By Devin Heroux
Japanese curler Chinami Yoshida really has nothing left to prove in the sport.
She’s won numerous Japanese curling titles, a Grand Slam of Curling title, competed at two world championships, and has two Olympic medals — silver and bronze — to her name.
It would be easy for someone of her skill, talent and with her resume to become a tad complacent at this point in her career.
But that’s not who Yoshida is.
The curling superstar from Japan who plays the third position for Team Fujisawa — she has more than 300,000 Instagram followers — is continually trying to find ways to push herself and challenge herself.
So, when The Curling Group came knocking and asked Yoshida to become one of the captains for Rock League, Yoshida welcomed the opportunity.
“I'm not saying this to be modest, but when I saw the names of the other captains, I honestly felt that my skill level wasn't quite at the same level as those world-class players — those superstars,” Yoshida said during a recent interview on the Broom Brothers podcast with John Cullen.
“I thought that this environment might actually be the best stage for me to take on one final challenge in my curling career. To try to catch up to them, I would need to put in efforts beyond what I’ve done so far.”
Now in the winter of her career, Yoshida is acknowledging this will be her last big splash in the sport.
“I accepted the role of captain in the Rock League as the final challenge of my curling career,” Yoshida added.
The humility, joy and respect displayed by Japanese curlers has been widely documented over the years, making them fan favourites in their home country and in Canada as well.
Yoshida exemplifies that humbleness and joyful disposition on the ice — her megawatt smile is hard to miss.
It didn’t take long for her to accept this new challenge as Rock League captain for the Asia-Pacific team.
“I felt that this league would give me the environment to learn, to grow, and to become a better version of myself,” she said.
“Maybe a different kind of work, a new approach, overcoming language barriers, and pushing myself further.”
Rock League is curling’s first professional league, featuring six mixed-gender, globally based franchises in a multi-format competition built to push the sport into a new professional era.
The league’s six inaugural franchises — two in Canada, two in Europe, one in Asia-Pacific, and one in the U.S. — each feature 10 athletes: five women and five men.
Curlers around the world have been expressing their excitement and anticipation for Rock League over the last number of months since it was announced in April.
In many ways, Yoshida feels like her captaincy reflects all the work she’s put into curling for more than two decades.
“It felt like a gift for everything I’ve poured into curling,” she said.
“I mean — a professional curling league?! I needed a moment to wrap my head around that. Then I thought this kind of opportunity will probably never come again.”
More than anything, Yoshida is thrilled that she has yet another opportunity to help profile curling as a captain.
The sport continues to grow in Asia, with massive audiences tuning into curling. Yoshida says Japanese fans in particular have taken a huge interest in the sport.
“The culture of curling fans in Japan is a little different from in Canada,” she said.
“From my experience, Japanese fans are more passionate. Some fans even travel all the way to Canada just to watch our games. The fans become like part of the team — like a cheering squad.”
As passionate as fans are in Japan, Yoshida says she feels there’s still a disconnect between the game in Asia and the game in Canada and Europe — it’s a gap she wants to help bridge.
“I still feel that the curling cultures in Canada and Europe, and the curling culture in Asia, are not really connected yet,” she said.
“It feels like they’re developing separately. If there is something I can contribute to the curling world, maybe it’s being a liaison — bringing those cultures together. And I strongly felt that I could play that role in this professional league.”
Yoshida has competed at every Olympics for Japan since 2014, however, Team Fujisawa was unable to win the national trials to be given the opportunity to qualify the country for the Games.
There was obviously some disappointment in the wake of not winning the chance to represent Japan at another Olympics.
But following the disappointment came a newfound appreciation for what this all means to Yoshida.
“Not qualifying for the Olympics this time was actually the first time in my life that I didn’t make the Olympic team. Up until now, I had only experienced winning the Olympic Trials. Ever since I graduated high school and became a curler, I had always gone to the Olympics,” she said.
“So, of course, losing this time was really frustrating. But when I look at it not just as my curling life, but as my life as a whole, I don’t think having a loss is necessarily a bad thing. For the first time, I got to feel what it’s like to lose, and what it means to not go to the Olympics and I think that experience has value.”
Grace in defeat, on brand for who Yoshida is and what she continues to become in life and curling.
“I thought about what I should be doing in this chapter of my curling career — the chapter where I didn’t go to the Olympics — and I realized that what I want to show is that there are many different ways to become the best in the world,” she said.
“I want the younger curlers, the ones who are following in our footsteps, to see how we stand back up. And that’s why I’m really looking forward to my curling journey this season.”
Major Rock League announcements are coming very soon. Stay tuned for more details.
