Source:REUTERS/David Klein
[Saba Sports News] Chiharu Shida, who won a bronze medal in women’s doubles badminton at the 2024 Paris Olympics, recently updated her personal Instagram, sharing a photo with her former partner, Nami Matsuyama. According to reports, the duo officially disbanded after the World Badminton Championships in August 2025. Against this backdrop, Shida expressed her gratitude to Coach Kei Nakajima on Instagram, acknowledging that although it was two and a half months late, she wanted to thank him once again. Shida also uploaded a group photo featuring herself, Matsuyama, and Coach Nakajima.
Interestingly, Coach Nakajima, originally named Ding Qiqing, was born in 1962 and is a former player of the Chinese national badminton team. He partnered with Li Yongbo to win titles at the 1985 German Open and the Swedish Open. After retiring due to numerous injuries, he was introduced by a friend to study in Japan at the age of 27. He later became the doubles coach for the Japanese national team, primarily focusing on women’s doubles players.
In 2001, after living in Japan for over ten years, Ding Qiqing became a Japanese citizen and changed his name to Kei Nakajima. The character “Naka” represents China, while “jima” means Japan, symbolizing his love for both countries. He stated that the main reason for changing his nationality was work-related, as he frequently led teams abroad for competitions. Holding a Chinese passport often resulted in visa complications that made traveling inconvenient, leading to delays that sometimes caused him to miss competitions. Thus, under these special circumstances, he chose to acquire Japanese citizenship.