Kakeru Kumagai (熊谷 翔, Kumagai Kakeru, born 5 January 2002) is a Japanese badminton player from Miyagi Prefecture.[1] He graduated from Nihon University then continued his career as a professional badminton player by joining the BIPROGY badminton team.[2]
| Kakeru Kumagai 熊谷 翔 | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Country | Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 5 January 2002 Ōsaki, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 68 kg (150 lb) | ||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Left | ||||||||||||||
| Coach | Kenichi Hayakawa Hiroyuki Endo Lee Wan Wah (NBA, 2023) | ||||||||||||||
| Men's & mixed doubles | |||||||||||||||
| Career record | MD: 25 wins, 16 losses (60.98%) XD: 11 wins, 11 losses (50.00%) | ||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 76 (MD with Kota Ogawa, 28 November 2023) 107 (XD with An Sato, 31 October 2023) | ||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 170 (MD with Hiroki Nishi, 8 October 2024) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| BWF profile | |||||||||||||||
Career
edit2023
editKumagai was selected as a representative of the 2023 Japan national badminton team (team B) in the men's doubles sector with Kota Ogawa and the mixed doubles with An Sato.[3] While on the national team, He was coached by former Malaysian men's doubles player Lee Wan Wah (bronze medalist at the 2001 and 2007 World Championships).
2024
editHe graduated from Nihon University and officially joined the BIPROGY badminton team on April 1 2024.[4]At BIPROGY, Kumagai plays in the doubles sector coached by former Japanese men's doubles players Hiroyuki Endo and Kenichi Hayakawa.
He started his first international tournament after officially joining BIPROGY at Kazakhstan International in the men's doubles sector partnering Hiroki Nishi. His debut together with Hiroki Nishi managed to beat the world number 47 pair Ondřej Král / Adam Mendrek in the semifinals in two straight games. However, they lost in the final to the world number 42 pair from France Lucas Corvée / Ronan Labar and finished as runner-up.
In June 2024, Kumagai took part in the team tournament of the 74th All Japan Business Corporation Championships as a member of the BIPROGY men's team. In the semifinal against NTT East, Kumagai played as the second men's doubles partner with one of the world's top players Yuta Watanabe. The Kumagai / Watanabe pair defeated Japan national team men's doubles representatives Kazuki Shibata / Naoki Yamada in two straight games. In the final round, the Kumagai / Watanabe pair also defeated the 2021 world champion men's doubles and Olympic Paris representatives Takuro Hoki / Yugo Kobayashi in two straight games (21–8, 21–18). The BRIPOGY men's team managed to win the tournament, beating the TONAMI Transportation team 3–0 in the final.[5] The pair Kakeru Kumagai / Yuta Watanabe were awarded the Most Valuable Players (MVP).
Achievements
editBWF World Tour (1 runner-up)
editThe BWF World Tour, which was introduced on 19 March 2017 and was held in 2018,[6] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.[7]
Men's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 (I) | Indonesia Masters | Super 100 |  Kota Ogawa
|
 Sabar Karyaman Gutama Muhammad Reza Pahlevi Isfahani
|
18–21, 15–21 |  Runner-up
|
[8] |
BWF International Challenge/Series (1 runner-up)
editMen's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Kazakhstan International | Hiroki Nishi
|
 Lucas Corvée Ronan Labar
|
14–21, 19–21 | Runner-up
|
[9] |
- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF International Series tournament
- BWF Future Series tournament
References
edit- ^ "Kakeru KUMAGAI | Profile". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ "熊谷 翔 BIPROGYバドミントンチーム" (in Japanese). BIPROGY Inc. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ "【日本代表情報】2023年の日本代表およびスタッフが正式決定！" (in Japanese). Badminton Spirit. 13 January 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ "4/1（月）に熊谷 翔選手、沖本 優大選手、谷岡 大后選手、坂井 叶選手が加入しました" (in Japanese). BIPROGY Inc. 1 April 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ "【【全日本実業団2024】BIPROGYがトナミ運輸に3-0で快勝！7回目のV達成！＜男子結果＞" (in Japanese). Badminton Spirit. 23 June 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
- ^ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ "Indonesia Masters 2023 - Sabar/Reza Kuasai Podium Teratas" (in Indonesian). Djarum Badminton. 10 September 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ Hirata, Noriyasu. "結果 カザフスタンインターナショナルチャレンジ2024" (in Japanese). Nippon Badminton Association. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
