Forwards Chiho Osawa and Hanae Kubo, along with goalkeeper Nana Fujimoto, were among the veteran players named to Japan¡¯s 23-woman ice hockey roster for the 2022 Winter Games on Sunday by the Japan Ice Hockey Federation.
Twenty-year-old forward Akane Shiga, who made her mark at the women¡¯s world championship in Calgary this summer, will lead a group of eight Olympic debutants in Beijing in February.
With the planned international friendlies in January canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Japan will play scrimmages with men¡¯s high school teams and hold domestic training camps in the lead-up to the games.
The puck will drop on the Winter Olympics on Feb. 3 when the women¡¯s preliminary-round play begins, one day before the official opening of the games. Japan¡¯s first game is against Sweden.
The Japanese women¡¯s ice hockey team is making its fourth Olympic appearance. Japan finished sixth out of eight at the Pyeongchang Games in 2018.
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