The Japanese baseball team aims for the first Asian Games gold medal in 29 years. The opponents are Korea and Taiwan.
The Japanese baseball team participating in the Hangzhou Asian Games conducted training camp at Urawa Ball Park in Saitama Prefecture, Japan from the 25th to the 27th. This is the second training camp since the announcement of the national team’s final entry. The Japanese national team, which has completed all training in Japan, will leave the country on the 28th and enter Hangzhou, China. It is a similar schedule to the Korean national team.
Samurai Japan’s official website announced the Japanese baseball team’s determination to participate. Japan’s goal is gold at this Asian Games. The 1994 Hiroshima Games was the first and last time that Japan won an Asian Games baseball gold medal. Korea is the team with the most gold medals, with 5.
However, following Japan’s gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, they won the WBC (World Baseball Classic) held last March, and the youth national team under the age of 18 recently won the World Cup, and even the women’s baseball team is aiming to win the World Cup next year. Naturally, expectations for the Asian Games have also increased.토토사이트
Japan’s entry consisted entirely of baseball players from society. The expression is ‘social baseball’, but in reality, it should be seen as an unemployed baseball player. Most of them are players who have been playing baseball professionally since middle school and high school, and some of them are about to be nominated by a professional team. Additionally, veteran pitcher Junichi Tazawa, from the major league, also joined this Asian Games.
Coach Shoo Ishii, who leads the Japanese national team, explained after completing camp training, “Both pitchers and fielders are in good condition. Everyone is getting in shape with a strong sense of purpose.” Japan has been preparing for the Asian Games with various experts in not only data analysis but also body management, medical, and mental health. Coach Ishii had a positive view, saying, “Those aspects are improving the players’ level.”
Coach Ishii also expressed his determination, saying, “I feel like I am challenging myself to win a gold medal since the 1994 Hiroshima Games. There may be many variables, but I definitely want to overcome them.”
The Japanese players unanimously said, “We have been preparing to target Korea and Taiwan, which are filled with professional players.”
If Korea passes the first round, there is a high possibility that it will meet Japan in the super round. It is expected that there will be a confrontation with an inevitable rival in the pursuit of the gold medal.