The Empire of Japan competed at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium.
Background Following Japan's poor showing during its Olympic debut at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, Japan planned for increased participation and the discipline of its athletes in the 1916 Summer Olympics planned for Berlin, Germany (which was subsequently cancelled by World War I. Japan also expanded its participation in international sporting events, by competing in the Far Eastern Games held in Manila in 1913, Shanghai in 1915, Tokyo in 1917 and Manila in 1919. By the time of the 1920 Olympics, Japan was able to field a fifteen-man team. Although most of its track-and-field runners and swimmers failed to pass the initial heats, Japan did considerably better in tennis, securing its first Olympic medals. However, the Japan Amateur Athletic Association, which sponsored the team, grossly underestimated the costs of journey, and was unable to pay for the team's return from Belgium. Local representatives of the Mitsubishi and Mitsui zaibatsu agreed to pay the $15,000 necessary for the stranded team to come home, but the embarrassment was so great that the Japanese government agreed to provide subsidies for future Olympic participation.Guttman, Allen. Japanese Sports: A History (University of Hawaii Press, 2001), p. 119-120.
Medalists
| style="text-align:left; width:72%; vertical-align:top;"| Medal Name Sport Event Date Tennis Men's singles August 23 Ichiya Kumagae Tennis Men's doubles August 23 | style="text-align:left; width:23%; vertical-align:top;"|
Medals by sportSport TotalTennis 0203Total0202
Aquatics
Diving
A single diver represented Japan in 1920. It was the nation's debut in the sport. Masayoshi Uchida was unable to advance past the first round of the plain high diving competition.
Men
Ranks given are within the semifinal group.
DiverEventSemifinalsFinalPointsScoreRankPointsScoreRank Masayoshi Uchida Plain high dive 40 94.0 8 did not advance
Swimming
Two swimmers, both men, represented Japan in 1920. It was the nation's debut in the sport. Neither of the swimmers advanced to the finals.
Ranks given are within the heat.
Men
SwimmerEventQuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinalResultRankResultRankResultRank Kenkichi Saito 100 m free Unknown 6 did not advance 400 m free 6:16.8 2 Q did not finish Masayoshi Uchida 100 m free Unknown 5 did not advance 400 m free 6:40.0 3 did not advance
Athletics
11 athletes represented Japan in 1920. It was the nation's second appearance in athletics, having competed in the sport both times Japan had appeared at the Olympics. Japan continued to seek its first medals in the sport unsuccessfully, with a 12th-place finish in the decathlon the best result of the Games for Japanese athletes.
Ranks given are within the heat.
AthleteEventHeatsQuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinalResultRankResultRankResultRankResultRank Saburo Hasumi 800 m N/A2:02.2 6 did not advance 1500 m N/A 6 did not advance Ichiro Kaga 100 m 5 did not advance 200 m 4 did not advance Shizo Kanakuri Marathon N/A 2:48:45.4 16 Hiroshi Masuda Pentathlon N/A did not finish Yahei Miura Marathon N/A 2:59:37.0 24 Zensaku Motegi 10000 m N/A 12 did not advance Marathon N/A 2:51:09.4 20 Gensabulo Noguchi Decathlon N/A 3668.630 12 Tomeichi Oura 5000 m N/A 6 did not advance Kunosuke Sano 5000 m N/A 7 did not advance 10000 m N/A 8 did not advance Shinichi Yamaoka 100 m 11.6 4 did not advance 200 m 23.9 4 did not advance Kenzo Yashima Marathon N/A 2:57:02.0 21
Tennis
Two tennis players, both men, competed for Japan in 1920. It was the nation's debut in the sport. Kumagae took the men's singles silver medal, and the pair also took silver in the men's doubles. The two would have faced each other in the quarterfinals of the singles tournament had Kashio advanced that far, so could not have won any more than the two medals they did win.
PlayerEventRound of 64Round of 32Round of 16QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinalsRankOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScoreOppositionScore Seiichiro Kashio Men's singles Bye W 6–3, 6–1, 6–2 L 6–3, 4–6, 6–2, 3–6, 6–1 did not advance 9 Ichiya Kumagae Men's singles W 7–5, 6–3, 6–3 W 6–0, 6–1, 6–0 W 7–5, 6–1, 6–4 W 7–5, 6–1, 6–1 W 6–2, 6–2, 6–2 L 5–7, 6–4, 7–5, 6–4 Seiichiro Kashio Ichiya Kumagae Men's doubles N/A Bye W 6–1, 6–4, 6–4 W 6–3, 6–2, 4–6, 6–3 W 6–4, 4–6, 6–3, 6–1 L 6–2, 5–7, 7–5, 7–5
Opponent nation Wins Losses Percent 3 0 1.000 1 0 1.000 1 0 1.000 0 1 .000 3 2 .600 1 0 1.000 Total 9 3 .750
Round Wins Losses Percent Round of 64 1 0 1.000 Round of 32 2 0 1.000 Round of 16 2 1 .667 Quarterfinals 2 0 1.000 Semifinals 2 0 1.000 Final 0 2 .000 Bronze match 0 0 – Total 9 3 .750
References
International Olympic Committee results database