Japanese Judoka Hangai Honed Her Senses to Earn Silver at Paris Paralympics; Believed in Coach’s Words to Keep on Going

By Kohei Tsukamoto / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

12:24 JST, September 7, 2024

PARIS — Judoka Shizuka Hangai finally made it to the podium at the Paris Paralympics after winning silver in the women’s 48-kilogram division in the complete blindness class (J1).

She was able to overcome her worsening eyesight by working together with her coach. The 36-year-old was born with amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, and has retinitis pigmentosa, an incurable congenital eye disease, which is progressively getting worse over time. She is now only able to feel light.

Hangai failed to medal at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Games.

After finishing fifth at the Tokyo Paralympics, she thought, “I’m powerless if I’m blind.”

Hangai’s coach, Yuko Isozaki, advised her, “If you can’t see, you should be able to guess your opponents’ moves with your senses.”

She thought it was impossible but still believed in Isozaki’s words: “You can do it if you practice over and over.”

Through much practice, the athlete honed her senses by perceiving the shift in her opponents’ weight to read their next move.

In Paris, Hangai waited patiently for the right moment until her opponents’ posture was perfect for her to execute her techniques. She won the first round and semifinals with a waza-ari in overtime but lost in the final to a Ukrainian competitor who caught her off guard.

With her first medal in hand, Hangai said with a smile, “I was able to do what I set out to do.”