Japan women's national ice hockey team

Japan
Nickname(s)	Smile Japan; スマイルジャパン
Association	Japan Ice Hockey Federation
Head coach	Yuji Iizuka
Assistants	Kanae Aoki; Masahito Haruna; Yujiro Nakajimaya
Captain	Shiori Koike
Most games	Haruna Yoneyama (126)
Top scorer	Hanae Kubo (65)
Most points	Hanae Kubo (130)
IIHF code	JPN
Ranking
Current IIHF	7 (28 August 2023)[1]
Highest IIHF	6 (first in 2019)
Lowest IIHF	11 (first in 2011)
First international
	Japan 5–2 Netherlands; (North York or Mississauga, Canada; 21 April 1987)
Biggest win
	Japan 46–0 Hong Kong; (Sapporo, Japan; 21 February 2017)
Biggest defeat
	Canada 18–0 Japan; (Ottawa, Canada; 22 March 1990); Canada 18–0 Japan ; (Richmond, Canada; 5 April 1996)
World Championships
Appearances	19 (first in 1990)
Best result	5th (2022)
Asian Winter Games
Appearances	6 (first in 1996)
Best result	Gold (2017)
Challenge Cup of Asia
Appearances	3 (first in 2010)
Best result	Gold (2011, 2012)
Olympics
Appearances	4 (first in 1998)
International record (W–L–T)
	162–151–6

The Japanese women's national ice hockey team (Japanese: アイスホッケー女子日本代表, Hepburn: Aisuhokkē Joshi Nippon Daihyō) represents Japan at the International Ice Hockey Federation's Women's World Championships, the Winter Olympics, and at other international ice hockey tournaments. The women's national team is governed by the Japan Ice Hockey Federation.[2][3][4][5][6] Japan had 2,587 registered female players in 2017 and 1,439 as of 2020.[7][8]

The nickname of Japan women's team is "Smile Japan" (Japanese: スマイルジャパン, Hepburn: Sumairu Japan).[9]

Tournament record

Olympic Games

1998 – Finished in 6th place
2014 – Finished in 7th place
2018 – Finished in 6th place
2022 – Finished in 6th place

World Championship

1990 – Finished in 8th place
1999 – Finished in 9th place (1st in Group B, Promoted to Top Division)
2000 – Finished in 8th place (Relegated to Division I).
2001 – Finished in 10th place (2nd in Division I).
2003 – Finished in 9th place (1st in Group B, Promoted to Top Division)
2004 – Finished in 9th place (Relegated to Division I)
2005 – Finished in 10th place (2nd in Division I)
2007 – Finished in 10th place (1st in Group B, Promoted to Top Division)
2008 – Finished in 7th place
2009 – Finished in 8th place (Relegated to Division I)
2011 – Withdrew from the tournament due to an earthquake[10]
2012 – Finished in 11th place (3rd in Division IA)
2013 – Finished in 9th place (1st in Division IA, Promoted to Top Division)
2015 – Finished in 7th place
2016 – Finished in 8th place (Relegated to Division I)
2017 – Finished in 9th place (1st in Division IA, Promoted to Top Division)
2019 – Finished in 8th place
2020 – Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[11]
2021 – Finished in 6th place
2022 – Finished in 5th place
2023 – Finished in 7th place

Asian Games

1996 – Finished in 2nd place
1999 – Finished in 2nd place
2003 – Finished in 2nd place
2007 – Finished in 2nd place
2011 – Finished in 2nd place
2017 – Finished in 1st place

IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia

2010 – Finished in 2nd place
2011 – Finished in 1st place
2012 – Finished in 1st place

Pacific Rim Championship

1995 – Finished in 4th place
1996 – Finished in 4th place

Team

Current roster

Roster for the 2022 IIHF Women's World Championship.[12][13][14]

Head coach: Yuji Iizuka

No.	Pos.	Name	Height	Weight	Birthdate	Team
2	D	Shiori Koike – C	1.59 m (5 ft 3 in)	53 kg (117 lb)	(1993-03-21) 21 March 1993	DK Peregrine
3	D	Aoi Shiga	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)	63 kg (139 lb)	(1999-07-04) 4 July 1999	Toyota Cygnus
4	D	Ayaka Hitosato – A	1.61 m (5 ft 3 in)	58 kg (128 lb)	(1994-08-22) 22 August 1994	Linköping HC
5	D	Shiori Yamashita	1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)	52 kg (115 lb)	(2002-04-28) 28 April 2002	Seibu Princess Rabbits
6	D	Kohane Sato	1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)	60 kg (130 lb)	(2006-03-16) 16 March 2006	Daishin
7	D	Kanami Seki	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)	70 kg (150 lb)	(2000-06-23) 23 June 2000	Seibu Princess Rabbits
8	D	Akane Hosoyamada – A	1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)	59 kg (130 lb)	(1992-03-09) 9 March 1992	DK Peregrine
10	F	Hikaru Yamashita	1.58 m (5 ft 2 in)	54 kg (119 lb)	(2000-09-23) 23 September 2000	Seibu Princess Rabbits
11	F	Akane Shiga	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)	61 kg (134 lb)	(2001-03-03) 3 March 2001	Toyota Cygnus
13	F	Chisato Miyazaki	1.51 m (4 ft 11 in)	51 kg (112 lb)	(1997-08-08) 8 August 1997	Seibu Princess Rabbits
14	F	Haruka Toko	1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)	65 kg (143 lb)	(1997-03-16) 16 March 1997	Linköping HC
15	F	Rui Ukita	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)	72 kg (159 lb)	(1996-06-06) 6 June 1996	Daishin
16	F	Yoshino Enomoto	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)	57 kg (126 lb)	(1998-09-22) 22 September 1998	Seibu Princess Rabbits
19	F	Makoto Ito	1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)	67 kg (148 lb)	(2004-05-02) 2 May 2004	Daishin
20	G	Miyuu Masuhara	1.57 m (5 ft 2 in)	50 kg (110 lb)	(2001-10-04) 4 October 2001	DK Peregrine
23	F	Chihiro Suzuki	1.57 m (5 ft 2 in)	62 kg (137 lb)	(2002-05-04) 4 May 2002	Guelph Gryphons
24	F	Mei Miura	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)	63 kg (139 lb)	(1998-11-16) 16 November 1998	Toyota Cygnus
27	F	Remi Koyama	1.47 m (4 ft 10 in)	52 kg (115 lb)	(2000-07-17) 17 July 2000	Seibu Princess Rabbits
30	G	Kiku Kobayashi	1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)	59 kg (130 lb)	(2002-07-07) 7 July 2002	Seibu Princess Rabbits
31	G	Riko Kawaguchi	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)	70 kg (150 lb)	(2004-09-19) 19 September 2004	Daishin
40	F	Rio Noro	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)	62 kg (137 lb)	(2004-05-15) 15 May 2004	Daishin
41	F	Riri Noro	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)	55 kg (121 lb)	(2004-05-15) 15 May 2004	Daishin
61	F	Yumeka Wajima	1.56 m (5 ft 1 in)	48 kg (106 lb)	(2002-10-19) 19 October 2002	DK Peregrine

Notable former players

Coaches

1990 World Championship – Noriko Fukuda
1995 to 1998 – Wally Kozak (coach-mentor)[15][16]
1998 Winter Olympics – Toru Itabashi (head coach), Tsutomu Kawabuchi[17][18]
1999 World Championship B – Takayuki Hatanda
2000 World Championship – Takayuki Hatanda
2001 World Championship D1 – Takayuki Hatanda
2003 World Championship D1 – Masayuki Takahashi
2004 World Championship – Kenji Nobuta (head coach), Tsutomu Kawabuchi (assistant coach, team manager)[17][18]
2005 World Championship D1 – Kenji Nobuta
2007 World Championship D1 – Kohichi Satoh
2008 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka
2009 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka
2012 World Championship D1A – Yuji Iizuka
2013 World Championship D1A – Yuji Iizuka
2014 Winter Olympics – Yuji Iizuka
2015 World Championship – Yoshifumi Fujisawa
2016 World Championship – Yoshifumi Fujisawa
2017 World Championship D1A – Takeshi Yamanaka
2018 Winter Olympics – Takeshi Yamanaka
2019 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka
2021 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka
2022 Winter Olympics – Yuji Iizuka
2022 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka
2023 World Championship – Yuji Iizuka

Source: IIHF Guide & Record Book 2020[19]

All-time record against other nations

Last match update: 10 March 2022[20]

Key
	Positive balance (more Wins)
	Neutral balance (Wins = Losses)
	Negative balance (more Losses)

Team	GP	W	T	L	GF	GA
Czech Republic	27	22	0	5	79	46
France	19	17	1	1	72	20
South Korea	11	11	0	0	139	2
Denmark	12	11	0	1	48	13
Austria	10	10	0	0	42	9
Norway	9	7	0	2	31	17
North Korea	7	6	0	1	35	12
Latvia	6	5	0	1	27	7
Hungary	5	4	0	1	15	8
Slovakia	6	4	0	2	23	11
Kazakhstan	11	6	0	5	31	20
Hong Kong	1	1	0	0	46	0
Thailand	1	1	0	0	37	0
Germany	33	15	2	16	68	68
China	38	18	0	20	96	122
Canada	6	0	0	6	0	82
United States	10	0	0	10	2	110
Sweden	18	4	0	14	24	82
Switzerland	28	6	3	19	47	70
Finland	16	1	0	15	13	67
Russia	21	2	0	19	31	71
Total	295	151	6	138	906	837

References

"IIHF Women's World Ranking". IIHF. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
"Women's ice hockey team "Smile Japan" chase Olympic dream". International Olympic Committee. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
Kalaf, Samer (18 December 2013). "Japan's Women's Hockey Team Is The Lovable Underdog of the Olympics". Deadspin. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
Meadows, Mark (1 April 2009). "Ice hockey-Japan's 'Bunnies' boiled by economic crisis". Reuters.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
Watanabe, Tadashi (26 August 2013). "Women's ice hockey team banking on Sochi". The Japan Times. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
"Japan's ice hockey women chase Olympic dream". Al Jazeera. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
IIHF profile
"IIHF Member National Association: Japan". International Ice Hockey Federation. 24 April 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
"愛称は「スマイルジャパン」アイスホッケー女子代表" [National Women's Ice Hockey Team Nicknamed "Smile Japan"]. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). 28 March 2013. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
Peter, Bruce (29 March 2011). "Japanese National Teams Withdraw from World Championships". Puck Worlds. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
Steiss, Adam (7 March 2020). "Women's Worlds cancelled". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 12 December 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
"女子世界選手権事前合宿". Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
"2023 IIHF女子世界選手権メンバーリスト" (PDF). Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
"Team Roster: Japan" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
Murray, Robert (15 March 2018). "WHL Alumni set to be inducted to Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame". Western Hockey League. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
Hersh, Philip (2 February 1998). "Japan Getting (Stick) Handle on Women's Hockey". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
"Death Note–Advisor Kawabuchi". Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 20 January 2014. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
"Staff Profile: Tsutomu Kawabuchi". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
Podnieks, Andrew; Nordmark, Birger, eds. (2019). IIHF Guide & Record Book 2020. Toronto: Moydart. pp. 112–113. ISBN 9780986796470.
"Japan Women All Time Results" (PDF). National Teams of Ice Hockey. Retrieved 10 March 2022.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[IIHF_Women's_World_Ranking-1] "IIHF Women's World Ranking". IIHF. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.

[2] "Women's ice hockey team "Smile Japan" chase Olympic dream". International Olympic Committee. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2016.

[3] Kalaf, Samer (18 December 2013). "Japan's Women's Hockey Team Is The Lovable Underdog of the Olympics". Deadspin. Retrieved 15 October 2016.

[4] Meadows, Mark (1 April 2009). "Ice hockey-Japan's 'Bunnies' boiled by economic crisis". Reuters.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.

[5] Watanabe, Tadashi (26 August 2013). "Women's ice hockey team banking on Sochi". The Japan Times. Retrieved 18 October 2016.

[6] "Japan's ice hockey women chase Olympic dream". Al Jazeera. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2016.

[7] IIHF profile

[8] "IIHF Member National Association: Japan". International Ice Hockey Federation. 24 April 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[9] "愛称は「スマイルジャパン」アイスホッケー女子代表" [National Women's Ice Hockey Team Nicknamed "Smile Japan"]. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). 28 March 2013. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[10] Peter, Bruce (29 March 2011). "Japanese National Teams Withdraw from World Championships". Puck Worlds. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[11] Steiss, Adam (7 March 2020). "Women's Worlds cancelled". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 12 December 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[12] "女子世界選手権事前合宿". Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.

[13] "2023 IIHF女子世界選手権メンバーリスト" (PDF). Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 24 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.

[14] "Team Roster: Japan" (PDF). iihf.com. Retrieved 4 April 2023.

[15] Murray, Robert (15 March 2018). "WHL Alumni set to be inducted to Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame". Western Hockey League. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[16] Hersh, Philip (2 February 1998). "Japan Getting (Stick) Handle on Women's Hockey". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 9 March 2021.

[:0-17] "Death Note–Advisor Kawabuchi". Japan Ice Hockey Federation (in Japanese). 20 January 2014. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2019.

[:1-18] "Staff Profile: Tsutomu Kawabuchi". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 5 March 2019.

[19] Podnieks, Andrew; Nordmark, Birger, eds. (2019). IIHF Guide & Record Book 2020. Toronto: Moydart. pp. 112–113. ISBN 9780986796470.

[results-20] "Japan Women All Time Results" (PDF). National Teams of Ice Hockey. Retrieved 10 March 2022.

National sports teams of Japan
Women	Baseball Basketball U-19 U-17 3x3 U-23 3x3 Wheelchair Beach handball Cricket Field hockey Floorball Football U-23 U-20 U-17 Futsal U-20 Goalball Gymnastics Handball W-J Ice hockey F U-18 Rugby union 7s Softball U-19 Squash Tennis Volleyball U-18 U-20 U-23 Water polo
Men	A1GP American football Australian rules football Bandy Baseball U-18 Basketball U-17 U-19 3x3 U-23 3x3 Wheelchair Boxing Cricket U-19 Field hockey Floorball U-19 Football U-23 U-20 U-17 Futsal U-23 U-20 Beach soccer eFootball Cerebral palsy Goalball Gymnastics Handball MJ MY Ice hockey Junior U-18 Kabaddi Korfball Lacrosse Roller hockey Rugby league Rugby union 7s U-20 Wheelchair Softball U-19 Squash Tennis Volleyball U-21 U-19 Water polo
Mixed	Badminton Baseball5 Boxing Tennis
Olympics Paralympics Asian Games

Women's national ice hockey teams
Africa	South Africa
Americas	Argentina* Brazil* Canada Chile** Colombia* Mexico Puerto Rico* United States
Asia and Oceania	Australia Bahrain^N China Chinese Taipei Hong Kong India Iran Japan Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lebanon* Macau^N Malaysia New Zealand North Korea Philippines Singapore South Korea Thailand United Arab Emirates
Europe	Andorra Austria Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Great Britain Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Poland Romania Russia† Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine
Former teams	Czechoslovakia England Korea Scotland Wales
* IIHF associate members ** IIHF affiliate members † IIHF suspended members ^N Not an IIHF member