Ai Fukuhara

Fukuhara at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Full name	FUKUHARA Ai
Nationality	Japan
Highest ranking	7 (April 2010)[1]
Born	(1988-11-01) November 1, 1988 (age 23) Sendai, Miyagi, Japan
Height	1.55 m (5 ft 1 in)
Medal record Women's table tennis Competitor for  Japan World Championships Bronze 2011 Rotterdam Mixed Doubles Bronze 2010 Moscow Team Bronze 2008 Guangzhou Team Bronze 2006 Bremen Team Bronze 2004 Doha Team World Cup Bronze 2010 Dubai Team Bronze 2009 Linz Team Bronze 2005 Guangzhou Singles Asian Championships Bronze 2009 Lucknow Mixed Doubles Bronze 2005 Jeju-do Doubles Silver 2003 Bangkok Doubles

Ai Fukuhara (福原 愛, Fukuhara Ai^?) (born November 1, 1988 in Sendai, Miyagi) is a Japanese table tennis player sponsored by All Nippon Airways.^[2][3][4]

Table tennis career

Fukuhara began playing at the age of 3 and became a professional at age 10. The following year, she became the youngest player ever to become a member of the Japanese national team. Because of her age, she has been regarded as a 'child prodigy' in table tennis.^[5] At age 13, in 2002, she became the youngest-ever Japanese representative for the Asian Games.^[6] In 2003, she reached the quarter-final, losing to top-seeded Zhang Yining, in her World Championships debut in Paris.^[7] In 2004, she took part in the World Team Championships and helped Team Japan finish third.

Olympic participation

Fukuhara qualified to participate in the 2004 Summer Olympics in the Asian zone qualifying tournament.^[8] The qualification entitled Fukuhara to compete in Athens, at the age of 15 years and 287 days, as the youngest-ever female table tennis player in the Olympic Games.^[9] She reached the round of 16 in her first Olympic Games, losing to bronze medalist Kim Kyung-Ah.^[10]

Round	Result	Opponent's Country	Opponent	Score	By Match
1st	Bye
2nd	W	Australia	Miao Miao	4-3	5-11	7-11	11-9	11-6	11-6	9-11	11-9
3rd	W	United States	Gao Jun	4-0	11-3	11-6	11-8	11-9
4th	L	South Korea	Kim Kyung-Ah	1-4	8-11	5-11	11-7	13-15	6-11

In April 2005, Fukuhara replaced compatriot Aya Umemura and became the highest-ranked Japanese female on the ITTF World Ranking list.^[11] She advanced to the semifinals at the 2005 Women's World Cup, losing to Guo Yan in the semifinals but beating Tie Ya Na in the third place match.^[12][13]

Fukuhara was directly qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics through world ranking.^[14] She was chosen as the national flag bearer for Japan at the Olympic Games in Beijing, China.^[15] Fukuhara teamed up with Sayaka Hirano and Haruna Fukuoka at the women's team event. They reached the bronze medal contest but lost to South Korea. In the singles event, Fukuhara advanced to round of 16, losing to gold medalist Zhang Yining.

She also qualified directly for the London 2012 Olympic Games with her world ranking in June 2011.^[16]

Hong Kong 2009 East Asian Games

Ai Fukuhara won Table Tennis Women's Doubles with Kasumi Ishikawa.^[17]

ITTF Kuwait Open 2010

The Kuwait Open 2010 would be Ai's most fruitful competition in her whole career. On the way to the finals, she caused numerous upsets.^[18] Starting off, she upset China by defeating Guo Yue. Later on, she played Singapore's Wang Yuegu, where Ai eventually won 4-2. After two shocking wins, Ai was apparently still hungry for upsets. She went on to cause another upset to China by beating the experienced top-spin specialist, Guo Yan. Her wonderful journey was stopped abruptly in the finals. Still, it was a nail-biting final where she nearly defeated China's top seed Liu Shiwen, but lost 3-4.

Popularity

Her first name, Ai, means "love" and she is often referred to as "Ai-chan" (愛ちゃん) in Japan. Her youth and talent has made her a popular sports star in Japan. Ai Fukuhara has appeared in two Japanese table tennis video games, including Ikuze! Onsen Takkyū!! (Do it! Hot Spring Table Tennis!!), released on December 21, 2001 and Fukuhara Ai No Takkyū Icchokusen (Ai Fukuhara's Table Tennis), released on June 24, 2004, both for the PlayStation 2.^[19][20][21] She carried the Olympic flame when it traveled to Tokyo in 2004.^[22][23] She carried the torch once again for the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, and was the flag bearer for the Japanese national team at the Opening Ceremonies.^[15][24]

Since she has been playing table tennis in China from a very young age, Fukuhara can speak fluent Mandarin Chinese with a Northeastern accent. Therefore she has greater popularity in China than most other table tennis players outside China.^[25] In an incident widely reported by the Chinese media, she wrote down "中日友好" (meaning "Sino-Japanese friendship" in both Chinese and Japanese) when meeting Wang Yi, then Chinese ambassador to Japan, at the height of the 2005 anti-Japanese demonstrations.^[26]

In July 2005, Fukuhara guest-starred alongside Chinese actor Jackie Chan during the opening of a photograph exhibition, in Roppongi Hills, to celebrate 60 years of peaceful coexistence between China and Japan.^[27] During Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Japan in 2008, Hu played table tennis with Fukuhara at Waseda University.^[28][29]

Personal life

Fukuhara attended Aomori Yamada Junior High School and graduated from Aomori Yamada High School in 2007. Both schools are located in the city of Aomori in Aomori Prefecture. In 2007, she enrolled in Waseda University's sports science department; she decided to drop out in 2010 to focus on her table tennis competitions.^[30]

References

External links

• Ai Fukuhara Official Supporters' Club (Japanese)
• Flickr