Tokyo, October 30, 2006: The playing field will be level when student faces teacher in an intriguing Pool A clash of the women's World Championships later this week.[
The student is, or rather was, Shoichi Yanagimoto, head coach of Japan.
The teacher is, and still is, Sadatoshi Sugawara, head coach of Kenya.
When Yanagimoto was a member of Japan's national youth team aged 19, Sugawara was on the coaching staff -- and the pair were reunited at the official Pool A press conference on Monday evening.
"This time I can compete against him and it is a great honour for me," said Sugawara of his former student. "I am looking forward to the game against Japan, even though I am Japanese and will be wearing the flag of Kenya on my shirt.
"Hopefully coach Yanagimoto will tell his players to save some energy when they play us so we can have a closer match!"
In response, Yanagimoto said he had learned a lot from Sugawara, and this knowledge provided the foundations for his own coaching methods.
"At that time Japan was one of the strongest volleyball nations in the world, and everyone took it for granted that Japan would win a medal in the Olympic Games or World Championships," said Yanagimoto. "I think Japan should always be a leader in the global volleyball movement."
Yanagimoto said that before the press conference, Sugawara had asked him to say that Kenya were one of Japan's rivals in Pool A -- but Japan's coach will not be doing any favours for his old master in Friday's World Championships clash.
"Mr Sugawara has been a good coach for me, but a game is a game and I cannot save my energy in this one, or ask the players to do the same," said Yanagimoto.
