, née , is a Japanese gymnastics coach and former artistic gymnast. She was a five-time all-around national champion and competed at the 1996 Summer Olympics, where she finished 29th in the individual all around.
Personal life Sugawara was born in Toda, Saitama. Her parents were both gymnasts; her father, Hiroshi Sugawara won a silver team medal at the men's gymnastics event at the 1974 Asian Games, and her mother, Takako Hasegawa, competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics. Her older brother, , is a politician who became the mayor of Toda in 2018. When she was an active gymnast, she looked up to teammate Mari Kosuge.
Career She began gymnastics at the Toda Sports Center, where her parents coached. In 1994, she won her first national all-around title. She also competed at the 1994 Asian Games and the 1998 Asian Games, where she won silver medals with the team.
In 1996, Sugawara entered Nippon Sport Science University. That year, she tied for Japanese champion with . She represented Japan at the 1996 Summer Olympics and finished 29th in the individual all-around.
From 1997–1999, she won an additional three all-around national titles in a row. At the 1997 Summer Universiade, she won gold in the balance beam and floor finals, along with a silver on uneven bars and a bronze medal in the team event. At the 1998 Asian Games, she again won silver with the Japanese team. She also won individual bronze medals in the all-around and on the floor event.
Sugawara retired in 1999 due to injuries. She spent three years studying abroad at the Australian Institute of Sport. She now works as a coach in Toda and has two children. Her students include Olympians Hiraiwa Yuna and Rina Kishi. She has also spoken about her struggles with disordered eating to maintain her body weight during her time as a gymnast and the changing trend in women's gymnastics toward building more muscle in order to complete difficult elements.
Competition history YearEventTeamAAVTUBBBFX1989Aloha Gymfest 10 Japanese Championships 20 1990Japanese Championships 10 6NHK Cup 11 1991Aloha Gymfest Blume Memorial 31 1992Gander Memorial 6 Japanese Championships NHK Cup 7 Pacific Alliance Championships 746 6Swiss Cup 6 1993Chunichi Cup 54657East Asian Games Japanese Championships 45 JPN-USA Dual Meet4 NHK Cup Tokyo Cup 748World Championships 30 1994McDonald's American Cup 14 Asian Games54 5Chunichi Cup 5 Fukuoka Cup 6456International Mixed Pairs13 Japanese Championships 1995Aloha Gymfest Chunichi Cup 66876Gander Memorial 7 Japanese Championships Pre-Olympics Test Event 14 World Championships 1028 1996Chunichi Cup 4 Japanese Championships NHK Cup Olympic Games1229 1997Visa American Cup 10 Chunichi Cup 46454Japanese Championships 8NHK Cup Pitari Cup Summer Universiade Lausanne World Championships 925 1998American Classic 33 Visa American Cup 17 Asian Games 54 China Cup 10 8 Chunichi Cup 56465Japanese Championships NHK Cup Pacific Alliance Championships 31 7 6World Cup Final 751999Japanese Championships NHK Cup World Championships1318
References
External links