It was an unforgettable year for sports in Japan in 2007.
From Miki Ando's gold medal-winning performance in the World Figure Skating Championships and Mao Asada's silver-medal effort, to Mongolian yokozuna Asashoryu's unprecedented two-tournament suspension and pay cut for playing in a soccer exhibition match, to disgraced boxer Daiki Kameda's outlandish, rude antics in the ring (unfortunately, he gave a live, impromptu lecture on being a punk), to the Urawa Reds' Asian Champions League title, there were plenty of big, bold headlines created in this sports-crazed nation.
Those are but a few of the highlights and lowlights.
Here are a few more:
Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters hurler Yu Darvish won the Sawamura Award and the Pacific League MVP award, reminding everyone that he is destined for greatness.
The Chunichi Dragons won their first Japan Series title in 53 years under the steady, but unpredictable leadership of Hiromitsu Ochiai.
Trey Hillman, the Fighters' skipper, stepped down as manager to take over as the Kansas City Royals manager. But not before guiding the Hammies to their second Japan Series appearance in as many seasons. An all-around good guy, Hillman-kantoku will be missed in Hokkaido.
Ryoko Tani proved that she can juggle motherhood and superstardom at the same time. She made a stirring comeback at the 2007 World Judo Championships in Rio de Janeiro, capturing her seventh world title at 48 kg.
But now it's time to turn the page; the sports calendar demands that we do just that.
So what's in store for 2008?
Your guess is good as mine.
But here are a few predictions, with the help of The Japan Times' crystal ball, which was purchased at a ¥100 shop in Ota Ward. (Yes, indeed, displaying a little humor is a good thing to start a new year and in any column of predictions.)
The Yomiuri Giants, off to a fast start, reminiscent of the 1984 Detroit Tigers, surprise no one by capturing their second consecutive Central League pennant before winning the Japan Series. The team has the talent and offensive firepower to reclaim the top spot after a few underachieving seasons.
Kosuke Kitajima resumes his intense, must-watch rivalry with Brandon Hansen at the Beijing Summer Olympics. This time, the speedy breaststroke specialists each win a gold medal, with the other taking the silver.
Kosuke Fukudome, now a Chicago Cub, helps Lou Piniella's team break The Curse of the Billy Goat. The steady all-around player will hit .300, give the Cubs a super defensive presence in the outfield and help the Windy City franchise win the World Series for the first time since 1908. (Hey, if the Red Sox can win it twice in four years, it seems this curse is bound to be broken sooner rather than later.)
Piniella told me in 1999 during spring training that he expected Ichiro Suzuki., then a guest player at the Seattle Mariners' spring training camp in Peoria, Ariz., would become a Quinton McCracken-type player if and when he moved on to the major leagues.
We now know that analogy became sports' understatement of the decade. He can expect Fukudome to have a bigger impact, too.
Tani captures her third consecutive Olympic judo gold medal, and then announces she wants to take a nap. She'll deserve it. Being a mom and the model of excellence in a sport can be a tiresome combination.
Shunsuke Nakamura leads Celtic to a second straight Scottish Premier League title, saving his best for last. An extra time free-kick, as brilliant a ball-bending kick as any taken by David Beckham, puts Nakamura's team over the top for good in the season's final week.
Tiger Woods joins the Chiba Lotte Marines. Call it a publicity stunt, if you will, but it proves to be a wildly effective late-game strategy, too. The world's richest golfer has great hand-eye coordination and proves to Bobby Valentine that he can be a dependable bunter in critical pinch-hitting situations.
In a related move, Roger Federer signs a contract with the Seibu Lions. He says he's bored of tennis — for now. He wants to master the art of the hit-and-run. He fails miserably, getting injured in his first plate appearance on June 9, when a swallow violently crashes into him as he takes warmup swings in the batter's box. He loses his balance, drops his bat and breaks both ankles. Ouch! (Conspiracy theorists and a few over-caffeinated writers suspect Rafael Nadal had something to do with this. Even Tonya Harding admits the swallow's flight path appeared unusual.)
Table tennis ace Ai Fukuhara overwhelms the competition in Beijing to claim a gold medal. After returning to Japan, she trades in her gold medal for the world's largest collection of Hello Kitty memorabilia.
Who says there's no 'real drama' in sports?
There'll be plenty of drama —and entertainment, too — in 2008, including the following:
Hideo Nomo says he'll never retire as a pitcher. He starts a barnstorming team and vows to become the first guy to strike out 27 batters in a game played atop a JR Station. (The Harlem Globetrotters immediately take note of this and begin negotiations for a New Year's Eve extravaganza next year against a Japanese team, featuring a slew of newcomers, including twins Joji and Kosuke Takeuchi, played on portable court on Mt. Fuji against a combined team of bj-league and JBL players.)
Capitalizing on the success of Nomo and the Globetrotters in their entrepreneurial endeavors, Reiko Tosa, the bronze medalist in the women's marathon at the 2007 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Osaka, agrees to compete in a 3,200-meter race against hammer thrower Koji Murofushi in Ueno Park.
The event is televised live on TBS when sakura blossoms are in full bloom. A pay-per-view version of the event (with proceeds going to help Tsuyoshi Shinjo run for mayor in Sapporo) is aired with Dick Vitale, the rambunctious American college basketball analyst, and former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi teaming up to provide on-the-scene commentary.
Before the race starts, Koizumi belts out a medley of Elvis Presley tunes, prompting Murofushi to pick him up and toss him like a hammer. (Apparently, the 2004 gold medalist is in a hurry.)
Sadaharu Oh, reliving his youth, puts on a riveting show at batting practice on the final day of June, smacking home runs to left, right and center with equal frequency.
The Fukuoka Softbank Hawks manager says he wants to play one game for a MLB team before turning 70. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner immediately announces he'll sign Oh for $1 billion if the Lions agree to two conditions: He gets an unlimited supply of onigiri and a box seat at every grand sumo tournament for the next 10 years.
