Yoshie Takeshita
She made it possible at Earls Court by beating Korea after a great Olympic campaign, where she played at her best. She’s 34. Would it be possible to do it again in the future? “I have to rest, now. Then I would make my mind clear after London.”
Japan has started to look for a new setter since years, to have at least someone able to replace her during the match with the same quality. But so far Yoshie is the only Japanese player who can set outstandingly, jumping even from the back row to have the ball perfectly positioned in zone 4 for her wing spikers.
The best setter at the FIVB 2006 World Championships had not fully understood the huge meaning of their achievement going out of the court at the end of the match. When she saw the amount of journalists waiting for her quotes, she probably realized how heavy that bronze was. “To be honest, our generation did not know the exact honor of the bronze in Los Angeles; we didn’t live the glorious era of Japanese volleyball. Representing Japan is something very special and now we’re thinking about what we made here in London. To be back on the podium is a great moment: it’s a fantastic achievement for our volleyball family.”
Even if she does not want to announce anything about her future, her eyes are looking far ahead: “We made it, we have to go and the younger generation should come now. We knew it before coming here.”
Amazing to say, they beat Korea almost without blocks. When asked about it, she just raises her arms and laughs. “That’s really Japanese Volleyball!”
Takeshita is the idol of all small players, who dream to play among the giants in the volleyball of the stars. She is just 159 centimeters. If she decides to retire… Are they going to lose their outstanding idol? Takeshita smiles while listening to the question. “Until now I have been doing my best and I believe I’ve sent already a good message to all the boys and girls in Japan.”
The last question before the awarding ceremony is to solve the last doubt of the compiler of Wikipedia. What does exactly mean her nickname “Tenn” “It doesn’t have a specific meaning in our language. My colleagues at the high school in Japan gave me this nickname and I still have it.”
And she walks proudly to the third step of the podium, followed ideally by millions of Japanese fans.
All the results from Olympic matches can be found here:
Volleyball – Men Volleyball – Women
