Asia's First Female Olympian

ASIA'S FIRST FEMALE OLYMPIAN By Ian Buchanan KINUE HITOMI he Meiji Revolution of 1868 the First Kyoto Girls' High School. She spent one month at the Japanese Women's Athletic College Tbrought sweeping changes to the before joining the sports section of the Mainichi fabric of Japanese life, but it was not newspaper as journalist in May 1926 and she later until some fifty years later that these wrote two books on track and field. changes embraced the development of Standing 5'7" (1.70 m) tall with an extraordinary thigh women's sport. development, which powered her long stride, she had The first Japanese sportswomen of international an unusual physique for Japanese female of the time. repute were the golfer, Sunado Komako, and the Initially, a promising tennis player, she set the first of tennis player, Isoko Asabuki. Komako, an actress, was her Japanese records in the standard track & field better known as the events as a 17-year- 'Japanese Gloria old schoolgirl in Swanson' and she was November 1924, the first woman to when she posted a play female roles on new national best for the stage and screen the javelin and twice when such roles had, posted a world best for centuries been for the rarely restricted to boy contested triple jump actors. From this in 1925. In 1926, she inhibiting again improved her environment emerged triple jump best and a new Japanese female this stood as a world sporting superstar in 'record' until 1939. the person of the Earlier in 1926, versatile and superbly Hitmi had faced talented Kinue Hitomi. international competition for the Hitomi was the first time when she second daughter of went to Europe to Mr. And Mrs. Isaku compete in the Hitomi and was born second women's in Fukuhama-mura, World Games at Mitsu-gun, Okayama Gothenburg. Before Prefecture, on 1 January leaving for Sweden 1907. Her parents Japan's Kinue Hitomi finishing second behind Linn Radke of Germany in she twice set new the famous 800m in Amsterdam 1928 were wealthy rice world long jump farmers and had the means to send their daughter to records, although these marks were never ratified, but the school of their choice and they opted for news of her exploits had reached Europe and much Okayama Prefecture G. High School. After was expected of the Japanese 'wonder woman' at the graduating in 1924, Hitomi spent one year at the Gothenburg Games. She did not disappoint. She took Okayama Prefecture Girls' Gym School in Tokyo, the long jump with a new official world record of before becoming a physical education instructor at 22 JOURNAL OF OLYMPIC HISTORY - SEPTEMBER 2000 5.50 m/18ft 0 ½ and women's World she also won the Games, where she standing long jump, retained her long placed second in jump title, placed the discus, third in second in the the 100 yards, fifth triathlon, third in in the 60 metres the 60 metres and and sixth in the javelin and she also 250 metres. In the ran on the fourth officially scored placed relay team. Games Japan placed She finally closed the fifth with 23 points season with an and Hitomi scored astonishing display of them all! stamina and versatility Unfortunately for the Asian when she took part in twenty star the 100 metres was the events within the space of one only one of her speciality events week: seven in a dual meet against to be included in the Olympic Poland, then six against Belgium six programme. She chose to attempt the unusual days later and finally another seven against 100 metres - 800 metres double and on 30 July 1928 France the following day. she lined up in heat No. 3 of the 100 metres and Due to physical strain following her efforts in Europe achieved the distinction of being the first Asian in 1930, she contacted pleurisy in April 1931, which woman, in any sport, to take part in the Olympic later developed into tyrotoxicon pneumonia and she Games. She won her 100 metres heat but was passed away at noon on Sunday, 2 August 1931 at eliminated in the next round and two days later she Osaka Imperial University Hospital. won her 800 metres heat in her first ever race over the distance, then on 2 August she won the silver medal Her untimely death at the age of 24 deprived track fans in the final. Hitomi finished just 0.8 seconds behind of the anticipated clash with "Babe" Didrikson (USA) at the winner, Lina Radke (Germany), and her time of the 1932 Olympics, but as Hitomi's best events, the 200 2:17.6 bettered the previous world record by almost metres and the long jump, were not to be included in the two seconds and remained an Asian record for more Olympic programme until 1948, the major honours than twenty years. would probably have gone to the American. The highlights of her 1929 season came in a dual It was the absence of these two events that perhaps meet against Germany at Seoul (then part of Japan) in deprived Hitomi of a gold medal at the 1928 Games, so October where she posted world records of 24.7 for although she can claim to be the first Asian female the 200 metres straight and 6.075m/19' 7 ½" for the Olympic medallist, the honour of being the first Asian long jump, but both marks were denied offical woman to win a gold medal goes to the swimmer Hideko recognition because of wind assistance. Maehata of Japan, who won the 200 metres breaststroke at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. 1930 was to prove the final season for this Olympic pioneer and she finished her brilliant career in Acknowledgments: Eric Cowe; Bob Miyakawa. memorable fashion. She went to Prague for the third JOURNAL OF OLYMPIC HISTORY - SEPTEMBER 2000 23.

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