The Okinawa Startup Support Association (Location: Okinawa City, Okinawa Prefecture, Representative Director: Shunichiro Kaneshiro, hereinafter "Okinawa Startup Support Association"), Sakura Internet Inc. (hereinafter "Sakura Internet"), and The Okinawa Kaiho Bank, Ltd. (hereinafter "Okinawa Kaiho Bank"), with the support of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and the Okinawa General Bureau of Communications, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (hereinafter "Okinawa General Bureau"), will hold the "Entrepreneur Koshien Okinawa Tournament 2026," a business plan contest for students, on October 31, 2026 (Sat.). Applications for the pre-event, which serves as an entry point to the main tournament, will open today (to be held on July 21, 2026 (Tue.), August 8, 2026 (Sat.), and August 28, 2026 (Fri.)). This tournament is a business plan contest for students aimed at discovering talent who can become the future leaders of Okinawa. The NICT Award winning team will be given the opportunity to participate in the "Entrepreneur Koshien" DEMO DAY national tournament to be held in Tokyo in March 2027, after receiving refinement from VC mentors from outside the prefecture. ■ Background of the Event Due to its nature as an island prefecture, Okinawa faces disparities in various aspects compared to the mainland, and the barriers to new challenges are high. However, in interacting with students within the prefecture, we have heard many voices from students saying, "We want to achieve new challenges right here in Okinawa." To embody these aspirations of young challengers and foster the next generation of leaders, we have decided to hold this tournament. ■ Concept: Creating the Future from a Radius of 3 Meters "A radius of 3 meters" is about the distance two people can reach with their arms extended. This event will serve as a place for challenges, where students can solve the problems faced by themselves and Okinawa, turning their fi