IPOH – Japan is ready to use the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup tournament as a training ground for its revamped team to win gold at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, thus qualifying for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics on merit.
The Samurais, who are making only their second appearance at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup after the 2022 edition, will field a team with an average age of 24 years under the tutelage of former 2006 world cupper Yoshihiro Anai.
Team analyst Tomohiro Chujo said that the new national team was assembled after the end of the winter season in March, and the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup will be their first international exposure this year after failing to make it to this year’s Paris Olympics.
Japan failed to qualify for Paris after finishing seventh in the qualifying round held in Valencia, Spain, earlier this year.
They also finished 11th in the final standings of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
For the record, India was the only Asian team out of 10 countries to qualify for the Paris Olympics.
“Our aim is to now form a really strong team for the Asian Games, and it is important for our boys to play in tournaments like the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.
“The team looks solid, and we recently won a friendly against Canada where we defeated them 1-0; hence, we need to maintain our momentum and do our best in this tournament.
“Since we are going to host the next Asian Games, the expectations are now much higher for our team, and we need to start now if we hope to succeed in two years.
“We need to work hard and make sure we win the gold medal in the Asian Games and qualify on merit for Los Angeles in 2028,” said Chujo during a press conference at M Roof Hotel in Ipoh.
Japan has won a total of four medals (one gold, one silver, and two bronze) at the Asian Games since their first participation in the 1958 edition in Tokyo.
Their last gold medal in the Asian Games was won at the 2018 edition in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Japan’s best performance in the history of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup was finishing fourth in the 2022 edition. They lost 5-3 to Pakistan in the playoff for the bronze medal.
Midfielder Manabu Yamashita, who is 35 years old, is the most senior player in the squad with 217 caps, followed by Seren Tanaka (158 caps), Shota Yamada (145 caps), and Takashi Yoshikawa (145 caps). Raiki Fujishima (54 caps), aged 24, will captain the side.
The world number 16 side will take on South Korea in their opening match of their Sultan Azlan Shah Cup campaign tomorrow. – May 3, 2024