential. 💪
#1252project
／
What does 1252 Project do in Japan?
＼
【1252Clubroom Workshop! @ Tokyo Sports Association】
On June 21, we held a “Periods × Sports” session for junior high performance athletes and their parents!
Our speaker was former Japan national swimmer Miyuki Takemura (@miyuki.t.725) 🏊♀️
She shared her own experiences with PMS, such as how she managed her period during competitions, and how she adjusted her training before big meets. 💪
The atmosphere was relaxed and open — a space where young athletes could learn the importance of understanding their own bodies and take that knowledge positively into their sport. 🌿
#1252project
#period
#athletes
＼What does 1252 Project do in Japan?🤔／
We’re helping female athletes keep playing sports as their true selves — through education and information!
For example —
On July 6, 1252 Project held an online seminar on “Periods and Sports” during the Japan Dance Sport Federation’s instructor certification course for their Breaking Division.🖥️
Many participants were male coaches and shared honest reflections like:
“Athletes rarely come to me about these topics.”
“I actually don`t even know if they were struggling.”
By deepening understanding on the ground, we’re creating environments where athletes can train and perform with confidence. 💪🏻
#1252project
#period
#athletes
＼Introducing the 1252-Certified Female Athlete Conditioning Expert Certification Exam🌟／
In Japan’s sports world, there are still few opportunities to learn systematically about key topics like menstrual health, nutrition, mental well-being, and sports medicine.
That means many coaches still have to rely only on their own experiences.
That’s why 1252 Project launched the Female Athlete Conditioning Expert Certification — a program designed to empower everyone who supports female athletes.
Through this program, you’ll learn about:
• Menstrual health and women-specific physical challenges
• Sports medicine and nutrition
• Mental health and emotional care
• Creating environments where female athletes can feel safe, supported, and enjoy playing sports... and more!
From elite training settings to school and community teams —
this knowledge helps every athlete keep shining and Never Stop Playing Sports. ✨
#1252project
#period
#athletes
／
Hanae Ito, representative of 1252 Project (@hanaesty), appeared at the Women’s Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai!🌏✨
＼
The theme: “Athletes Driving Social Change.”
Together with former Japan National Team soccer player Hidetoshi Nakata (@hidetoshi_nakata_) and Junpei Sasakawa from The Nippon Foundation,
she shared powerful insights on how sports can create change. 💬
🎥 Watch the full talk here 👇
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lflNvkub5B4&list=PL0RE1Gs5RLRqH7EqF4CTNtBZuSk6jMQeJ&index=3&t=500s
#1252project
#period
#athletes
We’ve got a question for you!
￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣
In your country or community,
what kind of support do girl athletes need?
1252 Project is here to make sure every young female athlete has access to the right knowledge and support—
so she can thrive and reach her full potential in sport. ✨
We want to hear from YOU.
Drop us a DM or comment with your thoughts!
#1252project
1252 Expert
1252 Expert is a certification exam to enhance the knowledge necessary to coach female athletes. It was developed to support female athletes from the environment by educating those involved in women’s sports, including coaches and school teachers. The exam consists of knowledge about female athletes, including menstrual issues unique to women. *This program is developed in Japanese only.
Talk up 1252
Talk up 1252 is a YouTube program where top athletes share their own period-related experiences. The importance to enhance the knowledge about periods is discussed through various sports and perspectives.
Talk about Periods that Male Coaches Should Know
Talk about Water Sports and Periods
Talk about Periods that Male Coaches Should Know
Talk about Water Sports and Periods
Members
1252 Project Leader
Hanae Ito
When I was a teenager competing on Japan’s national swimming team, my period was just “something that naturally came every month”.
I hadn’t thought about how it could affect my performance or mental health, I had no idea about PMS or PMDD, nor was I aware of the existence of the pill, its side effects, its safety, or how overseas athletes were using it with such control. I never thought that I would have regrets when I reached the Olympic stage.
When I think about it now, I feel that it was because at the time, there was no place that I could go to learn about menstruation nor anyone I could ask for advice.
For that reason, I want all female student athletes to know more about the topic.
Moreover, I would like mentors and male athletes to have the right knowledge too.
