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About JTA

About the Japan Tennis Association Image

About the Japan Tennis Association

Introduction

The Japan Tennis Association (JTA) is a national sports federation (NF) that supervises and represents the tennis community in Japan. Established in 1922 as a voluntary association, JTA became an incorporated foundation in 1980 and then a public-interest incorporated foundation in 2012 under a revised legal structure. Its main objective is to promote tennis as a lifelong sport as well as a competitive and spectator sport.

JTA is a member of the Japan Olympic Committee (JOC) and the Japan Sports Association (JASA), the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the Asian Tennis Federation (ATF). Nine regional and 47 prefectural tennis associations are affiliated with JTA as its member organizations. JTA has established the Japan Tennis Consortium (JTC), a top-level consultative body, along with the Japan Professional Tennis Association (JPTA), the Japan Tennis Industry Association (JTIA), the Japan Ladies Tennis Federation (JLTF), and the Japan Tennis Equipment Suppliers Association. These organizations work together to deal with issues of mutual concern throughout the tennis community.

JTA is a public-interest incorporated foundation under the supervision of the Public Interest Corporation Commission of the Cabinet Office. JTA's governance structure and business operations are defined in its Articles of Incorporation, in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. JTA's Board of Councilors is its highest decision-making body, and the Board of Directors is its highest executive body. A number of departments and committees have been set up within this organizational framework to conduct various activities in close cooperation with the Secretariat.

1. Promotion of Tennis

Tennis is a popular sport that anyone can play and enjoy for a lifetime. It also is a competitive sport with a long history, comprising an important element of major national and international sports events, including the Olympics and Paralympics. In the promotion of tennis, JTA offers nine programs for public-interest purposes. They are: (1) to develop tennis and provide tennis instruction and training; (2) to help improve the competitive ability of tennis players; (3) to host national and international tennis tournaments, and to provide support to and officially endorse tennis tournaments held throughout Japan; (4) to select and dispatch Japanese players to international tennis tournaments, and to invite overseas players to Japan; (5) to train and certify tennis coaches and referees; (6) to manage the registration of tennis players and their rankings; (7) to create and improve the infrastructure and environment for sound development of tennis competition; (8) to conduct studies and research projects for the promotion of tennis; and (9) to interact and cooperate with national and international tennis organizations as well as other sports organizations.

Promotion of Tennis as a Lifelong Sport

JTA considers wider participation in tennis by children under age 10 to be key to the further development of tennis in Japan. Toward that goal, JTA has been promoting the TENNIS PLAY&STAY program, a campaign initiated by ITF for children of that age group. Additionally, JTA has been working on the Japan Junior High School Physical Culture Association so that tennis will become part of their official sports events. These efforts should help improve the environment for junior high school tennis activities. JTA also participates in Tennis Day, a nationwide event for the promotion of tennis that is held annually on September 23, in collaboration with other tennis-related organizations.

Other JTA priorities are to extend the online Japan Player Identification Number (JPIN) system for registration and ranking to junior players, to provide information on licensed tennis instructors and tennis schools and clubs which participate in the TENNIS PLAY&STAY program, and to promote the spirit of fair play in tennis tournaments at all levels.

Promotion of Tennis as a Competitive Sport

JTA focuses on enhancing the skills of Japanese tennis players in earnest hope of winning medals at the Olympic Games. Members of Japan’s national tennis team are working to bolster their competitiveness through intensive training at the Ajinomoto National Training Center in Tokyo, where indoor tennis courts are provided exclusively for them. The national team receives financial support from the Japan Sports Council (JSC) and JOC, as well as private corporations and a large number of tennis players who make systemized “one-coin” donations when they participate in tournaments. As both men’s and women’s tennis has been included in the targeted sports of the junior athlete training project for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, JTA has decided to foster talented junior players in collaboration with JSC and the Japan Institute of Sports Science (JISS). Additionally, JTA has on its own initiative launched a special junior player training program to accelerate junior players’ growth toward potential national team member qualification.

Promotion of Tennis as a Spectator Sport

Many people around the world enjoy watching tennis competitions. In Japan, annual international and national tournaments include the Japan Open Tennis Championships, the Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis Tournament, the Japan Women’s Open Tennis Tournament and the All Japan Tennis Tournament. JTA hosts or supports these major tournaments as well as many regional tournaments held throughout Japan. The number of spectators has been increasing; for example, the Japan Open Tennis Championships drew about 100,000 tennis fans last year. JTA also hosts annual international junior tournaments such as the World Super Junior Tennis Championships in Osaka, and the Japan Junior Tennis Championships in Nagoya.

2. Improvement in the Infrastructure and Environment for Tennis Competitions

JTA continues its efforts to upgrade the infrastructure and environment for sound development of tennis as a competitive sport.

Management of the Tennis Player Registration System

As of the end of 2016, a total of 12,237 players were registered under the categories of professionals, amateurs of all ages, and veteran amateurs.

Management of the Court Official Certification System

As of the end of 2016, there were a total of 4,114 court officials certified by JTA. This compares with the recent high of 4,869 persons in 2008 and the recent low of 3,493 persons in 2011.

Management of the Instructor Certification System

Based on the JASA standards, JTA has set six categories in its instructor certification system, in which a total of 4,723 certified coaches were listed as of the end of 2016. JTA offers a further accreditation system for elite coaches, who can train players competing on the international circuit. Sixty-six “S-level” elite coaches were registered as of the end of 2016.

3. Enhancement of Governance

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics approaching, the enhancement of governance at national sports federations, is drawing public attention. JTA strives to ensure sound governance in management and operations. To this end, it established the Compliance Office and the Audit Office in 2013, which oversee the enforcement of the code of ethics and disciplinary procedure rules, and which organize seminars on these topics. Further, JTA continually strives to ensure fairness and transparency by disclosing information about its organization and activities on its website and through various activities of the Investor Relations Office. To strengthen its financial base for enhancement of governance as a public-interest organization, JTA has been proactively promoting the tournaments that it sponsors, recruiting supporting corporations, and collecting donations.

In 2022, the Japan Tennis Association will mark the 100th anniversary of its founding.

Japan’s Basic Tennis Data for 2016

  Number of persons Source
Tennis population 4,390,000 Japan Tennis Association
Registered players 12,237 Japan Tennis Association
(Professionals) (397)  
(Amateurs) (3,856)  
(Veteran Amateurs) (7,984)  
Authorized court officials 4,114 Japan Tennis Association
Authorized tennis instructors 4,723 Japan Sports Association,
Japan Tennis Association
(Instructor I) (2,409)  
(Instructor II) (1,2667)  
(Coach I) (313)  
(Coach II) (243)  
(Coach III) (342)  
(Coach IV) (149)  
S-class elite coach 66 Japan Tennis Association

July 2017

Japan Tennis Association
Japan Sport Olympic Square 7F, 4-2 Kasumigaoka-machi,
Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 160-0013 Japan
TEL:+81-3-6812-9271
FAX:+81-3-6812-9274
E-mail:mail@jta-tennis.or.jp
URL:https://www.jta-tennis.or.jp/

President Nobuo Kuroyanagi
Senior Executive Director Tsuyoshi Fukui
Secretary General Hiroshi Suzuki

The History of the Japan Tennis Association

The Japan Tennis Association was originally founded in 1922 as the Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai, a voluntary organization. In 1980 it became an incorporated foundation (zaidan houjin) and changed its name to Zaidan Hojin Nihon Tenisu Kyokai, in English the Japan Tennis Association (JTA). It then became a public interest incorporated foundation (koueki zaidan houjin) in 2012. Its activities are aimed at promoting tennis as a lifetime sport, a competitive sport, and a spectator sport.

1. Founding of Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai

Since the introduction of Western-style tennis here, the desire of the Japanese people to interact internationally and to venture onto the global stage has grown steadily stronger. (In Japan this was called "hardball tennis" to differentiate it from "softball tennis.") Keio University adopted “hardball tennis” in 1913, helping to spread the sport throughout Japan.

In 1920, Zenzo Shimizu, who was working at the Kolkata Branch Office of Mitsui & Co. Ltd., went to Wimbledon alone and reached the All Comers’ finals (the semi-finals in the current system). Later that year, at the Antwerp Olympics in August, Ichiya Kumagai, then working at the New York Branch Office of Mitsubishi Goshi Kaisha (Mitsubishi Company), won the silver medal in both singles and doubles matches, partnering with Seiichiro Kashio. These were the first medals won by Japanese athletes in Olympic history.

That autumn, while traveling overseas with his wife, Tsunekichi Asabuki, a businessman who was then known as the leading benefactor of tennis in Japan, met with Julian Myrick, President of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), and other officials. As the USTA, the founding association of the Davis Cup, recognized the presence of Japanese players in the sport, President Myrick strongly recommended that Japan participate in the Davis Cup, a national team competition. However, at that time Japan did not have a tennis association, the requisite organization to participate in the Davis Cup tournament. “As long as you have a board of directors and the documents, we will look after the rest” was the supportive advice from the USTA. When Mr. Asabuki returned to Japan, he negotiated with key individuals at universities and tennis clubs, secured a number of directors, and established the Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai. After being appointed president, he submitted an application to the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) in February 1921. With an endorsement from the United States, Japan succeeded in becoming an official member in March 1923.

Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai sent the first Japanese team consisting of three players, Kumagai, Shimizu, and Kashio, along with their manager, to the Davis Cup in 1921. The team defeated India and Australia, advancing to the Challenge Round (the finals in the current World Group) to play against the US team. After this breathtaking finale, Mr. Asabuki and others reorganized the association and launched an official inauguration on March 11, 1922 at the YMCA in Kanda, Tokyo. As dividends from the Davis Cup admission fees, the USTA sent US$20,000 to Japan, which served as operating funds for the Association.

The first All Japan Tennis Championships, played at the Tokyo Imperial University (the current University of Tokyo) tennis courts, kicked off in September 1922. The men’s singles champion was awarded the New York Cup, a trophy donated by the Japan Club in New York for winning the Challenge Round. In 1923 the ranking system was introduced. There were 20 men’s singles players and 10 doubles players in the All Japan ranking on January 4, 1924. The women’s games were introduced from the third All Japan Tennis Championships. The first rulebook was issued in 1925 and the tennis balls, with a ball test, were made official in 1927.

Implications of war surfaced as the years progressed. In 1942 the association as well as the Japan Sports Association were dissolved and unified into the government controlled Japan Sports Tennis Association, which remained essentially dormant until the end of the Pacific War.

2. Re-establishing Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai

Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai was re-established in November 1945 at their annual general meeting. The advent of the golden age of professional tennis began when open tennis tournaments were introduced around the world in 1968. However, as the Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai was associated with the Japan Amateur Sports Association, the headquarters of amateur sports, the amateur regulations restrained the registration of professional tennis players. Finally, the Japan Open, an international open tennis tournament, commenced in 1972, coinciding with a period of rapid economic growth in Japan. Tennis became a popular sport among the Japanese due to the large number of overseas tennis athletes making visits to Japan. Soon the number of tennis clubs and courts increased and the Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai needed to diversify. One of the efforts was to incorporate the association.

3. Rebirth as the Japan Tennis Association

Nihon Teikyu Kyoukai, which began as a voluntary organization, was reorganized to become the Zaidan Hojin Nihon Tenisu Kyokai, or the Japan Tennis Association (JTA), in 1980. In 1983 the Ariake Tennis Forest Park, owned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, was completed and used for major tennis tournaments. In 1991 a national training center (NTC) for JTA opened at the Asahi Seimei Kugayama Sports Center, which served as a major foothold in spreading and strengthening the sport. There was, however, a sea change in the social and economic situation in sports in Japan. Ten years later, in 2001, suffering a shortage of financial resources, JTA returned the NTC courts to Asahi Seimei.

During the sluggish economic period in 2001, when JTA was in the midst of a shortage of financial resources, Masaaki Morita was appointed president of JTA and under the slogans "a new JTA" and "Japan Service Association." To the best of his ability, he reorganized the association, secured financial resources, and introduced efforts to become more international. He reconfigured the Japan Open as a tennis festival in Asia and devoted himself to the tournament. The audience swelled from 25,706 spectators in 1999 to 72,386 spectators in 2006. A tennis-specific NTC with indoor tennis courts located in the Ajinomoto National Training Center opened on January 21, 2008. In April of that same year, JTA also introduced a One Coin Entry Fee to strengthen the NTC and nurture tennis in Japan, helping increase the number of participants in tennis tournaments.

4. Appointing a New President and Becoming a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation

In June of 2011, Masaaki Morita, who led the Japan Tennis Association for 11 years as president, retired and was replaced by Nobuo Kuroyanagi. The Japan Tennis Association became a public interest incorporated foundation in April of 2012.

Tennis is a sport that everyone can enjoy throughout his or her life. It is a traditional public sport and plays an important role as an international sport of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Japan Tennis Association as a public interest incorporated foundation, designated the promotion of tennis as a lifelong sport as well as a competitive and spectator sport. as its goal. Furthermore, with the preferential tax treatment granted to public interest incorporated foundations in mind, the newly appointed president instructed the expansion of the donation system as a means to strengthen the financial foundation of the association.

Under the newly appointed president, the Japan Tennis Association set forth “Fairness, Teamwork and Globalism” as its operating principles. Furthermore, the new president had a sense of crisis about the decreasing tennis population especially among the young and ordered an analysis of tennis population in order to verify the related activities.

From a policy perspective, he prioritized creating an introductory tool for the promotion of tennis, Tennis Play & Stay, visited 9 regions annually, shared his sense of crisis and called for an expansion of promotional activities. He worked to spread regional Tennis Play & Stay by distributing special subsidies to the 9 regional tennis associations in 2013 and to 47 local tennis associations in 2014. When Kei Nishikori reached the finals at the US Open in September of 2014, Japan saw an increase in public interest in tennis, propelling the promotion of tennis in the nation.

After becoming a public interest incorporated foundation, the Japan Tennis Association worked on strengthening its governance. The compliance office was established, a portal for reports and consultations to serve the whistle blowing system was established, and the efforts were made to improve the management and operation of the JTA to the level regularly seen in private companies.

In 2016, a new development in the 3rd operating principle of the association - “globalism” -was established. In March, the JTA funded and implemented a special junior development program, to provide training while competing overseas, in addition to the existing junior development program at the National Training Center focused on the Olympics, Davis Cup and Fed Cup. In September 2016, the JTA and the French Tennis Federation (FFT) signed a memorandum that promises mutual cooperation between the two countries.

The memorandum signed by the JTA and the FFT stipulates improvement in international competition, promotion, hosting of tournaments, instructors’ training, research and exchange of information as areas of cooperation for the future. This memorandum was the first of its kind the JTA signed with another overseas governing entity of tennis.

The 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo provides the JTA with a great opportunity. It is no other than the fact that public funds will be put into tennis as an official sport and the player development policies will evolve. The renovation of the Ariake Tennis Forest Park, which will be the site of the Olympic and Paralympic tennis competition, means the expansion of the tennis facilities that will serve as a legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games and will have an important meaning for tennis as a spectator sport.

On the other hand, social issues stemming from scandals involving athletes and instructors remind us all of the importance of education during the junior years of athletes. The JTA began promoting fair play at tournament matches, as well as the 5-point Principle of Self-Judgement based on recognition of the importance of following rules, strengthening existing governance, and securing compliance. The JTA started the “Shake hands, Greetings and Fair Play” movement in 2017, which calls for greetings and hand shakes before the start of matches. This supports one of the goals of promoting tennis - to develop boys and girls as sound, fair and international individuals.

2017 was an important year for establishing a foundation and environment for the promotion and development of tennis. The system of junior JPIN was completed thanks to the understanding and cooperation of the regional and local tennis associations, and the test run of the junior ranking system started in April of 2018.

In accordance with the permeation of promotional activities, the goals of the JTA’s activities have been amended from “tennis development, player development” to “tennis development, junior player development and player development.” In March of 2018, the JTA completed “the mid- to- long term strategic plan” for Japan’s tennis.

The total business scale was 2,269,780,000 JPY in 2017. Since the total business scale of the first year after becoming a public interest incorporated foundation was 1,364,530,000JPY, the growth of 66.3% took place over the period of 6 years. According to the research report on tennis issued in March of 2017, the tennis population increased from 3,990,000 people in 2014 to 4,390,000 people in 2016

(updated on July 3rd, 2018)

Organigram

 

*click the image for enlarged display by PDF.

List of Officials

(1 April 2021~31 March 2023)

Honorary Chairperson Princess Kako of Akishino
Honorary Adviser Masaaki Morita
Honorary President Nobuo Kuroyanagi
Honorary Vice President Koji Watanabe
Toshiro Sakai
President Kenichiro Yamanishi
Vice President Yaeko Takemasa
Tatsumaro Terazawa
Kazuko Yoshida
Naohiro Kawatei
Senior Executive Director Tsuyoshi Fukui
Executive Directors Takuya Nozaki
Tadashi Horikawa
Minoru Ueda
Hajime Takahashi
Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Hiroshi Suzuki
Satoru Nishimura
Yone Kamio
Yuji Hashimoto
Toshiaki Sakai
Hiroyuki Bamba
Directors Takayoshi Matsuo
Shuzo Matsuoka
Yoshihiro Ando
Toshi Ogawa
Elda Matsuno
Mari Yagi
Takeshi Yazawa
Yuka Yoshida
Hiroyuki Sugawara
Noriyuki Washida
Machiko Aikawa
Naoko Inoue
Kimiko Date
Auditors Shoichi Enomoto
Koji Sakai
Toshio Tsutsumi
Secretary General Machiko Aikawa

List of General Managers, Deputy General Managers, Committee Chairs, and Heads of Office

(1 April 2021~31 March 2023)

1. Director Generals

Business Management Headquarters Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Administrative Management Headquarters Hajime Takahashi

2. General Managers/Chairs

High Performance/Junior Development Department Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Tournament Operation Committee Toshiaki Sakai
Tennis Promotion Department Satoru Nishimura
General and Financial Affairs Department Yuji Hashimoto

3. Deputy General Managers/Chairs

High Performance/Junior Development Department Satoshi Iwabuchi
Shuzo Matsuoka
Yone Kamio
Tournament Operation Committee Minoru Ueda
Ichiro Nakanishi
Noriyuki Okamura
Tennis Promotion Department Hijiri Chishaki
Shigeki Imai
General and Financial Affairs Department Masahiko Wada
Nobuhiro Akita

4. Committee Chairs

High Performance/Junior Development Department

National Team
High Performance Support Committee Takahiko Tajima
Nationwide Projects Committee Hayato Sakurai
Junior Player Development Committee Yoshinori Nakayama
Wheelchair Tennis Committee Yoshihiro Nakazawa

Tournament Operation Committee

Japan Open Committee Shigefusa Kanroji
Japan Women's Open Committee
All Japan Tennis Championships Committee Toshiaki Sakai
Professional Tour Committee Toshiaki Sakai
Officiating Committee Noriyuki Okamura
Company Teams Committee Takeshi Yazawa
The National Athletic Meet Committee Yasuo Matsumoto

Tennis Promotional Department

Tennis Promotion Committee Hijiri Chishaki
Junior Tennis Committee Satoru Nishimura
JTA Academy Committee Minoru Ueda
Beach Tennis Committee Takaaki Sugita
Tennis Diversification Committee Yoshihiro Nakazawa
Senieor Tennis Committee Tadashi Horikawa
JTA Tournament Committee Kenso Ukon

General and Financial Affairs Department

General Affairs Division Masahiko Wada
Personnel Affairs Division Kiichi Shibuya
Finance/Accounting Division Yuji Hashimoto
Medical Committee Moroe Beppu
Tennis Museum Committee Sakae Yoshii
Marketing Business Promotion Division Hideo Mitsuoka
Information System Division
Public Relations Division Yuichi Tani
International Affairs Division Misako Yoshii
Information Strategy Planning Division Hideo Mitsuoka

4.Committees and Offices positioned under the President, the Senior Executive Director, and the Board of Executive Directors

Senior Executive Director

Audit Committee Toshio Tsutsumi
Compliance Committee Toshio Tsutsumi
Anti-Doping Committee Moroe Beppu
Ethics Committee Hisatoshi Fujito
Athletes Committee Hiromi Nagano
Japan Sport Agency-consigned
NEXT 100 Promotional Business Project
Satoru Nishimura
The 100th Anniversary Event Preparation Project Hiroshi Suzuki
All Japan Championships Reform Project Tsuyoshi Fukui
Governance/Restructuring Project
Hajime Takahashi
Finance Reform Fundraising Project
Yuji Hashimoto

List of Officers of High Performance Department / National Team

(1 April 2019~31 March 2021)

1.Officers of High Performance Department

General Manager Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Deputy General Manager Satoshi Iwabuchi
Deputy General Manager Shuzo Matsuoka
Deputy General Manager Yone Kamio (Ms)

2.Officers of National Team

Adviser Yuka Yoshida (Ms)
Adviser Minoru Ueda
Head of Men’s National Team Mitsuru Takada
Head of Women’s National Team Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Head of Junior National Team (boys) Hayato Sakurai
Head of Junior National Team (girls) Yoshinori Nakayama

3.Captains

Davis Cup Satoshi Iwabuchi
FED Cup Toshihisa Tsuchihashi
Universiade Kenso Ukon

List of National Team Players

(1 July 2019~31 March 2020)

1.Men’s National Team

Kei Nishikori
Yoshihito Nishioka
Taro Daniel
Yasutaka Uchiyama
Yousuke Watanuki
Ben Mclaclan
Tatsuma Ito
Go Soeda
Yuichi Sugita

2.Women’s National Team

Naomi Osaka
Misaki Doi
Kurumi Nara
Nao Hibino
Ayano Shimizu
Eri Hozumi
Miyu Kato
Shuko Aoyama
Makoto Ninomiya
Momoko Kobori
Risa Ozaki

3.Men’s Youth Team

Renta Tokuda
Yusuke Takahashi
Yuta Shimizu
Kaito Uesugi
Naoki Tajima
Shinji Hazawa
Yuki Mochizuki
Sho Shimabukuro
Yunosuke Tanaka
Yuya Ito

4.Women’s Youth Team

Chihiro Muramatsu
Yuki Naito
Moyuka Uchijima
Ena Shibahara
Erina Hayashi
Naho Sato
Misaki Matsuda
Eri Shimizu

5.Junior National Team (Boys)

Shogo Sanada
Satoru Nakajima

5.Junior National Team (Girls)

Himari Sato (Girls U17)
Erika Matsuda (Girls U16)
Kirara Morioka (Girls U16)

Contacts

Japan Tennis Association

Japan Sport Olympic Square 7F
4-2 Kasumigaoka-machi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan 160-0013
TEL:+81-3-6812-9271
FAX: +81-3-6812-9275
E-mail:mail@jta-tennis.or.jp
URL:https://www.jta-tennis.or.jp/

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公益財団法人日本テニス協会
〒160-0013 東京都新宿区霞ヶ丘町4-2
Japan Sport Olympic Square 7階