Keiko Asami

I have to admit to feeling embarrassed when I heard Keiko’s list of achievements on the field for Japan. How did I not know about this woman?

Meeting Keiko was wonderful as she was like so many of her fellow country women, humble, keen to help and always super respectful. It was great to put her in the spotlight for a while, ask her about her achievements and what it was like for her and her teammates back in the early 2000’s and the years when they were almost in the International rugby wilderness. One special moment is when she described being in the stands during the 2002RWC Final and thinking how she would have given anything to have been on that field playing in that final. So often in elite sport, the players who are fortunate to play in those biggest of matches, sometimes, they forget how truly privileged they are.

We spent time with Keiko and current Japanese player Sakurako Korai while were filming the video series to accompany our book. This series will be dropping in late 2023 to coincide with the new WXV competitions being played around the world.