Akiko Amano, the sole Japanese judo referee at this year¡¯s Tokyo Olympics, has a full-time job that involves more heat and energy than a gold medal match: She is the first female head of a famed fireworks company whose history goes back 362 years.
When the Kagiya company puts on a fireworks display, which can attract more than a million spectators, Amano oversees about 100 pyrotechnicians. Although the required skills are quite different from those of a judo judge, Amano says she draws strength from her work experience.
¡°You work with danger hanging over yourself at fireworks events. In a pinch, you cannot judge and issue instructions to ensure safety of spectators and your craftsmen unless you are mentally prepared,¡± Amano, 50, said.
¡°For a judo referee, it is extremely important to have the courage to pass split-second decisions as the situation changes from moment to moment in a match. That courage and determination is cultivated by the fireworks job,¡± she added
Amano, ranked by the International Judo Federation (IJF) as one of the world¡¯s top 10 referees, said courage and determination also apply to the fate of the Tokyo Games, as Japan struggles with a fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
¡°I see the Tokyo Olympics as the culmination of my 20-year career as an IJF referee. But I¡¯m also ready for a possible cancellation ... I will have no regrets either way,¡± said Amano, the 15th-generation leader of Kagiya.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has pledged that the event will go ahead, but a voter survey by Jiji Press showed this month that two-thirds of those polled believed the Olympics should be postponed again or canceled.
An Olympic judo referee is not allowed to judge a match involving a compatriot, so the better Japanese judoists perform, the less chance Amano will participate in later-stage competition. But she said she wouldn¡¯t mind.
¡°I was the main referee for the men¡¯s 100-kg final match at the Beijing Olympics. I¡¯ve already tasted the gravity and joy that come with it,¡± Amano said. ¡°This time, I¡¯m just thrilled with the prospects of being able to watch, up close, Japanese athletes fighting it out.¡±
The Tokyo Olympics, delayed by a year because of the pandemic, are scheduled to open on July 23. Japan traditionally dominates judo at the games.
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