Kiko Yokota
| Kiko Yokota | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 11 May 1997 Tokyo, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 163 cm (5 ft 4 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gymnastics career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Rhythmic gymnastics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented | Japan (2014–2021) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Adachi Rhythmic Gymnastics Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Retired | 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Kiko Yokota (横田 葵子, Yokota Kiko; born 11 May 1997) is a Japanese former group rhythmic gymnast. At the 2019 World Championships, she helped Japan win its first-ever group gold medal at a World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships. She represented Japan at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Gymnastics career
Yokota began rhythmic gymnastics when she was ten years old and joined the national group in 2014.[1] She competed at the 2014 World Championships with the group that placed eighth in the all-around.[2] She helped Japan win the bronze medal in the 5 ribbons final at the 2015 World Championships, which was Japan's first Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships medal in 40 years.[3]
Yokota was selected to represent Japan at the 2016 Summer Olympics alongside her teammates Airi Hatakeyama, Sakura Noshitani, Sayuri Sugimoto and Rie Matsubara. They qualified for the group all-around final and finished in eighth place.[4][5][6] This was the best-ever Olympic result for the Japanese rhythmic gymnastics group.[7]
Yokota competed at the 2017 World Championships and helped Japan win the group all-around bronze medal, behind Russia and Bulgaria.[8] They won another bronze medal in the 5 hoops final and then won the silver medal in the 3 balls and 2 ropes final.[9] Then at the 2018 World Championships, they won the silver medal in the 5 balls final behind Bulgaria and finished fifth in the all-around.[10]
At the 2019 Baku World Cup, Yokota helped Japan win the group all-around title and a silver medal in the 5 balls final.[11] Then at the 2019 World Championships, she won a group all-around silver medal, which matched Japan's best-ever group all-around result from 1975.[12][13] They then won the gold medal in the 5 balls final, becoming the first Japanese group to win a title at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships. They also won the silver medal in the 3 hoops and 4 clubs final.[3]
Yokota was selected for the team but was unable to compete at the 2020 Summer Olympics due to an injury.[14] She announced her retirement from the sport in September 2021.[1]
References
- ^ a b "新体操日本代表 横田葵子 現役引退を表明" [Japan rhythmic gymnastics representative Kiko Yokota announces retirement]. Nippon Television Network (in Japanese). 24 September 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2025.
- ^ "33rd Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Izmir (TUR) Senior All-Around" (PDF). USA Gymnastics. International Gymnastics Federation. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b "With World Group title, the sun continues to rise over Japanese Rhythmic Gymnastics". International Gymnastics Federation. 24 September 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
- ^ "Rhythmic Gymnastics: Group All-Around Standings". Rio2016.com. Rio 2016 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
- ^ "Russia wins another Olympic gold in rhythmic gymnastics group final". NBC Olympics. 21 August 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
- ^ "日本８位、ロシア５連覇 新体操" [Japan finished eighth, Russia wins its fifth consecutive gold in rhythmic gymnastics group all-around] (in Japanese). Japanese Olympic Committee. 21 August 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
- ^ "World-class performance from Fairy Japan at Tokyo 2020 test event". International Olympic Committee. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ^ "With World Group All-around title, Russia extends its reign in Pesaro". International Gymnastics Federation. 2 September 2017. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ^ ""Farfalle" soar to Group gold on final day of Rhythmic Worlds". International Gymnastics Federation. 3 September 2017. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
- ^ "36th Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships Results Book" (PDF). USA Gymnastics. International Gymnastics Federation. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ "Dina dominates in Baku as World Cup season closes". International Gymnastics Federation. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
- ^ "Russian Federation wins Group All-around title, threatening a World sweep". International Gymnastics Federation. 21 September 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2025.
- ^ "'Fairy Japan' claims first world rhythmic gymnastic silver in 44 years". The Japan Times. 22 September 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
- ^ "オリンピック 新体操 ケガの横田に代わり松原が代表に" [Matsubara replaces injured Yokota in Olympic rhythmic gymnastics]. NHK (in Japanese). 4 August 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2025.