Kimie Bessho (別所キミヱ, Bessho Kimie, born 8 December 1947)[1] is a Japanese para table tennis player who competes in international level events. She was a bronze medallist at the 2014 Asian Para Games and has participated at the Summer Paralympics four times, she was also one of the oldest participants to compete at the 2016 Summer Paralympics aged 68 years old. She is often known to wear butterfly hairclips as a superstition for her tournament matches[2][3] and is referred to as "The Butterfly Lady".[4][5]
 Bessho at 2006 World Championships | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Shiny | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 8 December 1947 Hiroshima, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 53 kg (117 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country |  Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Para table tennis | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Disability class | C5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Domani Table Tennis Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Background
editBessho grew up in Hiroshima, Japan as one of eight children.[4]
When Bessho was 39, her husband died from a short illness and two years later, she was diagnosed with cancer and had to use a wheelchair indefinitely after two operations. She was told at that time that she only had three years to live. Bessho began playing table tennis at the age of 45 after being fascinated by the sport and made her debut appearance at the 2004 Summer Paralympics finishing in fifth place.[6] In 2018, she was injured in two more car accidents, but has continued to play table tennis.[4]
Career records
editsource[3]
- 2015 German Open: Singles: 3rd Place
- 2016 Japan Open: 1st Place
- 2016 Slovakia Open: 3rd Place
- 2016 8th Para Table Tennis Championships: 1st Place
- 2016 Paralympic Games 5th Place
- 2017 Asian Para Table Tennis Championships (Beijing): 2nd Place
- 2017 9th Para Table Tennis Championships: 1st Place
- 2017 Thailand Open: 2nd Place
References
edit- ^ "Athens 2004 Paralympic Games - Table Tennis - Official Results Book". ipc-services.org. International Paralympic Committee. 19 September 2004.
- ^ "Kimie Bessho - IPTTF Profile". International Para Table Tennis Federation. 8 August 2020.
- ^ a b "Table Tennis - Kimie Bessho". The Nippon Foundation Paralympic Support Centre. 8 August 2020.
- ^ a b c Selina Wang and Junko Ogura, CNN Photographs by Shiho Fukada for. "Kimie Bessho: 'The Butterfly Lady' of Paralympic table tennis". CNN. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ "Kimie Bessho: 'The Butterfly Lady' of Paralympic table tennis". Public News. 24 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
- ^ "Japan's oldest athlete brings her best to the table". Asia One. 14 September 2016.[dead link]