100 Meters (Hyakuemu): A New Sprinting Sports Anime for 2025

A high-speed new sports anime film titled 100 Meters (Japanese title Hyakuemu) has been announced with a Japanese theatrical release set for September 19, 2025​. The film follows Togashi, a naturally gifted 100-meter runner who has never lost a race – until Komiya, a determined transfer student, enters his life. Their childhood friendship turns into fierce rivalry as Komiya pushes Togashi to confront his first defeat. According to the story synopsis, Togashi “is born to run” and wins every 100-meter race without effort, but when Komiya arrives “full of determination but lacks technique,” Togashi begins training harder to stay on top​. The international debut of 100 Meters is also generating buzz: the film will premiere globally at the prestigious Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France (June 2025), after an early work-in-progress screening at Annecy 2024​.

 A production still from 100 Meters, showing Togashi (right) and Komiya (left) in a tense starting-line standoff. The childhood rivals – one born to win, the other desperate to improve – will push each other to new heights

Plot and Themes

100 Meters centers on Togashi, a track-and-field prodigy who dominates the 100m dash as a child. The plot reaches a turning point when Komiya transfers into Togashi’s school. Initially Togashi mentors Komiya – even helping him refine his running technique – but this challenge “motivates [Togashi] to train harder”​. As time passes, the two meet again as competitors on the high school track. Togashi’s unbeaten streak finally comes to an end in an epic showdown that forces him to grapple with failure. From this defeat, Togashi embarks on a journey of intense training and inner growth, learning to overcome self-doubt and reclaim his place as a top sprinter.

Key themes in 100 Meters include:

• Competition and Rivalry: Togashi and Komiya’s personal rivalry drives the drama, illustrating how competition can bring out the best (and the most resilient) in athletes​.

• Personal Growth and Resilience: After suffering his first loss, Togashi must train harder than ever, testing his mental toughness. The story emphasizes overcoming adversity – a common motif in sports anime – as Togashi finds new motivation through humility.

• Athletic Excellence: The film celebrates the sheer speed and skill of track and field. By focusing on the 100m sprint, 100 Meters spotlights the discipline’s demand for power, precision, and perfect technique.

 The Japanese theatrical poster for 100 Meters – split between the two rivals (Togashi left, Komiya right) – underscores the film’s focus on their head-to-head competition. The tagline (in Japanese) hints at the stakes of “a single moment” that determines victory.

Animation Style and Sports Context

Veteran director Kenji Iwaisawa (known for On-Gaku: Our Sound) leads the project at studio Rock ‘n’ Roll Mountain. In interviews and previews, the filmmakers have highlighted their use of rotoscoping for the race sequences – tracing over live-action footage to achieve realistic motion​. This stylistic choice promises “stunning animation” that captures the raw power of the sprint with unusual clarity​. Fans of animated sports dramas can expect intense, stylized racing scenes and emotive character moments.

In the broader landscape of sports anime, 100 Meters stands out for zooming in on pure speed and individual rivalry. Long-running hits like Haikyuu!! (volleyball), Yowamushi Pedal (cycling), and Run with the Wind (long-distance running) have brought team dynamics and endurance sports to the foreground, often focusing on the bonds between teammates. By contrast, 100 Meters focuses on a one-on-one sprint event – a domain rarely explored in anime. As one anime news outlet notes, 100 Meters is “about athletics; more specifically the 100m sprint,” a “modern track and field anime” poised to earn the attention track sports deserve​. This film joins the ranks of recent sports anime that highlight personal ambition and rivalry, but it carves its niche with the adrenaline rush of a flat-out race. For fans, it offers a fresh perspective on competition: a lightning-quick race where every millisecond counts.

International Premiere and Impact

The international animation community is eagerly awaiting 100 Meters. Not only does the film boast high-profile backing (Pony Canyon, TBS, and GKIDS are involved in production and distribution), but its selection for Annecy 2025 – one of the world’s top animation festivals – adds prestige. A teaser was shown at Annecy 2024’s “Work in Progress” lineup, and now the completed film will appear on Annecy’s official program​. Critics and fans alike have pointed out that the popularity of sports anime is soaring worldwide (with titles like Haikyuu!! becoming “major, international phenomena”), so 100 Meters arrives at an opportune moment. Its emotional underdog story and impressive visuals are expected to resonate at Annecy and beyond.

With its themes of perseverance, friendship-turned-rivalry, and the purity of athletic pursuit, 100 Meters has the potential to inspire both sports anime devotees and general audiences. As animation journalist Alex Billington suggests, the trailer “packs in tons of footage” and promises “an epic rivalry story spanning decades”​. Viewers can look forward to a motivational underdog narrative: a portrait of a champion forced to dig deep after the fall, and a testament to the idea that even the fastest runner can’t win alone. The film’s combination of dynamic race sequences and heartfelt character drama aims to make 100 Meters a milestone for track-and-field anime – possibly sparking a new fandom of sprinting enthusiasts in much the same way that Run with the Wind galvanized ekiden fans or Haikyuu!! captured volleyball audiences.

With its September 2025 release in Japan (and an international rollout by GKIDS soon after), 100 Meters is positioned to ignite excitement among anime fans. Whether it’s through high-stakes races or the emotional highs of personal growth, this new film seems set to live up to the hype and deliver a powerful sprint to the finish line.