In a sentence

She was the stabilizer as Japan’s women’s team moved from “reaching the semifinals” to “contending for medals”.

Playing style

  • Left-handed shakehand with a wide, tricky forehand angle
  • Smooth two-winged inverted-rubber loop with a low error rate
  • Excellent composure in doubles and team events, rarely faltering at key points

Career and key moments

At the London 2012 Olympics she won women’s team silver with Japan; at Rio 2016 she added women’s team bronze; at Tokyo 2020 she won women’s team silver again. At the 2017 Düsseldorf World Championships she paired with Maharu Yoshimura to win mixed doubles — Japan’s first World Championships mixed doubles title in 48 years. She also won the All Japan Championships women’s singles multiple times and long held the No. 1 spot on Japan’s women’s team. She announced her retirement in 2023.

What she left the game

Her career spanned exactly the journey of Japanese women’s table tennis from chaser to regular medalist. After her, Japan could set its sights openly on world titles.

In a sentence: Lifting a team from one tier to another usually comes down to its steadiest player.