Ishikawa, who wanted to ‘grow up’ after the Tokyo Olympics, moved to Florence, Italy

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• on May 23, 2023

Japanese women’s national volleyball team outside hitter Mayu Ishikawa moves to Florence, Italy for the upcoming season.

Italian Women’s Volleyball Division 1 Firenze announced on the 22nd that “Mayu Ishikawa has chosen Florence, Italy for the upcoming 2023-2024 season.” 

Ishikawa expressed her anticipation for the new team, saying, “Italy has many strong teams. I wanted to play on this stage. I want to learn and grow a lot while experiencing various things.” She continued, “It’s my first time, so I’m nervous, but it’s not an easy opportunity to play on the Italian stage. I’ll do it with a strong determination.”

Ishikawa, who joined her Toray during her 2019-2020 season and won her Rookie of the Year Award, has proven herself from her debut season. This season, she led her team to runner-up after being the top scorer in the Japanese V-League.

Her club team as well as her national team career are spectacular. At the age of 19, she was selected for her first national team and she competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she placed fifth, and was also a regular at the 2022 International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) World Championships.

At the heart of Ishikawa’s decision to advance to Italy was her regret for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. At that time, Japan swallowed regret at home by being eliminated from the group stage. At that time, Japan lost to Korea after a full set match and failed to advance to the tournament. With this disappointment, Ishikawa’s desire to grow up grew and she decided to go to Italy.

For the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympic qualifiers, Ishikawa’s national team performance continues. He aims to advance to the Olympics by using his experience in the Italian league. “(Italy) has height and power unlike the Japanese league. I want to grow even a little bit and share what I learned abroad with the Japanese national team, and grow together.”안전놀이터

Meanwhile, Ishikawa’s older brother Yuki Ishikawa is also active in Milan, Italy. As his older brother and senior, he gave advice to his younger brother, who was leaving his country and heading abroad, saying, “He needs to study English in order to communicate with his colleagues.”