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Muraoka is Japan’s top female sit-skier, with multiple Asia Cup podiums across speed and technical events from the last three seasons.
In 2015, she made her mark on the international scene with her first World Championships podiums alongside the likes of multiple Paralympic and Worlds medallists, Austria’s Claudia Loesch and Germany’s Anna Schaffelhuber.
Diagnosed with transverse myelitis at the age of four, Muraoka has also showed her prowess on the World Cup circuit with a handful of top three finishes as she continues to improve season-on-season.
The teenager was a T54 para-athlete with several podium finishes from national Championships until she decided to swap her racing wheelchair for a sit-ski during 2012-13.
However Muraoka has not entirely turned her back on her track career, stating that she aims to win a medal at the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games and go on to represent her country at Tokyo 2020.
Her quest for PyeongChang 2018 gained momentum in 2015-16 when she won the women's giant slalom sitting World Cup globe, as well as finishing second in super-G. Muraoka finished third in the overall women's sitting World Cup.
Her recent performances have placed her in a great position to win her first world titles when she skis at the 2017 World Para Alpine Skiing Championships in Tarvisio, Italy.
Biography
Impairment information
Further personal information
Sport specific information
General interest
In 2018 she received the Fukaya Citizen Honorary Award in Japan. (tokyo-np.co.jp, 29 Jun 2018)
She was Japan's flag bearer at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. (paralympic.org, 27 Feb 2018)
In 2019 she decided to focus on Para athletics ahead of the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. "I wanted to become faster and stronger after the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. I thought that of course I would be able to do that, but to be honest I didn't know what to do. In the 2018/19 seasons, it was a little bit rough for me to ski. At that time, I began thinking about Para athletics. I thought that it would be a right time to take up the sport a bit more seriously as there were no [skiing] world championships and Paralympic Winter Games between 2019 and 2020. When I asked for advice, I was told that I needed to spend that time on Para alpine skiing more. However, I became aware of myself as an athlete after devoting to Para athletics for one year. Although it became difficult to adjust the schedule [due to the postponement of the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo], I would like to do my best so that I can participate in the 2020 and 2022 Paralympics." (sportrait-web.com, 29 Jan 2020; nikkansports.com, 14 Jun 2020)
FURTHER EDUCATION
She has studied for a master's degree at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. (nikkansports.com, 14 Jun 2020)
Results
| Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Super-G Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-10 | 9999 | |
| Women's Slalom Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-12 | 9 | |
| Women's Giant Slalom Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-16 | 5 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Downhill Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-03-04 | 2 | |
| Women's Super-G Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-03-05 | 9999 | |
| Women's Super-Combined Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-03-07 | 4 | |
| Women's Giant Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-03-08 | 3 | |
| Women's Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-03-10 | 4 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Downhill Sitting | Race 1 | 2017-01-25 | 3 | |
| Women's Super-G Sitting | Race 1 | 2017-01-26 | 3 | |
| Women's Super-Combined Sitting | Race 1 | 2017-01-28 | 4 | |
| Women's Giant Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2017-01-30 | 3 | |
| Women's Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2017-01-31 | 4 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Downhill Sitting | Final | 2018-03-10 | 2 | |
| Women's Super-G Sitting | Final | 2018-03-11 | 3 | |
| Women's Super Combined Sitting | Final | 2018-03-13 | 3 | |
| Women's Giant Slalom Sitting | Final | 2018-03-14 | 1 | |
| Women's Slalom Sitting | Final | 2018-03-18 | 2 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Giant Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2019-01-22 | 1 | |
| Women's Slalom Sitting | Race 1 | 2019-01-24 | 3 | |
| Women's Downhill Sitting | Race 1 | 2019-01-30 | 3 | |
| Women's Super-Combined Sitting | Race 1 | 2019-01-31 | 1 | |
| Women's Super-G Sitting | Race 1 (from SC) | 2019-01-31 | 2 |
