is a Japanese retired Nordic combined skier. He won a gold medal in the 4 × 5 km team event at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec.
Career Competing in six Winter Olympics, Watabe won four olympic medals: two silvers and two bronzes.
During the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, Akito Watabe took home the silver medal in the Nordic Combined Individual Gundersen NH / 10 km, Cross-Country event.Suskin, Jeremy Akito Watabe Brings Home First Olympic Medal in 20 Years for Nordic Skiing Event 2 December 2014
In the 2018 Olympics, Watabe won the silver medal in the normal hill/10 km Nordic combined competition.
In the 2022 Olympics, Akito Watabe won two bronze medals in the large hill/10 km and Team large hill Nordic combined competition.
He has the record of most starts in the history of the FIS Nordic Combined World Cup, 303.
Personal life His wife, Yurie Watabe, is a Japanese freestyle skier, who specialises in halfpipe. Akito's younger brother, Yoshito also competes in Nordic Combined World Cup.
World Cup wins Season Date Location Hill2011–12 5 February 2012 Val di Fiemme HS134/10 km 18 February 2012 Klingenthal HS140/10 km 26 February 2012 Liberec HS134/10 km 9 March 2012 Oslo HS106/10 km 2013–14 15 March 2014 Falun HS134/10 km 2014–15 6 March 2015 Lahti HS130/10 km 14 March 2015 Oslo HS104/15 km 2016–17 11 February 2017 Sapporo HS134/10 km 11 March 2017 Oslo HS104/10 km 2017–18 25 November 2017 Ruka HS142/10 km 26 January 2018 Seefeld HS109/5 km 27 January 2018 Seefeld HS109/10 km 28 January 2018 Seefeld HS109/15 km 3 February 2018 Hakuba HS134/10 km 10 March 2018 Oslo HS104/10 km 24 March 2018 Schonach HS106/10 km 25 March 2018 Schonach HS106/15 km 2019–20 1 March 2020 Lahti HS130/10 km 2020–21 24 January 2021 Lahti HS130/10 km
References
External links
Akito Watabe at Milano Cortina 2026