Yeah Japan is very mountainous in general, and with its small size if somebody wanted to make a hobby of climbing mountains they could practice pretty easily before going overseas for bigger attempts.
It would probably also explain why there are so many American climbers. We have a ton of mountain ranges (including but not limited to: Cascades, Rockies, Appalachians, Alaska Range), that all have different peaks, difficulties, climates, etc. So it is possible to train yourself on climbing something like Pikes Peak, Rainer, or McKinley before you prepare for "The Big One" as it were. McKinley especially since it is the second highest behind Everest IIRC (and certainly in the top 5 if it isnt).
Japan has a mountain that's part of its national identity, so it would follow that some Japanese would develop a fascination of Everest.
Yeah Japan is very mountainous in general, and with its small size if somebody wanted to make a hobby of climbing mountains they could practice pretty easily before going overseas for bigger attempts.
It would probably also explain why there are so many American climbers. We have a ton of mountain ranges (including but not limited to: Cascades, Rockies, Appalachians, Alaska Range), that all have different peaks, difficulties, climates, etc. So it is possible to train yourself on climbing something like Pikes Peak, Rainer, or McKinley before you prepare for "The Big One" as it were. McKinley especially since it is the second highest behind Everest IIRC (and certainly in the top 5 if it isnt).