<figure id="attachment_450664" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-450664" style="width: 6000px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="859cb28f"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/12/b66889b82ddad4e0395defb1a6d8eaa9.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-450664" class="wp-caption-text">A secret weapon that boasts a high shot success rate despite being a reserve</figcaption></figure>
<h2> The youngest member of the team, Kobayashi, is active!</h2>
 The final qualifying round for the Milan Cortina Olympics in Kelowna, Canada, came to a close on January 18 (local time), and the Japanese women&#8217;s team, known as &#8220;Fortius,&#8221; qualified for its eighth consecutive Olympics.
 Among the members of Fortius, Anna Omiya (36) will be competing in her second Olympics in 16 years since Vancouver, Kaho Onodera (34) in 12 years since Sochi, and coach Yumie Funayama (47), who has competed in three Olympics as an athlete. Sayaka Yoshimura (33), Yuna Kotani (27), and Mina Kobayashi (23) will be competing in their first Olympics.
 Among them, skip Yoshimura is a classmate of the members of Loco Solare, which won medals at the Pyeongchang and Beijing Olympics in succession. She has blossomed in her fifth Olympics challenge while maintaining her top-class abilities not only in Japan but also in the world.
 Until now, curling Olympians have been limited to those from Hokkaido, Iwate, and Nagano, but Kotani has added Kanagawa Prefecture to the list.
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 The youngest member of the team, Kobayashi, attracted a great deal of attention in these final qualifying rounds. He played in two games, filling in for Onodera, the team&#8217;s steadfast third, who had suffered a slight back injury prior to the tournament. Onodera sent him off with the words, &#8220;I look forward to working with you,&#8221; and the 23-year-old said, &#8220;I was nervous from start to finish,
 I was nervous all the way through, and I was very thirsty, but the Japanese fans were there, and I could see the Japanese flag. I was nervous, but I was able to play my game with just the right amount of tension.
 As the second player, he was able to beat his opponent with a 90% success rate and an 82% success rate on both shots. After the match, Coach Funayama explained to me that he was not just a substitute.
 She hadn&#8217;t played many games, but she was in good shape, so I thought, &#8216;I can use her anytime,&#8217; and she said, &#8216;I can play any position.
 After explaining the reason for his selection, he said, &#8220;I want to create a situation in which anyone can play,&#8221; and then talked about his outlook for the Olympics and beyond.
 After the match, Nikkan Sports reported, &#8220;An angel saved the day! Japan&#8217;s Fortius, &#8216;Mina-chan&#8217; makes emergency appearance, wins 4th straight game as PO nears&#8221;. The next morning, the article was on the front page, a sign of Kobayashi&#8217;s breakthrough.
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 Kobayashi began curling when she was in the fourth grade of elementary school. He was a student at the prestigious Sapporo Higashi High School, where he competed in the 2008 Youth Winter Olympics and won a silver medal, and in 2009, Yoshimura invited him to join &#8220;Fortius. She is an all-around player who can play any position at a high level, including shooting, calling, and sweeping.
 As a result, her participation in two matches allowed Onodera more time for treatment, and Japan was able to win the final qualifying round without any danger. After the final match,
 After the final match, Onodera expressed her joy, &#8220;I was really moved to see [my teammates] playing at their best, and I exploded with feelings of gratitude.
 I was really moved to see my teammates playing at their best, and I exploded with feelings of gratitude,&#8221; said Kobayashi, who expressed her joy in her words. To achieve this goal, it is essential that the younger sister character, who is loved by her teammates and teased by her older sisters, &#8220;We have an angel in our family,&#8221; be active.

 Soichiro Takeda

 The final qualifying round for the Milan Cortina Olympics, held in Kelowna, Canada, ended on March 18 (local time), and the Japanese women's national team ("Fortius") has qualified for the Olympics for the eighth consecutive time. We take a look behind the scenes.

Angel is in our house”… The key player of curling “Fortius” in the Milan Olympics is a “beloved sister character”.

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