Portraits of Michael Leitch and the Legendary "World Cup Captains" Throughout History
Reflecting on the men who led Japan to compete against the world!
Their struggles in the "Sakura" jersey!!
Kenji Demura / the late Seiji Hirao
Masahiro Kudo / Andrew McCormick
Takuro Minouchi / Takashi Kikuta
Toshiro Hirose / Michael Leitch
Yukio Motoki / Daisuke Hihara / Takamichi Sasaki / Hitoshi Ohno / Kensuke Hatakeyama / Shota Horie / Michi Tachikawa
The 2019 Japan Rugby World Cup was the "first time in Asia" to be held.
Japan, participating in its 9th consecutive tournament since the first Rugby World Cup in 1987, achieved its first-ever quarterfinals.
This book explores the historic achievements of Japan’s fierce battles and the secrets behind the strength of the "World Cup Captains"!
【Main Content Outline】
Prologue: Aiming to be the "Strongest Captain" and reach the Top 8 in the world
~ Michael Leitch, Japan National Team Captain at the 9th Japan Tournament
Chapter 1: The "Breaker" who was a "destroyer" in Australia and the UK—"The Smallest Lock in the World"
~ Kenji Hayashi, Japan National Team Captain at the 1st New Zealand-Australia co-hosted tournament
Chapter 2: The challenge to Scotland and Ireland, leading to joy 28 years later
~ Seiji Hirao, Japan National Team Captain at the 2nd England and other 5-nation co-hosted tournament
Chapter 3: The heavy burden of "145 points conceded"
~ Masahiro Kudo, Japan National Team Captain at the 3rd South Africa tournament
Chapter 4: The first foreign captain who reached a "Japanese-like" sensibility
~ Andrew McCormick, Japan National Team Captain at the 4th Wales tournament
Chapter 5: The birth of the "handsome" 'The Captain'
~ Takuro Minouchi, Japan National Team Captain at the 5th Australia tournament
Chapter 6: Continuing to seek, but unable to achieve "consistent strengthening"
~ Takuro Minouchi, Japan National Team Captain at the 6th France tournament
Chapter 7: The "Captain who didn't look like a captain" who continued to play superhumanly
~ Takashi Kikuta, Japan National Team Captain at the 7th New Zealand tournament
Chapter 8: Two captains who "changed history"
~ Michael Leitch, Japan National Team Captain at the England tournament
~ Toshiro Hirose, Japan National Team Captain during the 2012–13 season
In the 2019 9th Rugby World Cup, Japan made its first quarterfinal appearance on its 9th challenge.
The author, who has made covering the Rugby World Cup his life's work, delves into the stories of Japan’s captains from the first tournament with Kenji Hayashi to the 9th with Michael Leitch, exploring their global challenges.
In addition to the main stories about the 8 men who served as captains on the world’s top stage every four years, the book also introduces "Other Leaders" who, although not captains during the World Cup, led the Sakura jersey with outstanding leadership.
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Kenji Demura
Born in 1964 in Sapporo, Hokkaido. Graduated from Sapporo Nanryo High School and Meiji University.
After working in editing and advertising-related companies, from the early 1990s, based in Paris, France, he has been producing photo essays mainly on sports such as rugby, soccer, and ice hockey.
His rugby photos have been distributed not only to Japanese media such as Rugby Magazine, Sankei Sports, and Kyodo News but also to overseas news agencies.
He has fully covered every Rugby World Cup since 1995 South Africa, boasting one of the largest collections of test match photos worldwide.
He has also been responsible for official photography for the Japan Rugby Football Union, Asia Rugby (Asian Rugby Union), and World Rugby (formerly the International Rugby Board).
His published works include "Elliptical Sphere and Earth: The Existence of Rugby."
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