Japan women's national volleyball team

The Japan women's national volleyball team (Hinotori Nippon, 火の鳥NIPPON), or All-Japan women's volleyball team, is currently ranked 7th[4] in the world by FIVB. The head coach is Masayoshi Manabe.

Japan
Nickname(s)Nippon (火の鳥NIPPON)[1]
AssociationJapan Volleyball Association[2]
Head coachMasayoshi Manabe
FIVB ranking7 (as of 10 July 2024)
Uniforms
Home
Away
Third
Summer Olympics
Appearances14 (First in 1964)
Best result (1964, 1976)
World Championship
Appearances16 (First in 1960)
Best result (1962, 1967, 1974)
www.jva.or.jp/en/senior_women/ (in English)
Honours
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 2 2 2
Nations League 0 1 0
World Grand Prix 0 1 0
World Championship 3 3 1
World Cup 1 2 0
World Grand Champions Cup 0 0 3
Asian Games 5 4 4
Asian Championship 5 7 7
Asian Cup 1 1 0
Montreux Volley Masters 1 2 2
Total 18 23 19
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1964 Tokyo Team
Gold medal – first place 1976 Montreal Team
Silver medal – second place 1968 Mexico City Team
Silver medal – second place 1972 Munich Team
Bronze medal – third place 1984 Los Angeles Team
Bronze medal – third place 2012 London Team
World Championship
Gold medal – first place 1962 Soviet Union
Gold medal – first place 1967 Japan
Gold medal – first place 1974 Mexico
Silver medal – second place 1960 Brazil
Silver medal – second place 1970 Bulgaria
Silver medal – second place 1978 Soviet Union
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Japan
World Cup
Gold medal – first place 1977 Japan
Silver medal – second place 1973 Japan
Silver medal – second place 1981 Japan
World Grand Champions Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Japan
Bronze medal – third place 2013 Japan
World Grand Prix
Silver medal – second place 2014 Japan
FIVB Women's Volleyball Nations League
Silver medal – second place 2024 Bangkok Team
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 1962 Jakarta Team
Gold medal – first place 1966 Bangkok Team
Gold medal – first place 1970 Bangkok Team
Gold medal – first place 1974 Tehran Team
Gold medal – first place 1978 Bangkok Team
Silver medal – second place 1982 New Delhi Team
Silver medal – second place 1986 Seoul Team
Silver medal – second place 2006 Doha Team
Silver medal – second place 2022 Hangzhou Team
Bronze medal – third place 1990 Beijing Team
Bronze medal – third place 1994 Hiroshima Team
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Bangkok Team
Bronze medal – third place 2002 Busan Team
Asian Championship
Gold medal – first place 1975 Melbourne
Gold medal – first place 1983 Fukuoka
Gold medal – first place 2007 Suphanburi
Gold medal – first place 2017 Manila
Gold medal – first place 2019 Seoul
Silver medal – second place 1979 Hong Kong
Silver medal – second place 1987 Shanghai
Silver medal – second place 1991 Bangkok
Silver medal – second place 1993 Shanghai
Silver medal – second place 2003 Ho Chi Minh City
Silver medal – second place 2011 Taipei
Silver medal – second place 2013 Nakhon Ratchasima
Bronze medal – third place 1989 Hong Kong
Bronze medal – third place 1995 Chiang Mai
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Manila
Bronze medal – third place 1999 Hong Kong
Bronze medal – third place 2005 Taicang
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Hanoi
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Nakhon Ratchasima
Asian Cup
Gold medal – first place 2022 Pasig
Silver medal – second place 2018 Nakhon Ratchasima
Montreux Volley Masters
Gold medal – first place 2011 Switzerland
Silver medal – second place 2019 Switzerland
Silver medal – second place 2015 Switzerland
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Switzerland
Bronze medal – third place 1989 Switzerland
Universiade
Gold medal – first place 1967 Tokyo
Gold medal – first place 1985 Kobe
Silver medal – second place 2021 Sichuan
Silver medal – second place 2017 Taipei
Silver medal – second place 1995 Fukuoka
Silver medal – second place 1995 Mexico City
Silver medal – second place 1970 Tulin
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Naples
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Gwangju
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Sicily
Bronze medal – third place 1983 Edmonton

One of their greatest successes was at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, when they defeated the heavily favored Soviet Union on the way to the gold medal.

Masae Kasai standing in the center of podium as the captain of Oriental Witches [ja],[5] 1964 Tokyo Olympics Women's Volleyball

Japan was qualified for the 2004 Summer Olympics by winning the Women's Olympic Qualifier that was held from 8 May to 16 May in Tokyo, Japan. In Athens, Greece the team took fifth place in the overall-rankings.

Finally after almost three decades of medal drought in the Olympics, Japan took home the bronze medal by defeating South Korea in the 2012 Summer Olympics.[6]

Medals

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Event Gold Silver Bronze Total
Olympic Games 2 2 2 6
Nations League 0 1 0 1
World Championship 3 3 1 7
World Grand Prix 0 1 0 1
World Cup 1 2 0 3
World Grand Champions Cup 0 0 3 3
Asian Games 5 4 4 13
Asian Championship 5 7 7 19
Asian Cup 1 1 0 2
Eastern Asian Championship 6 0 4 10
Universiade 3 3 4 10
Montreux Volley Masters 1 2 2 5
Asian Cup 1 1 4 6
Universiade 2 5 4 11
Total 20 27 23 70

History

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2012 London Olympics

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Japan qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics as the best Asian team in the 2012 FIVB Women's World Olympic Qualification Tournament. In the 2012 Olympics, Japan had been placed on Group A with Russian Federation, Italy, Dominican Republic, the host Great Britain and Algeria. Japan finished third in the Group. In the quarter-finals, Japan faced their old Asian rival China. Saori Kimura and Yukiko Ebata each scored 33 points in this thrilling game in which China were beaten by 3–2.[7] It was their first win over China in 11 years as far as FIVB games are concerned. On 9 August 2012, the Japanese were outplayed by the defending champions Brazil in the semi-finals.[8] On 11 August 2012, Japan beat South Korea 3–0 in the bronze medal match. It is the first Olympics' volleyball medal for the Japanese since the 1984 Summer Olympics.[9] On August 13, 2012, Japan Women's Team was ranked 3rd in the world behind United States women's national volleyball team and Brazil women's national volleyball team.

2020 Tokyo Olympics

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Japan was the host nation for the 2020 Summer Olympics. The other teams in their group in Tokyo were Kenya, Serbia, Brazil, Korea and the Dominican Republic.[10] Japan's opening match was on 25 July 2021 in Tokyo against Kenya.[11] They beat Kenya in their first match in straight sets[12] and lost against Serbia, Brazil, Korea and the Dominican Republic which caused them to miss the qualification for the quarterfinals.[13]

Winner of 6 major world titles

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Year Games Host Runner-up 2nd Runner-up
1962 # 4th World Championship USSR   USSR   Poland
1964 # Tokyo Olympic Games Japan   USSR   Poland
1967 # 5th World Championship Japan   USA   South Korea
1974 & 7th World Championship Mexico   USSR   South Korea
1976 & Montreal Olympic Games Canada   USSR   South Korea
1977 & 2nd World Cup Japan   Cuba   South Korea

#, & – Twice 3 Straight Major titles in 1960s and 1970s

(World Women's Volleyball Championship, World Cup, Olympic Games)

Results

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International

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Olympic Games

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World Championship

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World Cup

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World Grand Champions Cup

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FIVB World Grand Prix

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FIVB Nations League

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  • 2018 – 10th place
  • 2019 – 9th place
  • 2021 – 4th place
  • 2022 – 7th place
  • 2023 – 7th place
  • 2024  Silver Medal

Montreux Volley Masters

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Continental

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Asian Games

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Asian Championship

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Asian Cup

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Head-to-head record

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This page shows Japan women's national volleyball team's Head-to-head record at the Volleyball at the Summer Olympics, FIVB Women's Volleyball Nations League.

Opponent GP MW ML
  Algeria 1 1 0
  Argentina 2 2 0
  Belgium 4 2 2
  Brazil 14 1 13
  Bulgaria 4 4 0
  Cameroon 1 1 0
  Canada 4 3 1
  China 13 5 8
  Croatia 1 1 0
  Cuba 2 1 1
  Czechoslovakia 2 2 0
  Dominican Republic 8 6 2
  East Germany 1 0 1
  France 1 1 0
  Germany 6 5 1
  Great Britain 1 1 0
  Greece 1 1 0
  Hungary 1 1 0
  Italy 7 2 5
  Kenya 3 3 0
  Mexico 1 1 0
  Netherlands 7 2 5
  North Korea 1 1 0
  Peru 5 4 1
  Poland 9 5 4
  Romania 1 1 0
  Russia 5 2 3
  Serbia 7 3 4
  South Korea 17 12 5
  Soviet Union 6 3 3
  Spain 1 1 0
  Thailand 5 5 0
  Turkey 7 4 3
  Ukraine 1 1 0
  United States 13 5 8
  Venezuela 1 1 0
Total 164 94 70

Team

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Current squad

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The following is the Japan roster in the 2024 Summer Olympics[14]

Head coach: Masayoshi Manabe

No. Name Date of birth Pos Height
1 Koyomi Iwasaki 1 May 1989 S 175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
2 Kotona Hayashi 13 November 1999 OH 173 cm (5 ft 8 in)
3 Sarina Koga (c) 21 May 1996 OH 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
4 Mayu Ishikawa 14 May 2000 OH 174 cm (5 ft 9 in)
6 Nanami Seki 12 June 1999 S 171 cm (5 ft 7 in)
8 Manami Kojima 7 November 1994 L 158 cm (5 ft 2 in)
10 Arisa Inoue 8 May 1995 OH 178 cm (5 ft 10 in)
11 Nichika Yamada 24 February 2000 MB 184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
12 Satomi Fukudome 23 November 1997 L 162 cm (5 ft 4 in)
15 Airi Miyabe 29 July 1998 MB 182 cm (6 ft 0 in)
20 Ayaka Araki 2 September 2001 MB 184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
21 Yukiko Wada 8 January 2002 OH 174 cm (5 ft 9 in)

Former squads

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  • 1994 squad:

Head coach: Tadayoshi Yokota

No. Name Date of birth Height 1994 club
1 Motoko Obayashi 15.06.67 182 cm (5 ft 11+12 in) Hitachi
2 Aki Nagatomi 17.07.69 173 cm (5 ft 8 in) Hitachi
3 Chie Natori 09.08.69 176 cm (5 ft 9+12 in) Daiei
4 Mika Yamauchi 07.10.69 182 cm (5 ft 11+12 in) Daiei
6 Tomoko Yoshihara 04.02.70 179 cm (5 ft 10+12 in) Hitachi
7 Kiyoko Fukuda 04.08.70 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) Hitachi
8 Miho Murata 03.09.70 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) Hitachi
9 Asako Tajimi 26.02.72 179 cm (5 ft 10+12 in) Hitachi
12 Yumi Natta 12.07.69 161 cm (5 ft 3+12 in) Daiei
13 Naomi Eto 12.07.72 186 cm (6 ft 1 in) Hitachi
16 Maki Fujiyoshi 24.05.74 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) Hitachi
17 Miyuki Shimasaki 13.10.74 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) Hitachi
5 Kazuyo Matsukawa 07.01.70 181 cm (5 ft 11+12 in) Daiei
10 Kumiko Sakamoto 13.12.72 177 cm (5 ft 9+12 in) Daiei
14 Minako Onuki 15.10.72 173 cm (5 ft 8 in) NEC
15 Miho Ota 27.10.73 179 cm (5 ft 10+12 in) Hitachi
18 Eiko Yasui 08.05.71 164 cm (5 ft 4+12 in) Kanagawa

Coaches history

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Nickname:HINOTORI NIPPON". jva.or.jp.
  2. ^ "JVA".
  3. ^ "AVC".
  4. ^ "FIVB Senior World Ranking - Women". The FIVB. FIVB. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  5. ^ Remembering Volleyball's 'Oriental Witches' - The New York Times
  6. ^ "LONDON 2012 VOLLEYBALL, VOLLEYBALL WOMEN". olympic.org. August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Brazil, Japan reach semifinals". ESPN.com. 8 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  8. ^ "Japan humbled by Brazil in women's volleyball semifinals, to play S. Korea for bronze". The Japan Times. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  9. ^ "Japan beats South Korea for historic volleyball bronze". The Japan Times. 12 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  10. ^ "Kenya Unveil Roster For The Tokyo Olympics". fivb.com. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  11. ^ "Kenya Unveil Roster For The Tokyo Olympics". This is Volleyball. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
  12. ^ "Malkia Strikers go down to Japan in Olympics opener". Citizentv.co.ke. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  13. ^ NEWS, KYODO. "Olympics: Dominican Republic ends Japan women's volleyball quest". Kyodo News+. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  14. ^ バレーボール女子日本代表チーム 第33回オリンピック競技大会(2024/パリ)出場内定選手12人および交替選手1人決定 [Japan Women's Volleyball National Team announces 12 players and 1 substitute for the 33rd Olympic Games (Paris 2024)] (in Japanese). Japan Volleyball Association. 1 July 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  15. ^ "New women's volleyball coach Nakada ready for challenge". japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved 27 August 2021.[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ "女子バレー 中田久美監督が退任「不本意な結果、大変申し訳ない」後任は未定" (in Japanese). yahoo.co.jp. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
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