Impairment Information |
Type of Impairment |
Spinal Cord Injuries |
Origin of Impairment |
Acquired |
Classification |
SB-LL2 |
Further Personal Information |
Family |
Wife Sumiko [2009], two sons |
Residence |
Kobe, JPN |
Occupation |
Athlete, Business Owner, Manager |
Languages |
Japanese |
Sport Specific Information |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began snowboarding in 2001. He took up Para snowboard in 2016. |
Why this sport? |
He was influenced by his friend who he knew through middle school, high school and university, and who became a professional able-bodied snowboarder. |
Club / Team |
Sideway [JPN] / HYWOD [JPN]: |
Name of coach |
Kenichi Niboshi [national], JPN |
General Interest |
Sporting philosophy / motto |
"We ride forever. Just keep going." (Instagram profile, 12 Nov 2020) |
Ambitions |
To compete at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing. (cow-sports.jp, 03 Mar 2020) |
Impairment |
His impairment is the result of a snowboarding accident in 2015, in which he fractured his third lumbar vertebra. (Twitter profile, 31 Dec 2018; keijiokamoto.com, 19 Dec 2018; Fineplay YouTube channel, 29 Mar 2020) |
Other information |
BUSINESS VENTURES
In 2007 he became a founder of HYWOD, a snowboard team in Japan that has organised national competitions and has been involved in snowboard park construction. HYWOD also owns Osaka King, a snowboard facility where Okamoto works as manager. In 2018 he launched Yukiyama, a mobile app that helps users find places to ski and snowboard in Japan. He has also been involved in the running of The Parks, a snow park in Japan. (Facebook profile, 31 Dec 2018; keijiokamoto.com, 19 Dec 2018, 29 Jun 2020; cow-sports.jp, 03 Mar 2020; snow.gnavi.co.jp, 21 Sep 2019)
AUTHOR
He published a book titled 'Snowboard High Speed Improvement Manual' in 2015. (item.rakuten.co.jp, 01 Jan 2020; cow-sports.jp, 03 Mar 2020) |
