Japan Announce 34 Player Men’s National Team Roster for 2018

On March 19th, the Japan Volleyball Association (JVA) announced their Men’s National Team roster for the 2018 FIVB season. Masahiro Yanagida, Issei Otake and Yuki Ishikawa who have being playing in Germany (Yanagida and Otake) and Italy (Ishikawa) will lead the Japanese team for the second season in a row.  One surprising addition to the list is Kunihiro Shimizu, who was injured during the Japanese V.League season and will be out for one year with a knee injury.

The V.League Champion Panasonic Panthers have six players on the team, the most of any team.

Nine players from the 2017 Japanese Men’s roster have not been selected. So it appears to me that the roster has got even younger than it was last year. Two players listed are still in high school, while seven are still in college.

The Men’s National Team will begin training on April 9th in Tokyo.

Setters

• Motoki Eiro, Tokai University
• Hideomi Fukatsu, Panasonic Panthers
• Naonobu Fujii, Toray Arrows
• Masaki Oya, Suntory Sunbirds (still in college at the University of East Asia)
• Masahiro Sekita, Panasonic Panthers (can also play OH)

Outside Hitters

• Hiroaki Asano, JTEKT Stings
• Shunsuke Chijiki, Sakai Blazers
• Tatsuya Fukuzawa, Panasonic Panthers
• Tsubasa Hisahara, Panasonic Panthers
• Yuki Ishikawa, Taiwan Excellence Latina (still studying at Chuo University)
• Hiroki Ozawa, University of Tsukuba
• Takuya Takamatsu, Toyoda Gosei Trefuerza
• Naoya Takano, Sakai Blazers
• Jin Tsuzuki, Chuo University
• Masahiro Yanagida, Volleyball Bisons Buhl

Opposites

• Yudai Arai, Tokai University
• Takashi Dekita, Sakai Blazers (can also play MB)
• Yuji Nishida, JTEKT Stings (still in high school)
• Takeshi Ogawa, Suntory Sunbirds
• Issei Otake, United Volleys Rhein-Main (on loan from Panasonic Panthers, while studying at Chuo University)
• Kunihiro Shimizu, Panasonic Panthers

Middle Blockers

• Ryota Denda, Toyoda Gosei Trefuerza
• Yamato Fushimi, Toray Arrows
• Hirohito Kashimura, Keio University
• Haku Lee, Toray Arrows
• Taishi Onodera, JT Thunders
• Shunichiro Sato, Tohoku High School
• Kentaro Takahashi, Toray Arrows (can also play OH)
• Akihiro Yamauchi, Panasonic Panthers

Liberos

• Ryuta Honma, JTEKT Stings
• Tomohiro Horie, Waseda University
• Satoshi Ide, Toray Arrows
• Wataru Inoue, JT Thunders
• Taichiro Koga, Aluron Virtu Warta Zawiercie