“This is my fifth time competing at the world championships and I wanted to make sure it counted. I was determined to stay focused and calm throughout the day. Every round was tough but maybe the final was hardest of all. I am glad I was able to maintain my calmness.”
Despite her professional exterior, her plan to control her mental approach to the event and her obvious technical ability, Koga knew there could still be challenges ahead, “Shirine Boukli has beaten me before and I had to think about some different ways to manage that contest. In the end I didn’t have to use them so I will keep them for the future!”
At her fifth senior world championship, Wakana Koga is finally world champion but this is not the end of her career, not even close. She is a judoka always aiming to improve. “I would really like to win in the future with flashy techniques like pick-ups, instead of my regular ashi-waza and ne-waza.” Ambition doesn’t stop with the earning of a world title!
This attitude is at Koga’s core. She said, with a smile on her face, “Back at home, Japanese children must make sure they practise a lot, eat a lot and sleep a lot; all of these are necessary for dreams to come true.” One of Koga’s dreams certainly came true in Baku!
How did she get here? For her, the support from home has been incredibly important. Her parents travelled to Baku to support their daughter and brought with them a Japanese flag covered in messages from her club, JR East.
Her coach at JR East is also a world champion at -48 kg: Tomoko Fukumi. Fukumi sensei won gold in Rotterdam in 2009 and added two more medals at the 2010 and 2011 editions. Between student and teacher, they are gathering quite a collection.
Wakana Koga can now enjoy the remainder of this world championships satisfied with the outcome of her work, her attention to detail and her calm approach to judo at the highest level.
