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Mako Urushizaki

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Mako Urushizaki
Personal information
CountryJapan
Born (1992-04-19) 19 April 1992 (age 33)
Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan
Height1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)
Weight55 kg (121 lb)
Retired31 March 2022
HandednessRight
Women's singles
Career record44 wins, 14 losses (75.86%)
Highest ranking118 (26 March 2019)
BWF profile

Mako Urushizaki (漆﨑 真子, Urushizaki Mako; born 19 April 1992) is a Japanese former badminton player and current coach.[1][2] She competed in the women's singles for the San-in Godo Bank corporate team and was a member of the 2019 Japan national B team. During her professional career, Urushizaki won two international titles in 2019—the Swedish Open and the Dubai International—and was a runner-up at the 2018 Akita Masters, a BWF World Tour Super 100 tournament. Her playing career concluded on 31 March 2022, due to an injury. Following her retirement as a player, Urushizaki transitioned to coaching and currently serves as a coach for the Japanese national U-16 team and co-founded the Akua Badminton Club.

Early life and career

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Mako Urushizaki was born in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. She attended Fuji Junior High School and Itami Kita High School.[3] From 2011 to 2015, she studied sports science at the University of Tsukuba. During her time at the university, she was part of the women's team that won the 2014 All Japan Intercollegiate Championships, where she also placed third in the singles event.[4]

Career

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Following her graduation, Urushizaki joined the San-in Godo Bank corporate team in 2015.[4] On the international circuit, she reached her first final in 2016 at the White Nights, finishing as runner-up to Neslihan Yiğit of Turkey.[5] The following year, she was the runner-up at the 2017 Finnish Open, losing to compatriot Shiori Saito.[6]

In 2018, Urushizaki was the runner-up at the Akita Masters, a BWF World Tour Super 100 tournament, losing in the final to top-seeded compatriot Sayaka Takahashi.[7]

In 2019, Urushizaki was selected for the Japan B national team. That year marked her first international titles, as she won the Swedish Open in January by defeating Asuka Takahashi, and secured her second title in October at the Dubai International, beating India's Rituparna Das.[8][9] She achieved her career-high women's singles world ranking of 118 on 26 March 2019.

Urushizaki's professional career was curtailed by an injury, leading to her retirement at the conclusion of the 2021–2022 season, officially announced on 31 March 2022.[10][11]

Coaching career

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Following her retirement as a player in 2022, Mako Urushizaki pursued a coaching career grounded in academic research. In March 2024, she completed a master's degree at the University of Tsukuba through the National Leading Coach Training Program, where her graduate studies involved research into coaching science. Concurrent with her studies, from April 2022 to March 2024, she served as the head coach for the university's women's badminton team. She coached the team to a national title at the 2023 All Japan Intercollegiate Championships and mentored a player who was selected for the Japan national team.[4][12]

In 2024, Urushizaki co-founded the Akua Badminton Club to further promote the sport.[4] Concurrently, she was appointed as a coach for the 2025 Japan National U-16 team.[13]

Achievements

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BWF World Tour (1 runner-up)

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The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[14] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[15]

Women's singles

Year Tournament Level Opponent Score Result Ref
2018 Akita Masters Super 100 Japan Sayaka Takahashi 11–21, 21–13, 18–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up [7]

BWF International Challenge/Series (2 titles, 2 runners-up)

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Women's singles

Year Tournament Opponent Score Result Ref
2016 White Nights Turkey Neslihan Yiğit 16–21, 15–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up [5]
2017 Finnish Open Japan Shiori Saito 8–21, 10–21 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner Up [6]
2019 Swedish Open Japan Asuka Takahashi 23–21, 21–19 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner [8][16]
2019 Dubai International India Rituparna Das 23–21, 21–17 1st place, gold medalist(s) Winner [9]
  BWF International Challenge tournament
  BWF International Series tournament

References

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  1. ^ "Mako URUSHIZAKI | Profile". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  2. ^ "San-in Godo Bank team | Profile" (PDF). Badminton S/J League (in Japanese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 November 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  3. ^ "Mako URUSHIZAKI | Profile". Nippon Badminton Association (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 12 June 2025. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d "Mako URUSHIZAKI | Profile". Akua Badminton Club (in Japanese). Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  5. ^ a b "Neslihan Yiğit became the Badminton champion". En Son Haber (in Turkish). 11 July 2016. Archived from the original on 11 July 2025. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
  6. ^ a b Matsuda, Keita (9 April 2017). "Result: Badminton Finland Open 2017" (in Japanese). Nippon Badminton Association. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Sitthikom secures Akita Masters win". Bangkok Post. 30 July 2018. Archived from the original on 27 November 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2025.
  8. ^ a b "Urushizaki (Sanin Gogin) wins first international badminton tournament". San-in Chuo Shimpo (in Japanese). 22 January 2019. Archived from the original on 31 January 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
  9. ^ a b Kawamae, Naoki (20 October 2019). "Result: Dubai International Challenge 2019" (in Japanese). Nippon Badminton Association. Archived from the original on 1 June 2025. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  10. ^ "Announcement of Mako Urushizaki's Retirement". San-in Godo Bank Badminton (in Japanese). 31 March 2022. Archived from the original on 11 July 2025. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
  11. ^ "Mako Urushizaki Shares Expertise for Badminton to Sarawak Local Students". Pertama Ferroalloys Sdn. Bhd. 27 September 2024. Archived from the original on 12 July 2025. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  12. ^ "New coach appointment announcement". University of Tsukuba Badminton Team (in Japanese). 10 April 2022. Archived from the original on 19 March 2025. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  13. ^ "2025 Junior National Team | Players and Coaches". Badminton Association of Japan. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  14. ^ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  15. ^ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  16. ^ Matsuda, Keita (20 January 2019). "Result: Swedish Open 2019". Nippon Badminton Association (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
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