Features
[JAPAN SPORTS NOTEBOOK] Japan's Athletes for the Paris Olympics Receive a Spirited Send-Off
Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko were among the dignitaries at a ceremony, which was held three weeks before the Paris Olympics, in Tokyo.
With less than a month until the start of the Paris Olympics, ceremonies big and small are taking place around the world.
Athletes representing a hometown or a university, for example, are celebrated with send-off ceremonies. Larger gatherings for full national Olympic contingents are also held.
The Japanese Olympic Committee held an official ceremony for the nation's delegation for the 2024 Paris Olympics on Friday, July 5 at Yoyogi National Gymnasium No 2.
At the venerable sports complex, which held competitions during the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko were among the dignitaries on hand to pay their respects to Japan's Paris-bound Olympians.
Crown Prince Akishino spoke to the assembled crowd of athletes, offering them words of encouragement during the ceremony.
"I hope you will be able to fully demonstrate [in Paris] what you achieve daily," the Crown Prince was quoted as saying by The Yomiuri Shimbun. "It is my wish that you deepen exchanges with other athletes gathering from around the world and promote international goodwill."
Team Japan's chef de mission Mitsugi Ogata's remarks provided a contrast to the pandemic restrictions in place before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and ceremonies held in the nation's capital on Friday.
"We had to hold the send-off celebrations online three years ago," Ogata was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse. "So I'm really grateful that we were able to have so many people giving us their support today."
Representing Japan at the Paris Olympics
Japan is planning to send a national delegation of more than 400 athletes to the Paris Olympics. It will be the nation's largest Olympic delegation sent overseas for an Olympic Games, surpassing the 339 who traveled to the 2008 Beijing Games.
For the Paris Games, Japan's flag bearers for the Opening Ceremony on July 26 will be sabre fencer Misaki Emura, a two-time world champion, and Shigeyuki "Shigekix" Nakarai, who'll participate in the new Olympic sport of breaking (breakdancing).
Emura insisted that being selected as a flag bearer, one who'll also aim to vie for a medal, is a role that she'll take very seriously.
"I'll be aware of my responsibility as a representative of the country and fight fair until the end," Emura said, according to Kyodo News.
Lofty Ambitions for the Paris Olympics
Also on Friday, a later event to honor Team Japan before the Paris Olympics was held at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, with a large number of elementary school and junior high school students among the attendees. There was an announced crowd of 6,000 spectators.
Wrestling standout Akari Fujinami, who competes in the women's 53-kg freestyle weight class, said having a focused physical and mental mindset is essential to success at the Paris Games, where she is determined to win her first Olympic gold medal.
"I want to balance my mind, technique, and body, and compete in the best condition, and definitely win the gold medal," Fujinami was quoted as saying by Nikkan Sports after the later event at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium.
Tatsuru Saito is another Japanese athlete with the greatest of ambitions for the Paris Olympics. The 22-year-old judoka, son of the late two-time Olympic gold medalist Hitoshi Saito (1984, '88), has expressed the goal of achieving what his father first accomplished 40 years ago.
"At the Paris Olympics I want to stand in the place where my father once stood," Saito told Agence France-Press in a recent interview.
Saito is coming off a first-place finish at the Lima Panamerican Open in June.
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Basketball
Japan Women Complete a Two-Game Sweep of New Zealand
In a women's basketball exhibition match, world No 9 Japan outplayed 26th-ranked New Zealand for the second time in three days on Saturday, July 6.
Japan led 47-29 at halftime at Tokyo's Ariake Arena en route to a 92-50 victory.
Veteran standout Maki Takada, a Tokyo 2020 Olympian, paced Japan with 23 points, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range. Yuki Miyazawa poured in 16 points and Evelyn Mawuli had 13.
Displaying the run-and-gun style that helped lead it to a silver medal at the 2020 Olympics, Japan launched 45 3-point shots, making 12. Coach Toru Onzuka's team made 22 of 35 attempts from 2-point range.
On Thursday, Japan trounced New Zealand 125-57 at the same venue.
Former Nebraska Sharpshooter Tominaga to Sign a Contract with NBA's Pacers
Keisei Tominaga is set to sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the NBA's Indiana Pacers, according to published reports.
Tominaga led the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers with 15.1 points per game in the 2023-24 campaign. He had a season-high 31 points against the University of Illinois on February 4.
After not being selected in the 2024 NBA Draft in late June, Tominaga aims to secure a spot in the NBA for the upcoming season, and an Exhibit A contract provides a path forward. If a contract is finalized, Tominaga, a shooting guard, will have an opportunity to try out for the Pacers and take part in the team's preseason training camp.
The Pacers would have the option of offering Tominaga a two-way deal for one season, which would enable him to play for them and their NBA G League affiliate (Indiana Mad Ants).
Tominaga starred for Akatsuki Japan at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup and looks poised to be named to the team's final 12-man roster for the Paris Olympics.
B-Corsairs Star Kawamura to Attend Training Camp with Grizzlies
Like Tominaga, Yokohama B-Corsairs standout Yuki Kawamura aims to play in the NBA in the future. The 2022-23 B.League MVP announced on Sunday, July 7 that he'll attend training camp with the Memphis Grizzlies.
In a statement, the 172-cm Kawamura, who turned 23 on May 2, outlined his goals.
"I would like to inform you that I have recently received an offer from the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies for an Exhibit 10 contract and have decided to take on the challenge," said Kawamura, who averaged 20.9 points, 8.1 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.1 steals in the 2023-24 B.League season.
He added, "I would like to thank everyone involved in the Yokohama B-Corsairs club for their full understanding and cooperation in this challenge in order to make this dream come true. Also, thank you to all the B-Corsairs fans and boosters for your continued support.
"I was able to seize the opportunity to make my dreams come true. However, the contract is not official yet, so I would like to work even harder in the future and make my dream come true. Thank you for your continued support."
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Baseball
Tigers' Maeda Continues to Struggle This Season
Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Kenta Maeda is in the midst of a dreadful stretch.
In his last seven starts, the 36-year-old Maeda is 0-4 with a 7.90 ERA. He's allowed 37 hits and 24 earned runs in 27⅓ innings in that span.
Maeda fell to 2-5 in the 2024 MLB season with a bad performance on the mound against the Minnesota Twins, his former ballclub, on Thursday, July 4 in Minneapolis. He was roughed up for nine runs on nine hits in 3⅔ innings. The Twins hammered the Tigers 12-3.
Tigers manager AJ Hinch said Maeda has looked solid in bullpen sessions, but his overall command of his pitches needs to improve during games.
"The intensity of his bullpens have gotten better," Hinch said, according to MLB.com. "We've got to find the command again. At the end of the day with Kenta, it begins and ends with command. If he can throw the ball where he wants to, then he can get early-count swings, or he can go to his split (split-finger fastball) in and out of the zone, or his sweeper."
Maeda said he's determined to pitch better.
"I have to put away guys, especially with two strikes," Maeda was quoted as saying by MLB.com. "Those pitches with two strikes must be better. My strikeout rate has gone down this year. Hopefully if I can get those pitches back, that'll go up."
Ohtani Steals 103rd Base to Climb to Third on List of Japanese-Born MLB Players
With the 103rd stolen base of his MLB career on Thursday, July 4 against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani now trails only Ichiro Suzuki (509) and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (243) on the list of players born in Japan.
Kazuo Matsui is next with 102. He's currently taking a leave of absence as manager of NPB's Saitama Seibu Lions.
A day later, Ohtani celebrated his 30th birthday.
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Tennis
Osaka, Nishikori Eliminated at Wimbledon
Naomi Osaka's well-documented struggles playing on surfaces other than hard courts continued at Wimbledon.
After a first-round, three-set triumph over France's Diane Parry, four-time Grand Slam singles winner Osaka was bounced from the tourney 6-4, 6-1 in 59 minutes by American Emma Navarro in the second round on Wednesday, July 3 on Centre Court.
World No 113 Osaka, who is set to compete in the Paris Olympics, expressed disappointment in her early exit from the Grand Slam tournament.
"I'm excited to go back on hard courts but I'm a bit disappointed because I wanted to do really well and I put a lot of time into it," Osaka said, according to The Guardian. "But there's always next year."
On the same day, 401st-ranked Kei Nishikori fell to Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 2-6 in a first-round match that was suspended early in the third set the previous night because of curfew regulations.
What was Nishikori's assessment of his performance?
"I wasn't bad, but my opponent was attacking and had more concentration toward the end," Nishikori told reporters at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
In other Wimbledon news, Japanese world No 90 Yoshihito Nishioka dropped his second-round match against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, losing 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 on Thursday.
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Fishing
Ito Triumphs at Bassmaster Elite Event in Alabama
Veteran angler Takumi "Taku" Ito, a 38-year-old who hails from Chiba, was victorious in the 2024 TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Elite event at Smith Lake, Alabama, on Sunday, June 30.
Ito secured the victory in a field of 98 competitors by catching 20 bass weighing 58 pounds (26.3 kg) in the four-day tournament. As a result, Ito earned a $100,000 USD (¥16 million JPY) winner's check.
Ito considers Smith Lake in north Alabama his top locale for fishing.
"Smith Lake always is 100 percent my favorite lake," Ito said, according to bassmaster.com. "It's beautiful for sightseeing and it has beautiful bass. And the spotted bass, I like them. I don't like so much the largemouth bass and there aren't that many here. So, Smith Lake is perfect for me."
In 2024 (through June 30), Ito has participated in eight Bassmaster tournaments, and he has a pair of top-10 finishes
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Sailing
Full List of Vendée Globe Sailors Announced
There will be 40 skippers, representing 11 nations, when the 10th edition of the Vendée Globe around-the-world solo yacht race commences on November 10, it was announced on Tuesday, July 2.
Japanese sailor Kojiro Shiraishi, leader of the DMG Mori Global One team, will be making his third appearance in the global odyssey. His boat will have new foils and a new bow for this year's race, according to the event's official website.
Shiraishi finished 16th in the 2022 Vendée Globe.
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Briefly…
In a non-test rugby match, a Japan XV side defeated the Maori All Blacks 26-12 on Saturday, July 6 in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture. Seven days earlier, the Maori All Blacks manhandled coach Eddie Jones' squad, winning 36-10 in Tokyo.
Forward Takuma Asano has joined Spanish La Liga side Mallorca, the soccer club announced on Saturday, July 6. Asano, 29, previously played for the German Bundesliga team Vfl Bochum from 2021-24. He's also suited up for the Samurai Blue, the Japan men's national team, earning 59 caps since 2015. Asano had the match-winning goal against Germany in Japan's 2-1 triumph in the group stage at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Quote of the Week
"We're diligent and we put in a lot of practice, [and] we think about how best to win a competition. We're also not so big physically, so the way we move our bodies is suited to skateboarding."
―Japan skateboarding national team coach Daisuke Hayakawa on the team's keys to success, as stated in a recent Agence France-Press feature story.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.