Astana 2025 Team Preview: Get to know Japan

The 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championships B-Pool will take place from 6-11 September in Astana, Kazakhstan, with six national teams competing in 15 games over six days. Hosted by the Kazakhstan Para Hockey Federation at the Tarlan Arena, participating nations will include Italy, Japan, Sweden, Kazakhstan, France and Finland. 

The top two finishers from the round-robin tournament event will earn promotion to the A-Pool for the 2027 season and spots at the Milano-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games. The bottom finisher will be released to the C-Pool for next season.

The vibrant host city, Astana, is the capital of Kazakhstan and is the country’s second-largest city with over one million residents. It is home to several professional ice hockey teams, including Barys Astana, which forms the core of the Kazakh national squad competing at the 2025 IIHF World Championship. This will be the 11th edition of B-Pool Worlds and the fourth time it is held in Asia. 

Here’s a look at Team Japan.

Background    

Ranked No. 2 in the tournament, Japan will look to build on their triumph in Astana in 2023, when they went undefeated to take gold and secure promotion to A‑Pool with emphatic scoring and standout performances from goaltender Wataru Horie and forwards Masaharu Kumagai and Itsuki Ito. This year, Japan again faces a tough road: only the top two teams earn promotion, while the top three advance to the final Paralympic qualifier. With a blend of young talents like Itsuki Ito and experienced veterans such as Satoru Sudo, Japan enters the B‑Pool with ambition and resilience as they seek to reclaim their place among the sport’s elite group.

World Championships History 

2024: 8th place
2023: Gold (B-Pool)
2021: 4th place (B-Pool)
2019: 6th place
2017: Silver (B-Pool)
2015: 8th place
2013: Silver (B-Pool)
2012: 7th place
2009: 4th place
2008: 4th place 
2004: 6th place
2000: 4th place
1996: 6th place

Roster 

Forwards: Hiroaki Kobayashi, Yoshihiro Shioya, Mikio Kaneko, Itsuki Ito, Kazuyoshi Nittsu, Amu Morisaki, Mamoru Yoshikawa, Masahiro Matsushita, Shosei Ukai, Masaharu Kumagai
Defenders: Yudai Ishikawa, Norihiko Nasu, Fiji Misawa, Satoru Sudo
Goaltenders: Manabu Okabe, Wataru Horie
Head Coach: Kojin Nakakita 

Athlete to Watch 

Forward Itsuki Ito is the youthful spark of the team at the young age of 19. At the B-Pool tournament in 2023, he notched six goals and three assists to earn MVP honors and cement his impact as a rising star in the sport, highlighting his impact and rising star status. Following his graduation from high school, Ito received a scholarship to study in the United States and is aiming to build a global career in Para ice hockey.

Game Schedule 

Saturday, 6 September 
12:00 — Japan vs. France

Sunday, 7 September 
19:00 — Japan vs. Kazakhstan

Monday, 8 September 
15:30— Japan vs. Sweden

Wednesday, 10 September 
12:00 — Japan vs. Finland

Thursday, 11 September 
15:30 — Italy vs. Japan