SAKAE JOINS PARENTS AS ALL-JAPAN CHAMP ON 1ST DAY OF NATIONALS TOKYO

(December 21) – Wrestling thoroughbred Kiwa SAKAE joined her parents as national champion on the opening day of the All-Japan championships at Yoyogi Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Sakae, a bronze medal winner at the junior world championships in August, dropped 2012 national champ Ayaka ITO late in the second period of the 60kg final for a 7-0 triumph and her first All-Japan title.

“Before the tourney, my goal was to get to the finals. But, I never thought I could beat such a strong teammate 7-0,” Sakae said after her win over her Shigakkan University teammate.

“As my father’s daughter, I’m happy I wrestled a match that didn’t embarrass him,” Sakae said of Japanese national team director Kazuhito SAKAE who also directs the women’s wrestling team at Shigakkan.

The elder Sakae won six straight All-Japan titles from 1983 to 1989 as well as a bronze medal at the 1987 world championships. Meanwhile, Kiwa’s mother, Ryoko SAKAMOTO won eight All-Japan titles from 1987 to 1996 and was world champion in 1992.

Along with Sakae’s win at 60kg, world team member Hiroe SUZUKI scored a late nearfall against Chiaki IIJIMA on her way to a 7-2 win in the 75kg final to repeat as All-Japan champion. Meanwhile, 2013 Universiade gold medalist Hikari SUGAWARA won her second national crown.

In men’s freestyle, Asian Games bronze medalist Nobuyoshi ARAKIDA won at 125kg for his fifth trip to the top of the All-Japan medals podium, while world team member Atsushi MATSUMOTO won at 86kg for his third overall middleweight crown. Another world team member, Masakazu KAMOI won his first title at 61kg.

In greco-roman, Taichi OKA won his third All-Japan crown by default as Asian Games silver medalist Tsukasa TSURUMAKI forfeited the 85kg final and 2012 All-Japan champion Tomohiro INOUE won at 71kg for his second crown. World team member Masato SUMI uncorked a series of gut wrenches for a technical fall in the 80kg final for his first All-Japan victory.

Greco-Roman

71kg (12 entries)

F1 – Tomohiro INOUE df. Kazuhiro HANAYAMA, 2-0

 (Inoue wins 2nd All-Japan title, first since 2012)

F3 – Takahiro UMENO df. Hiroaki WATANABE, 4-4 (big)

SF – Inoue df. Umeno, 4-0

SF – Hanayama df. Watanabe by TF, 10-0=3:38

80kg (13 entries)

F1 – Masato SUMI df. Yuya MAEDA by TF, 8-0=2:12

 (Sumi wins 1st All-Japan title)

F3 – Ryota ENOMOTO df. Shuhei SAKANO, 6-4

SF – Sumi df. Sakano by fall, 3:54 (8-0)

SF – Maeda df. Enomoto by TF, 13-1=2:52

85kg (8 entries)

F1 – Taichi OKA df. Tsukasa TSURUMAKI by default, 0:00

 (Oka wins 3rd All-Japan title, first since 2012)

F3 – Masayuki AMANO df. Shoya HOSHI, 6-0

SF – Oka df. Hoshi by TF, 12-0=4:05

SF – Tsurumaki df. Amano, 2-1

Men’s freestyle

61kg (16 entries)

F1 – Masakazu KAMOI df. Hirotaka ABE, 2-2 (big)

 (Kamoi wins 1st All-Japan title)

F3 – Shingo ARIMOTO df. Shota NAKANO, 11-3

SF – Kamoi df. Nakano, 7-0

SF – Abe df. Arimoto, 8-5

86kg (16 entries)

F1 – Atsushi MATSUMOTO df. Naoya AKAGUMA, 9-2

 (Matsumoto wins 2nd straight, 3rd overall All-Japan title)

F3 – Shinya MATSUMOTO df. Yuki EITA by fall, 4:44 (7-0)

SF – A. Matsumoto df. Eita by TF, 13-2=5:33

SF – Akaguma df. S. Matsumoto by TF, 11-0=1:17

125kg (13 entries)

F1 – Nobuyoshi ARAKIDA df. Katsutoshi KANAZAWA, 4-0

 (Arakida wins 5th All-Japan title, first since 2012)

F3 – Tetsuya TANAKA df. Yoshihito SUZUKI, 9-0

SF – Arakida df. Tanaka by fall, 0:43 (4-0)

SF – Kanazawa df. Suzuki by TF, 14-4=3:35

Female Wrestling

55kg (13 entries)

F1 – Hikari SUGAWARA df. Anri KIMURA, 6-4

 (Sugawara wins 2nd All-Japan title, first since 2012)

F3 – Haruna OKUNO v Yuzuru KUMANO, 6-2

SF – Sugawara df. Kumano, 5-3

SF – Kimura df. Okuno, 5-4

60kg (11 entries)

F1 – Kiwa SAKAE df. Ayaka ITO, 7-0

 (Sakae wins 1st All-Japan title)

F3 – Yoshimi KAYAMA df. Yui SAKANO, 4-3

SF – Ito df. Sakano, 2-1

SF – Sakae df. Kayama, 8-2

75kg (8 entries)

F1 – Hiroe SUZUKI df. Chiaki IIJIMA, 7-2

 (Suzuki wins 2nd straight All-Japan title)

F3 – Rino ABE df. Mei SHINDO by fall, 5:43 (16-10)

SF – Suzuki df. Shindo by fall, 1:13 (6-0)

SF – Iijima df. Abe by TF, 10-0=1:05

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