Nao Yamakita
Yamakita at the 2025 Kaohsiung Masters | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 30 October 2005 Tsurugashima, Saitama Prefecture, Japan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Japan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Mizuki Fujii Naru Shinoya | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Women's doubles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career record | 78 wins, 17 losses (82.11%) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 34 (with Hinata Suzuki, 10 February 2026) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 34 (with Hinata Suzuki, 17 March 2026) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BWF profile | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Nao Yamakita (山北 奈緒, Yamakita Nao; born 30 October 2005) is a Japanese badminton player who specializes in women's doubles.[1] She is a member of the Japanese national team and plays for the NTT East team.[2] She was the gold medalist at the 2023 Asian Junior Championships and a bronze medalist at the 2023 World Junior Championships. In 2025, Yamakita won her maiden World Tour title at the 2025 Korea Masters Super 300.
Career
2019–2023: Junior career and first senior title
Yamakita won the U17 mixed doubles title at the 2019 Asian Junior Championships with partner Yudai Okimoto.[3] In 2022, she and Maya Taguchi reached the finals of three European junior tournaments, including the Croatia Valamar and Bulgaria Junior Opens.[4][5] Partnering with Mei Sudo in 2023, Yamakita won the German Junior title before claiming gold at the Asian Junior Championships, where they defeated South Korea's Park Seul and Yeon Seo-yeon in the final.[6][7] The pair also won a bronze medal at the World Junior Championships in Spokane.[8] In team events, Yamakita helped Japan secure its first mixed team gold medal in 11 years at the Asian Junior Championships and a bronze at the World Junior Championships. She made her senior international debut in June 2023 at the Guatemala Future Series, winning the women's doubles title with Sudo and finishing as runner-up in mixed doubles with Kenta Matsukawa.[9]
2024–2025: First World Tour title and world top 40
After joining the NTT East badminton team, Yamakita partnered with Naru Shinoya to win the 2024 Malaysia International.[10] In 2025, she began a partnership with Hinata Suzuki. The duo won the Saipan International and finished as runners-up at the Northern Marianas Open.[11][12] On the World Tour, they reached the final of the Super 100 Kaohsiung Masters.[13] In November 2025, Yamakita won her first World Tour title at the Super 300 Korea Masters, defeating Kim So-yeong and Lee Seo-jin in straight games.[14] Following this victory, she reached a career-high world ranking of 37 in women's doubles.
Achievements
World Junior Championships
Girls' doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | The Podium, Spokane, United States | Mei Sudo | Francesca Corbett Allison Lee |
21–18, 16–21, 13–21 | Bronze | [8] |
Asian Junior Championships
Girls' doubles
| Year | Venue | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Among Rogo Sports Hall, Yogyakarta, Indonesia | Mei Sudo | Park Seul Yeon Seo-yeon |
21–19, 14–21, 23–21 | Gold | [7] |
BWF World Tour (1 title, 1 runner-up)
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[15] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.[16]
Women's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Kaohsiung Masters | Super 100 | Hinata Suzuki | Ririna Hiramoto Kokona Ishikawa |
16–21, 17–21 | Runner-up | [13] |
| 2025 | Korea Masters | Super 300 | Hinata Suzuki | Kim So-yeong Lee Seo-jin |
21–18, 25–23 | Winner | [14] |
BWF International Challenge/Series (3 titles, 2 runners-up)
Women's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Guatemala Future Series | Mei Sudo | Tomoka Miyazaki Maya Taguchi |
16–21, 21–14, 25–23 | Winner | [9] |
| 2024 | Malaysia International | Naru Shinoya | Hinata Suzuki An Uesugi |
21–13, 12–21, 21–17 | Winner | [10] |
| 2025 | Northern Marianas Open | Hinata Suzuki | Ririna Hiramoto Kokona Ishikawa |
17–21, 15–21 | Runner-up | [12][17] |
| 2025 | Saipan International | Hinata Suzuki | Nanako Hara Riko Kiyose |
15–13, 8–15, 15–11 | Winner | [11][18] |
Mixed doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Guatemala Future Series | Kenta Matsukawa | Daigo Tanioka Maya Taguchi |
18–21, 19–21 | Runner-up | [9] |
- BWF International Challenge tournament
- BWF Future Series tournament
BWF Junior International (2 titles, 3 runners-up)
Girls' doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Croatia Junior Open | Maya Taguchi | Rui Kiyama Kanano Muroya |
19–21, 19–21 | Runner-up | [4] |
| 2022 | Bulgaria Junior Open | Maya Taguchi | Rui Kiyama Kanano Muroya |
14–21, 21–19, 17–21 | Runner-up | [5] |
| 2022 | Malaysia Junior International | Maya Taguchi | Rui Kiyama Kanano Muroya |
19–21, 17–21 | Runner-up | [19] |
| 2023 | German Junior | Mei Sudo | Li Huazhou Zhang Yuhan |
21–11, 19–21, 21–18 | Winner | [6] |
| 2023 | Pembangunan Jaya Raya Junior | Mei Sudo | Ariella Naqiyyah Rachel Agnesia Sabatini |
21–17, 21–9 | Winner | [20] |
- BWF Junior International Grand Prix tournament
- BWF Junior International Challenge tournament
- BWF Junior International Series tournament
References
- ^ "Nao YAMAKITA | Profile". Badminton World Federation. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
- ^ "Nao YAMAKITA | Profile" (in Japanese). NTT East. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
- ^ "Indonesia's Rahmat big winner in Badminton Asia Under-17 & Under-15 Junior Championships". Badminton Asia. 16 December 2019. Archived from the original on 21 April 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
- ^ a b Galjer, Ratko (21 June 2022). "New talents at the Croatia VALAMAR Junior Open 2022". Badminton Europe. Archived from the original on 22 February 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
- ^ a b Honda, Hiroki (27 June 2022). "Bulgaria Junior Open 2022 | Results". Badminton Association of Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ a b "YONEX German Junior: Japan, China and Korea win" (in German). 14 March 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "A Special Day for Indonesia in Yogyakarta". Badminton Asia. 16 July 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Corbett and Lee Chase Gold Medal for USA at BWF World Junior Championships 2023". USA Badminton. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "Champions in Guatemala – Pan Am Circuit 2023". Badminton Pan America. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Men's Doubles Pair Miss Out On Title At Petronas Malaysia International Badminton Challenge 2024". Bernama. 22 September 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Champions Crowned at CENTURY INSURANCE Saipan International 2025 – Finals Recap". Badminton Oceania. 16 August 2025. Archived from the original on 16 August 2025. Retrieved 16 August 2025.
- ^ a b "Japan Dominates Finals at CROWNE PLAZA Northern Marianas Open". Badminton Oceania. 11 August 2025. Retrieved 10 August 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Kaohsiung Masters 2025 [Super 100] | Results". NTT East (in Japanese). 29 September 2025. Archived from the original on 3 October 2025. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
- ^ a b "【韓国マスターズ Super 300】女子複：鈴木 陽向／山北 奈緒が優勝！！". SMASH and NET. TV - バドミントン情報＆動画 SMASH and NET. TV (in Japanese). TMONY Japan Corporation. 9 November 2025. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
- ^ Alleyne, Gayle (19 March 2017). "BWF Launches New Events Structure". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
- ^ Sukumar, Dev (10 January 2018). "Action-Packed Season Ahead!". Badminton World Federation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
- ^ Sablan Jr., James (12 August 2025). "Japan sweeps Crowne Plaza badminton titles". Marianas Variety. Archived from the original on 12 August 2025. Retrieved 14 August 2025.
- ^ Sablan Jr., James (18 August 2025). "Japan, Korea, and India claim badminton titles in Century Insurance tourney". Marianas Variety. Archived from the original on 18 August 2025. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
- ^ Peter, Fabian (10 September 2022). "Juniors need a booster shot". New Straits Times. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Jonatan/Adrian Win 2023 Jaya Raya Junior International Grand Prix" (in Indonesian). Media Indonesia. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
External links
- Nao Yamakita at BWFBadminton.com
- Nao Yamakita at Badminton Association of Japan (in Japanese)
- Nao Yamakita at NTT East (in Japanese)