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- Rookie of the Year
Many people outside the inner
circles of competitve windsurfing finally became aware of Junko Nagoshi (J-11) when she
lost this years superX race in Lanzarote (and thus the world championship) after falling
over the very last obstacle, just close to the finishing line. But Junko, who describes
herself as both passionate and calm, was still able to give a very strong promise for the
future. Being awarded the "2005 PWA Rookie of the Year" award and with F2 having
joined "my support team" the 30 year old Japanese "windgirl" (born on
May 1 1975) is definitely one of the major talents to watch for the years to come.
- The PWA about Junko:
- "In the women’s department Junko Nagoshi (J-11)
made a very strong impression as a newcomer in wave
performance, freestyle and superX. Starting off on Maui at the Jeep Hawaii Pro,
Nagoshi set the tone for things to come with a solid fifth place at Hookipa’s holy
windsurfing grounds. Next in Pozo’s radically different conditions, Nagoshi kept up
the pace by taking another fifth place overall in waves and as the wave contest in Sylt
could unfortunately not be finished, her fifth place in the 2005 overall wave rankings was
a firmly established fact. In freestyle Japan’s leading PWA lady scored another fifth
place in Pozo’s wild winds, while in Lanzarote she proved she knows how to handle
lighter winds as well by taking seventh place overall. In the process she managed to take
down Iballa Moreno in the second round double elimination. These two event results brought
her a fifth place in the overall 2005 freestyle ranking list.
- Nagoshi’s big breakthrough came at the superX
competition on Lanzarote where her racing experience really came into play. With
incredible speed and skills around the obstacle course, J-11 was well on her way to
winning the first ever women’s superX world title by winning two out of six finals
and performing very well in the remaining heats. While she just missed out on the gold in
the very last race, Nagoshi sailed away an amazing second place overall, setting the tone
for her years to come on the PWA world tour."
- Daida Moreno about Junko:
- “I’ve known Junko for quite a few years now. It
has taken me a while to convince her to join the PWA, but she finally did after training
really hard on freestyle and waves as she used to do only racing before. Junko is a great
role model; she’s the most organized girl I’ve ever met with a never dying
“go for it” attitude. She’s funny, super focused and highly consistent. She
has definitely shown all the girls what they can achieve at the top level by being
prepared, determined and motivated. Her second place in Super X is nothing compared to
what she is about to achieve soon, so congratulations to her for winning the Rookie of the
Year award. Keep it up.”
Interview by Andy:
Junko, you just have been announced
as the winner of the 2005 PWA Rookie of the Year award. What does this mean to you?
I think this is a great award for starting! And I want to thank all my sponsors, family
and friends for their support!
Which discipline and which
conditions do you like most?
For free sailing I like waves most, especially in side-off shore winds with head high wave
conditions. For competitions I like superX or slalom racing.
Daida said: "It has taken me a while to convince her to
join the PWA." Why did you hesitate?
You know it is very expensive to travel around the world to compete, especially from Maui.
Financially it has been difficult for me. Also until previous year, although top ranking
girls were in super high level, I saw not many girls were competing in PWA. I was thinking
it is not worth spending money and time. But this year there are over 20 girls in each
discipline and over all more than 30 girls are competing in PWA. Girls level is highly
improving so I thought this is the time for me to join the tour. Daida is helping me a lot
not only windsurfing skill but everything. Without her help I would not have joined the
tour.
You are said
to be very professional, very focused and motivated, even more than many others on the
tour. How come? And how would you describe yourself to others?
I don't know why some people think like that. I don't think I am something special. To me
almost all the other top girls are looked very professional, very focused and motivated.
Maybe I am good at prepare for competition because I used to race a lot before, I learned
how important the preparation is.
This year at the Lanzarote
superX you lost the world championship title literally in the last second, but still this
event was a great success for you... Do you still regret these missed opportunity or did
it just make you "more hungry"?
It is just game. You make a mistake and you lose something. That is the way competition
is. That is why it is exciting. Of course I was very upset that moment when I lost the
title but same time I enjoyed very much and nothing to regret about. I will work harder
for next year.
Thanks for the interview, Junko. |
