Playback] “No Boyfriend!” Two too dainty shots of “Ogushio,” who was 21 years old and rapidly gaining popularity.

What did “FRIDAY” report 10, 20, and 30 years ago? In “Playback Friday,” we revisit the topics that were hot at the time. This time, we will look back at the article “Ogura & Ushioda: No Boyfriends! They are the “best in Japan” in badminton. Badminton’s “Strongest” pair of 21-year-old beauties in Japan” will be introduced.

Badminton doubles pairs are nicknamed “four katakana characters. The original pair is Kumiko Ogura (21 at the time) and Reiko Ushioda (21 at the time), known as “Ogushio. The pair, who created a huge boom from 2006 to 2008, began to attract attention around the time they won the 2004 All-Japan championship. The following is an article about their first appearance in this magazine (the descriptions in parentheses are quotations from past articles. All ages and titles are current as of that time).

Even in defeat, the packed stands cheered loudly.

The article at the time described their success as follows.

The two beauties who posed for this magazine’s camera with their guts in the air. They are athletes who are currently attracting a lot of attention. The tall, mature beauty on the left is Kumiko Ogura, and the smiling one on the right is Reiko Ushioda. They are the strongest Japanese women’s badminton pair and have many fans, and they have just made the top four in Japan’s only international badminton tournament. This is the first time in 12 years that a Japanese team has achieved this feat.

This magazine covered the Yonex Open Japan, which was held at the Yoyogi Daini Gymnasium from April 5, 2005. The two women’s doubles players, ranked 30th in the world, defeated the powerful Malaysian pair, ranked 6th in the world, in the first round. In the semifinals, the pair also attacked aggressively against the Chinese pair, ranked No. 2 in the world.

During the match, Ogura smiled broadly every time she won a point, and when her opponent took a point, she expressed her frustration with her entire body. Ushioda, on the other hand, calmly controlled the game and directed Ogura’s powerful smashes.

Unfortunately, they lost to China in straight sets, but the packed stands were filled with cheers from the crowd. That’s what you can expect from the superstars of the badminton world!

The two, who are also good friends in private, had this exchange when interviewed by this magazine after the match.

“We talk about everything and ask each other for advice. They are more than friends, they are like family. When I asked them if they had a boyfriend, they both answered at the same time, “No! They both answered at the same time, bursting into laughter. They seem to be in perfect harmony even outside of the game.

What type of man do you like?　Well, I don’t have a favorite celebrity. I guess I’d have to say Toru Nakamura.

I like men with dreams. Even if it’s not sports, I like men who work hard at one thing. I like Tsuneyasu Miyamoto of the Japanese national soccer team and Genki Sudo.

Her next goal is the World Championships and, of course, the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The two said they would be happy if they could attract attention and fans like Sharapova and Miki Ando. They were new stars in the sport of badminton, which until then had not attracted much attention, even during the Olympics.

Unstoppable momentum made him a national star.

Ogussio’s popularity continued to grow. In May 2006, 10,000 spectators gathered for the Uber Cup, the world championships held in Tokyo, and admission was restricted. The popularity of the Uber Cup, the world inter-country championships held in Tokyo in May 2006, attracted 10,000 spectators, and admission was even restricted.

Since 2002, when the two graduated from high school and joined Sanyo Denki, they have often been featured in the media as “beautiful athletes. It seems that the association’s intention was to boost the popularity of badminton. However, the athletes themselves were conflicted about being the center of attention because they had not yet developed their skills.

However, in a sense, the attention was also a motivation. After winning his first All-Japan title in 2004, he went on to win five consecutive titles until ’08. He won a bronze medal at the World Championships in 2007 and competed in the Beijing Olympics in ’08, and has grown into an athlete worthy of attention. At the Olympics, despite Ogura’s poor condition due to his injury, he achieved a fifth-place finish. He continued to perform well, and in November of 2008, after winning the All-Japan Championships, Ogushiopea was disbanded.

After the success of Ogusiopea, Japanese badminton steadily achieved results at the Olympics and other international tournaments. In the women’s doubles, the “Suemae” team of Satoko Suetsuna and Mijun Maeda, who were also active at the Beijing Olympics and took over the baton from Ogussio, to the “Takamatsu” team of Reika Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, who won gold at the Rio ’16 Olympics, to the “Shida-Matsu” team of Chiho Shida and Nami Matsuyama, currently ranked second in the world. The “four katakana characters” have been passed down through the generations.