Fifteen members of the Nadeshiko Japan soccer team that won the 2011 Women¡¯s World Cup will lead off the Tokyo Olympic Games torch relay on Thursday, but the side¡¯s biggest star will not take part due to health concerns.
Homare Sawa, the most valuable player and top goal scorer of the World Cup in Germany, is dealing with a long-term condition affecting her inner ear and will not run in the relay, former Nadeshiko Japan head coach Norio Sasaki said Wednesday.
Speaking at a press conference before the start of the 121-day relay, Sasaki said he and the Nadeshiko Japan players would be thinking of their inspirational captain when they set out from the J-Village soccer training center in Fukushima Prefecture.
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