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USA KARATE The United State's Sakura Kokumai's journey will not end with the Olympics. |
For Sakura Kokumai, the long, lonely journey to the Olympics was as important as the medal she did not win. She finished fourth in the Olympic's karate competition in kata, a formal routine performed for technique, speed, power and mental focus.
“I am happy to be back here in Japan. It was a very special Olympics,” Kokumai said after her competition ended. “Unfortunately, I am not able to go back with the hardware but I’m pretty proud with all the performances that I did.”
Just out of medal range, she hopes she can contend again in the Olympics. Karate is not included in the 2024 Paris Olympics, but somewhere down the line, the 28-year old hopes to achieve her dream.
Born in Hawaii to Japanese parents, Team USA’s Sakura Kokumai had always associated with both the U.S. and Japan, spending most of her life going between the two countries.
For years she prepared for the 2020 Olympics. Without a major sponsor or sports endorsements, she had to rent a room in a Japanese American family's home to train in California. She had to scrape up enough money to attend international competitions to become qualified to compete in the first Games to include karate.
Then COVID-19 happened delaying the Games for another year. Another year of renting a room and training alone.
It was during one training session in a public park when she was harassed for being Asian. She was not afraid but because of her traininig in the martial arts, she chose not to respond to the verbal attacks from the apparently mentally unbalanced man.
"I was a target because of how I looked," she said. "Not because I am an athlete. Not because I compete in karate — but because I am Asian. And no matter how you look at me, I will always look Asian."
In Tokyo, performing late Wednesday in the second week of the Olympic Games, she was in contention for a bronze medal.
In her final kata, the only American woman competing among the 40 athletes taking part in karate in Tokyo performed a suparinpei, which means one hundred and eight hands and contains techniques and variations that mimic crane movements.
“I am happy to be back here in Japan. It was a very special Olympics,” Kokumai said after her competition ended. “Unfortunately, I am not able to go back with the hardware but I’m pretty proud with all the performances that I did.”
With karate not on the Paris program for 2024, Kokumai is hoping she’ll get another shot at a medal down the road.
“As a karate athlete, we have been doing this for the love of our sport. And I really hope that people are able to see what we do as athletes,” the karateka said.
Watch Sakura Kokumai perform her kata at the Olympics.
With karate not on the Paris program for 2024, Kokumai is hoping she’ll get another shot at a medal down the road.
“As a karate athlete, we have been doing this for the love of our sport. And I really hope that people are able to see what we do as athletes,” the karateka said. “We train very hard — just like any other athlete — and I believe that we belong here in the Olympics. Unfortunately as of now, this is a first and last, but hopefully we will be able to make a comeback in the next few Olympics coming up.”
Spain's Sandra Sanchez, known as the "queen of kata", won the gold medal on Thursday, defeating perennial rival and hometown favourite Kiyou Shimizu in the sport's historic debut at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. The Bronze medal went to Italy's Viviana Bottaro.
“Got myself to the final medal round but not the result I wanted,” said Kokumai in an Instagram post. “A lot of thoughts crossing my mind, but one thing is for sure, I have no regrets.”
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