Takako Oguchi (小口貴子, Oguchi Takako; born August 8, 1984, in Wajima) (née Omukai) is a Japanese skeleton racer who has…Takako Oguchi (小口貴子, Oguchi Takako; born August 8, 1984, in Wajima) (née Omukai) is a Japanese skeleton racer who has competed since 2003 and joined the Japanese national team in 2005. She uses a Bromley sled. She married in 2015.
Shigeo Kitamura (北村 茂男, Kitamura Shigeo; born 8 November 1945) is a retired Japanese politician of the Liberal…Shigeo Kitamura (北村 茂男, Kitamura Shigeo; born 8 November 1945) is a retired Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, who served as a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature).
Kiyoshi Nagai (永井潔, Nagai Kiyoshi; born September 6, 1945), better known by the pen name Go Nagai (永井 豪, Nagai Gō), is…Kiyoshi Nagai (永井潔, Nagai Kiyoshi; born September 6, 1945), better known by the pen name Go Nagai (永井 豪, Nagai Gō), is a Japanese manga artist and a prolific author of science fiction, fantasy and horror. He made his professional debut in 1967 with Meakashi Polikichi, but is best known for creating popular 1970s manga and anime series such as Cutie Honey, Devilman, and Mazinger Z. He is credited with creating the super robot genre; designing the first mecha robots piloted by a user from within a cockpit with Mazinger Z; as well as helping pioneer the magical girl genre with Cutie Honey; the post-apocalyptic manga/anime genre with Violence Jack; and the ecchi genre with Harenchi Gakuen. In 2005, he became a Character Design professor at the Osaka University of Arts. He has been a member of the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize's nominating committee since 2009.
Hiroshi Nagai (永井 博, Nagai Hiroshi; born March 10, 1941 in Shanghai, China), better known by the pseudonym Yasutaka…Hiroshi Nagai (永井 博, Nagai Hiroshi; born March 10, 1941 in Shanghai, China), better known by the pseudonym Yasutaka Nagai (永井 泰宇, Nagai Yasutaka), is a Chinese-born Japanese novelist, manga author and scenario writer. He is one of the four brothers of manga artist Go Nagai. In 1969, he was a candidate for the Edogawa Rampo Prize for his novel Baptism of Blood (鮮血のバプテスマ Senketsu no Baputesuma), written under the pen name Baku Nagai (the onyomi reading of his birth name), but lost to Seiichi Morimura. He abandoned his activities as a writer, for a time, with the establishment of Dynamic Production. He would re-debut as a writer in 1981 with Shin Devilman (not to be confused with the manga of similar name with which he also collaborated). When working as a comic writer, he usually takes yet another pen name, that of Hiroshi Koenji. He wrote several comics for both his brother Go Nagai and Ken Ishikawa, such as Maboroshi Panty, Haru Ichiban and Shinrei Tantei Occult Dan, among others.
Yoshihiko Osaki (大崎 剛彦, Ōsaki Yoshihiko; February 27, 1939 – April 28, 2015) was a Japanese swimmer. He competed at the…Yoshihiko Osaki (大崎 剛彦, Ōsaki Yoshihiko; February 27, 1939 – April 28, 2015) was a Japanese swimmer. He competed at the 1960 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal in the 200 metre breaststroke and a bronze medal in the 4 × 100 m medley relay. In 1984, Osaki helped establish the Japan Masters Swimming Association and served on its board until his death. During those years he popularized masters swimming both in Japan and internationally. In 1986, he organized the first FINA World masters championships in Tokyo, and since 1993 participated in every international masters competition. He had competed in five age groups, set 9 world masters records and won 7 world titles. In 2006 he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in the Contributors category. Osaki died of interstitial pneumonia, aged 76. He was survived by two daughters, a son, and wife Yoshiko Sato, a fellow masters and Olympic swimmer.
Tsuyoshi Yamanaka (山中 毅, Yamanaka Tsuyoshi; 18 January 1939 – 10 February 2017) was a Japanese freestyle swimmer. He…Tsuyoshi Yamanaka (山中 毅, Yamanaka Tsuyoshi; 18 January 1939 – 10 February 2017) was a Japanese freestyle swimmer. He competed in the 400 m, 1500 m and 4 × 200 m events at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and won four silver medals; he also helped Japan win a bronze relay medal in 1964 by swimming in the heat, and placed fourth in the 4 × 200 m relay in 1956 and in the 1500m in 1960. At the 1960 Olympics, he swam the fastest leg in the 4 × 200 m relay, yet his team lost to the United States. Yamanaka won the 400 m and 1500 m events at the 1958 Asian Games. Yamanaka studied in college at the University of Southern California, where he broke the 200 m world record three times within two months in 1961. He set two more records over 200 m earlier in 1958–59, but this distance was not an Olympic event in those years. Yamanaka also set a world record over 400 m in 1959 and three world records in the 4 × 200 m relay in 1959 and 1963. Yamanaka graduated from Waseda University and later headed the Itoman Swimming School in Osaka. In 1983 he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame. In 1995, he unsuccessfully ran for the House of Councillors. Yamanaka's coach used pebbles to communicate with him during the training sessions – whenever Yamanaka would relax the coach would throw a pebble in his back. After the training Yamanaka had to collect the pebbles from the pool bottom. Yamanaka died from pneumonia on 10 February 2017 in Tokyo, at the age of 78.