Women's Individual Quarterfinals Court 3 Section3Match

Encho 2 (extension) — Usami（宇佐美） wins

📅 August 2–5, 2026 📍 Lotto Arena Nara

The quarterfinals of the 73rd All Japan High School Kendo Tournament for women were held, and the match became a fierce battle lasting 7 minutes and 5 seconds. Within the regulation time, white's Usami（宇佐美） scored a men and red's Tanaka（田中） scored a tsuki, leading to encho. The deciding point occurred in Encho 2, and Usami won by scoring a men.

Matchup

Red Tanaka Yuma（田中夢真） / Kusatsu Higashi（草津東） / Shiga3rd Year 3rd dan
Kusatsu Higashi's Tanaka（田中） (3rd year, 3rd dan). A student at a Shiga Prefectural high school with a physical education department, who qualified for the Inter-High by winning the Reiwa 8 Shiga Prefecture qualifiers.
White Usami Karin（宇佐美華凛） / Too Gijuku（東奥義塾） / Aomori2nd year 2nd dan
Too Gijuku's Usami（宇佐美） (2nd year, 2nd dan). Representing Aomori Prefecture, they attend one of the strongest schools in the country, boasting 16 consecutive appearances at the Inter-High.

Highlights

A fierce exchange unfolded as both sides traded ippon.

A rare 'tsuki' was scored in high school kendo.

A close match that went into a Encho 2 after a Encho 1.

Live commentary video

Valid strike

#	Situation	Red and White	Players	Technique
1	Within the time limit	White	Usami（宇佐美）	Men
2	Within the time limit	Red	Tanaka（田中）	Tsuki
3	Encho 2	White	Usami（宇佐美）	Men

Conclusion: Encho 2
Match time: 7:05
Winner: Usami（宇佐美）（White）
Foul: No record

Text Commentary

Commentary
剣持翔

73rd All Japan High School Kendo Championship, Women's Individual Quarterfinals. Court 3, Match 3.

Explanation
堂島厳

A match featuring intense exchanges of strikes and a "tsuki," which is rare in high school kendo.

Commentary
剣持翔

Red is Tanaka（田中） from Kusatsu Higashi, and white is Usami（宇佐美） from Too Gijuku. The match will now begin.

Explanation
堂島厳

Intense offense and defense have continued from the start.

Commentary
剣持翔

Oh, Usami（宇佐美） in white scored a men! They have taken the first point within the time limit.

Explanation
堂島厳

That was a sharp men strike.

Commentary
剣持翔

But red's Tanaka（田中） does not give up. It's decided! Tanaka, tsuki!

Explanation
堂島厳

It's decided. They reclaimed the lead with a precious tsuki within the time limit.

Commentary
剣持翔

The match goes into encho. encho period one, no valid strikes from either side.

Explanation
堂島厳

It is a state of extreme tension, waiting to see who will break first.

Commentary
剣持翔

It has entered Encho 2. One ippon here will decide the match.

Explanation
堂島厳

Concentration makes the difference between victory and defeat.

Commentary
剣持翔

There it is! White Usami（宇佐美）, Men! Men is scored!

Explanation
堂島厳

A perfect men strike. This settles it.

Commentary
剣持翔

Match time 7 minutes 5 seconds. White's Usami（宇佐美） won the close battle.

Explanation
堂島厳

You advanced through the tournament with wonderful mental strength and technique.

Commentary
剣持翔

The one who emerged victorious from the fierce battle was Too Gijuku's Usami（宇佐美）!

To both players

Applause for Usami（宇佐美）, who achieved a brilliant victory. The fighting spirit of Tanaka（田中）, who fought until the end without giving up, was also wonderful. I look forward to the further growth of both players.

Kusatsu Higashi（草津東）

Official name: 滋賀県立草津東高等学校
Reading: Kusatsu Higashi
Division/Category of Establishment: Shiga Prefectural (Co-educational)
Location: 8-65 Nishishibukawa 2-chome, Kusatsu City, Shiga Prefecture.
History: Opened in April 1978 as a general academic high school focused on serving the local community. In April 1995, it established the only physical education course in the prefecture.
Department.: General studies and physical education (40 students per grade, the only one in Shiga Prefecture).
Kendo Club: Winning the Shiga Prefecture qualifiers for the Reiwa 8 academic year, they will participate in Inter-High as a women’s team. 田中夢真 (3rd year, 3rd dan) will participate in the women’s individual event, and 横江光輝 (3rd year, 3rd dan) will participate in the men’s individual event. No nationwide tournament results for the kendo club alone could be confirmed in publicly available information. As a school, they produced Yui Ohhashi, the gold medalist in the women’s 400-meter individual medley at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics (graduated in fiscal year 2013), and the soccer club was runner-up at the 79th All Japan High School Soccer Tournament in 2000.

Source: https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/滋賀県立草津東高等学校↗ https://app.notion.com/p/0bf783a8139a4128b21c8bf825cbab58↗

Too Gijuku（東奥義塾）

Official name: 東奥義塾高等学校
Reading: Too Gijuku
Division/Category of Establishment: Private coeducational school. Protestant mission school. Established a junior high school in 2022.
Location: 61-1 Chojamori, 石川, Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture
History: Founded on November 27, 1872 (Meiji 5) by Kikuchi Kuro, as a continuation of the former Hirosaki Domain’s domain school, it is the oldest private school in Aomori Prefecture. After experiencing financial difficulties leading to public and prefectural administration, it was re-established in 1922. A junior high school was established in 2022.
School motto/philosophy: School motto: "Respect God, Love People" (officially established as the school motto in 1985).
Department.: Full-time general academic courses (CⅠ course = special advancement, CⅡ course = advancement selection/global studies, B course = comprehensive)
Kendo Club: The women's kendo team is one of the strongest in the country, with 16 consecutive Inter-High appearances. They won the All Japan High School Kendo Selection Tournament for women's teams in 2016 and 2019. They were runners-up in the Inter-High women's team event in 2019, and finished third in 2015, 2018, and 2024. They also finished third in the women's team event at the 34th All Japan High School Kendo Selection Tournament in March 2025 (淡路咲来 was named an outstanding player). This tournament features the women's team and women's individuals (松名瀬天絆 player, 3rd year, 3rd dan, 宇佐美華凜 player, 2nd year, 2nd dan) as representatives of Aomori Prefecture.
Notes: “Touou” refers to the Ou region, including Aomori Prefecture.

Source: https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/東奥義塾高等学校↗ https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/全国高等学校剣道大会↗ https://www.kendo.or.jp/event/koko-senbatsu-34th/↗ https://www.gijuku.ac.jp/hs/↗ https://app.notion.com/p/336e8a8ae16b46aa8ea2b1d2599ba61f↗

Source: 73rd All Japan High School Kendo Tournament Official Website "Tournament Bulletin" (Match Results / Tournament Bracket)
https://inhigh.kendotaikai.jp/大会速報↗
Only facts recorded in the logs (matches, valid strikes and their order, outcomes, match duration, and presence of fouls) are listed. The play-by-play and commentary are AI-generated content.