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Mao Arai

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Mao Arai
Personal information
Native name新井 万央
Born (2003-05-23) 23 May 2003 (age 21)
Japan
OccupationJudoka
Sport
CountryJapan
SportJudo
Weight class+78 kg
Achievements and titles
World Champ.R16 (2024)
Asian Champ.Bronze (2024)
Medal record
Women's judo
Representing  Japan
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Abu Dhabi Mixed team
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place 2024 Hong Kong Mixed team
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Hong Kong +78 kg
IJF Grand Slam
Gold medal – first place 2023 Tokyo +78 kg
World Juniors Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Guayaquil +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2022 Guayaquil Mixed team
Gold medal – first place 2023 Odivelas +78 kg
Gold medal – first place 2023 Odivelas Mixed team
Profile at external databases
IJF56234
JudoInside.com151250
Updated on 7 July 2024

Mao Arai (Japanese: 新井 万央, Hepburn: Arai Mao, born 23 May 2003) is a Japanese judoka. She won a gold medal in the mixed team event at the 2024 World Judo Championships held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. She is also a gold and bronze medalist from the 2024 Asian Championships.

Judo career[edit]

Early career[edit]

Arai began practicing judo at the age of 10 at the Igarashi Dojo.[1] In her third year at Higashimatsuyama Kita Junior High School, he placed second in the over 70 kg class at the National Junior High School Judo Tournament.[1][2] She then went on to Shukugawa High School, where in her first year, she lost in the third round of the over 78 kg class in the individual competition at the Inter-High School Championships, but placed second in the team competition.[3] She then transferred to Saitama Sakae High School, where in her third year, she placed third in the Inter-High School team competition and won the individual competition with all ippon wins.[1][3] She placed third in the All Japan Junior Championships.[1][4] In 2022, she went on to Nippon Sport Science University.[1]

2022-2023[edit]

In her first year, Arai faced Hilal Öztürk of Turkey in the final of the 2022 World Junior Championships, where she scored a waza-ari with an uchi-mata and then pinned her down, initially winning with a combination technique, but the ippon was revoked for grabbing below the belt and throwing her. Öztürk later won by ippon with an ouchigari to take the championship.[5][6] In the team final, Arai defeated Öztürk with an arm lock to secure the team's victory against Turkey.[7][8] In the 2022 All Japan Junior Championships, she defeated Miki Mukunoki, a first-year student at International Pacific University, who had placed third in the world junior division, to win the championship.[9][10]

In the 2023 Belgian International, she defeated Mukunoki in the junior division final to win, but lost to the latter in the senior division final the following day and placed second.[11][12] In her second year, she placed third in the weight class semi-finals, losing to Hikaru Kodama of SBC Shonan Beauty Clinic with an ouchigari.[13] In the delayed 2021 World University Games, she lost her first match by disqualification to Agatha Martins Silva of Brazil.[14] Although she won the team match, which was a best-of-three match, she did not have a chance to play in any matches from the first match to the final, as the player before her had already won.[15][14] At the 2023 All Japan Junior Championships, she finished in second after losing to Mukunoki by waza-ari in the final.[16] At the 2023 World Junior Championships, she won by disqualification against Mukunoki in the final, achieving her second consecutive victory in this tournament.[17] In the team competition, she faced Celia Cancan of France in the final, and although she was first down by waza-ari, she came back to win with a kesagatatame to secure the team's victory.[18][19] At the 2023 Grand Slam Tokyo, she defeated Israel's Raz Hershko by kuzure kesagatatame in the semifinals, and Léa Fontaine of France by kuzure kamishiho-gatame in the final to win the championship.[20][21]

2024-[edit]

At the 2024 Grand Slam Paris, Arai lost to Fontaine in the quarterfinals, then lost to Hershko by disqualification in the third-place deciding match, placing fifth.[22][23] As a third-year student, she placed second in her weight class final, losing by waza-ari to Komatsu's Wakaharu Tomita.[24] However, due to her recent achievements, she was selected to represent Japan at the 2024 World Championships.[25] At the Asian Championships, Arai lost by disqualification to Mongolia's Amarsaikhany Adiyaasüren in the quarterfinals, but won the repechage round to finish third.[26] In the team competition, she contributed to her team's victory by defeating Amarsaikhany by waza-ari in the final against Mongolia.[27] At the 2024 World Championships in May, Arai lost by waza-ari to China's Xu Shiyan in the third round.[28][29] Later in the championships, she won the semifinals against Uzbekistan, but her team won the championship before she had a chance to play in the final against France.[30][31]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e ｢柔道全日本強��選手名鑑　2022｣ Modern JudoBASEBALL MAGAZINE SHA、April 2022
  2. ^ "全国中学校柔道大会". www.judo-ch.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  3. ^ a b "全国高等学校総合体育大会柔道競技大会". www.judo-ch.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  4. ^ "全日本ジュニア柔道体重別選手権大会". www.judo-ch.jp (in Japanese).
  5. ^ "日本勢が3階級で優勝　世界ジュニア選手権／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 14 August 2022.
  6. ^ "+78kg: Pure Japanese Style for Arai". International Judo Federation.
  7. ^ "混合団体で日本優勝　世界ジュニア選手権／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 15 August 2022.
  8. ^ "Guayaquil World Juniors Mixed Teams Championships 2022". International Judo Federation.
  9. ^ "本田万結、横田ひかりらが初V　全日本ジュニア体重別選手権／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 10 September 2022.
  10. ^ "2022年度全日本ジュニア柔道体重別選手権大会".
  11. ^ "宮木果乃らが優勝 　ベルギー国際／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 29 January 2023.
  12. ^ "International Ethias Belgian Judo Open".
  13. ^ "2023年全日本選抜柔道体重別選手権大会". seikosportslink.co (in Japanese).
  14. ^ a b "Results Distribution System". results.2021chengdu.com (in Japanese).
  15. ^ "Japan sets best ever performance at FISU World University Games". www.judoinside.com.
  16. ^ "2023年度全日本ジュニア柔道体重別選手権大会". seikosportslink.com.
  17. ^ "Odivelas World Championships Juniors Individuals 2023". www.ijf.org.
  18. ^ "日本が混合団体で優勝　世界ジュニア選手権／柔道". Sankei Sports. 9 October 2023.
  19. ^ "Odivelas World Championships Juniors Mixed Teams 2023". International Judo Federation.
  20. ^ "村尾ら優勝　橋本2位、永瀬は3回戦敗退　柔道GS東京". Sankei Sports. 2 December 2023.
  21. ^ "Tokyo Grand Slam 2023". International Judo Federation.
  22. ^ "東京五輪覇者のウルフ・アロンがV　パリ代表内定へ大きく前進" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 5 February 2024.
  23. ^ "Paris Grand Slam　2024". International Judo Federation.
  24. ^ "2024年全日本選抜柔道体重別選手権大会". seikosportslink.com.
  25. ^ "世界選手権代表を発表　パリ五輪代表では男子60キロ級の永山竜樹が唯一出場／柔道". Sankei Sports. 8 April 2024.
  26. ^ "五輪内定の高山莉加、村尾三四郎が優勝　素根輝は負傷棄権／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 22 April 2024.
  27. ^ "日本が混合団体で優勝　アジア選手権／柔道]" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 23 April 2024.
  28. ^ "冨田若春が世界選手権初優勝！新井道大は3位／柔道" (in Japanese). Sankei Sports. 24 May 2024.
  29. ^ "Abu Dhabi World Championships Seniors 2024 Individuals". International Judo Federation.
  30. ^ "世界柔道、混合団体で日本7連覇 若手の活躍目立つ". The Nikkei. 25 May 2024.
  31. ^ "Abu Dhabi World Championships Seniors 2024 Mixed Teams". International Judo Federation.

External links[edit]

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