JUDO/ Nakamura poised to take judo baton from Tani
BY YOSHIKI YAMADA THE ASAHI SHIMBUN2010/11/04
Ryoko Tani, who recently retired from the sport, had long held the title of Japan's top female judoka. Now that there is no clear leader in women's judo, the closest person to that position is Misato Nakamura.
Nakamura may not make dramatic moves during her matches, but she does show amazing stability. One major difference between Nakamura and Tani is that Nakamura rarely shows her true emotions in public.
But the calm, cool and collected Nakamura made quite a strong statement recently in front of a crowd.
"I am the main player in the game," she said. "But when it comes to deciding (who wins a match), the judges become the main players. I don't ever want to play the kind of sport where judges are the main protagonists."
What Nakamura was saying is that she would like to take the judging element out of the picture by winning her bouts emphatically.
She made that comment during an early October celebration party hosted by the Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co., Ltd.--the company she belongs to--to celebrate the results of the World Championships held in Tokyo in September.
Unlike her senior colleague Yoshie Ueno, who won gold at the World Championships, Nakamura was full of regret and frustration. In the 52-kg final, Nakamura lost to fellow-Japanese Yuka Nishida by a 3-0 judges' decision. This put a halt to her winning streak that began in April 2009, when she turned 20 years old.
"I thought I would be able to concentrate on the match calmly, like always," she says. "But that wasn't enough. I had to actively attack an opponent who was charging me enthusiastically."
Asked how she intends to avoid losing, Nakamura says she decided to "attack enthusiastically, even if it meant being a bit aggressive."
With that in mind, she repeatedly practices executing techniques on her opponent, even if she can't get a firm grip. That's a significant change for a traditional judoka, who had always focused on getting a firm grip on her opponent before executing any technical attacks.
Nakamura never makes comments that suggest she considers herself Japan's leading female judoka.
"She still maintains a forward-looking attitude where she is constantly trying to absorb new techniques, even now," says Hisashi Yanagisawa, Nakamura's coach at the Mitsui Sumitomo judo club. "She has a self-awareness as a top athlete. She is also very courteous, and never takes to the judo mat with her uniform ruffled or out of place."
In major events like the Olympics, the presence of a top athlete who serves as the "engine" can make or break an entire national team. Can Nakamura lead the Japanese women in her own subtle way? The Asian Games will provide a new start for her.
Nakamura may not make dramatic moves during her matches, but she does show amazing stability. One major difference between Nakamura and Tani is that Nakamura rarely shows her true emotions in public.
But the calm, cool and collected Nakamura made quite a strong statement recently in front of a crowd.
"I am the main player in the game," she said. "But when it comes to deciding (who wins a match), the judges become the main players. I don't ever want to play the kind of sport where judges are the main protagonists."
What Nakamura was saying is that she would like to take the judging element out of the picture by winning her bouts emphatically.
She made that comment during an early October celebration party hosted by the Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co., Ltd.--the company she belongs to--to celebrate the results of the World Championships held in Tokyo in September.
Unlike her senior colleague Yoshie Ueno, who won gold at the World Championships, Nakamura was full of regret and frustration. In the 52-kg final, Nakamura lost to fellow-Japanese Yuka Nishida by a 3-0 judges' decision. This put a halt to her winning streak that began in April 2009, when she turned 20 years old.
"I thought I would be able to concentrate on the match calmly, like always," she says. "But that wasn't enough. I had to actively attack an opponent who was charging me enthusiastically."
Asked how she intends to avoid losing, Nakamura says she decided to "attack enthusiastically, even if it meant being a bit aggressive."
With that in mind, she repeatedly practices executing techniques on her opponent, even if she can't get a firm grip. That's a significant change for a traditional judoka, who had always focused on getting a firm grip on her opponent before executing any technical attacks.
Nakamura never makes comments that suggest she considers herself Japan's leading female judoka.
"She still maintains a forward-looking attitude where she is constantly trying to absorb new techniques, even now," says Hisashi Yanagisawa, Nakamura's coach at the Mitsui Sumitomo judo club. "She has a self-awareness as a top athlete. She is also very courteous, and never takes to the judo mat with her uniform ruffled or out of place."
In major events like the Olympics, the presence of a top athlete who serves as the "engine" can make or break an entire national team. Can Nakamura lead the Japanese women in her own subtle way? The Asian Games will provide a new start for her.
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