PyeongChang 2018: Japan name Para ice hockey team
Satoru Sudo and Wataru Horie will lead the 17-man roster 15 Feb 2018Wataru Horie is a key defenceman for Japan at PyeongChang 2018
The Japan Para Ice Hockey Association has revealed the 17 athletes who will make up the team competing at the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games.
Eight players carry Paralympic experience, including team captain Satoru Sudo who was part of the team that captured silver at the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.
After missing out on Sochi 2014, Japan returned to the Paralympic scene after earning a spot from the Qualification Tournament last October in Ostersund, Sweden. Wataru Horie was key to helping Japan qualify from Ostersund, where he was named defenseman of the tournament, returns to the roster.
Goalkeepers
Shinobu Fukushima*
Kazuya Mochizuki
Forwards
Susumu Hirose
Wataru Horie
Mamoru Yoshikawa*
Taimei Shiba*
Mikio Annaka*
Yoshihiro Shioya
Kazuhiro Takahashi* (alternate captain)
Nao Kodama
Keisuke Nagumo
Masaharu Kumagai (alternate captain)
Defenders
Toshiyuki Nakamura
Satoru Sudo* (captain)
Eiji Misawa*
Daisuke Uehara*
Hideaki Ishii
Head coach
Kojin Nakakita
*Paralympic Games experience
The complete roster can be found on Japan Para Ice Hockey Association’s website.