Long-serving pair wins bronze in women’s doubles badminton; pair aim to follow in footsteps of former medal winners

PARIS — Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida won the bronze medal in the women’s badminton doubles on Saturday, beating the Malaysian team in two straight matches.

It was the first time in two Olympic Games that Japan won a medal in women’s badminton doubles.

After the shot that secured their medals, Shida, 27, and Matsuyama, 26, looked elated as they hugged each other.

Shida said with a smile, “I feel grateful [to her]. Nami cries so much that I have no tears left to cry.”

The two women, whose combination received much praise, collected points as if to make up for the disappointment of their semi-final result.

Shida often hit the shuttlecock into the opponent’s court first, while Matsuyama took the ball that was sent back. The two moved freely around the court as if they were dancing.

Denying their opponents the chance to regain momentum, the two secured victory without losing a single game.

The two first met while attending a training camp for junior athletes. Shida, from Akita Prefecture, approached Matsuyama, from Fukuoka Prefecture, and struck up a conversation during the training camp. Matsuyama told Shida she wanted to be friends with her and asked for her contact information. It was the beginning of the pair’s long-term relationship.

Matsuyama joined the badminton team of Saishunkan Pharmaceutical Co., where Shida was already, as if she was following Shida.

Shida said, “We’ve talked about forming a pair in the future for a long time now.”

They have been improving their team skills over a long period of time.

They wanted to be like Mizuki Fujii and Reika Kakiiwa, who won silver at the London Games, and Ayaka Takahasi and Misaki Matsutomo, who won gold at the Rio de Janeiro Games.

However, they were unable to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics because their skills were not up to par.

So the duo focused on the Olympic Games in Paris.

Matsuyama said: “The color of the medal is different [to what we aimed for] and honestly winning a medal doesn’t seem real yet. But I want to inspire kids and meet people who felt happy [to see us get the bronze].”

The two stepped onto the stage they had been so eager to be on and where they were so determined to get to.