Kunishige Kamamoto

Kunishige Kamamoto

Personal information
Full name	Kunishige Kamamoto
Date of birth	April 15, 1944
Place of birth	Kyoto, Japan
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 ^1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Striker
Youth career
1960–1962	Yamashiro H.S.
1963–1966	Waseda University
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
1967–1984	Yanmar Diesel	251	(202)
National team
1964–1977	Japan	84[1][2]	(80[1])
Teams managed
1978–1984	Yanmar Diesel
1991–1994	Gamba Osaka
2009	Fujieda MYFC
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (goals)

Olympic medal record
Men's Football
	1968 Mexico City	Team competition

Kunishige Kamamoto (釜本 邦茂 Kamamoto Kunishige, born April 15, 1944) is a former association football player from Japan, who won the bronze medal with the Japan national team at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico, finishing as the tournament's top scorer with seven goals. Kamamoto is often considered to be the greatest Japanese football player of all-time.^[3]

He was born in Kyoto on April 15, 1944. He grew up in Kyoto and attended Yamashiro High School. Then, he was on to Waseda University School of commerce. His major was commerce and earned bachelor of arts degree from Waseda University in 1966. He was selected Japan national football team in his college year. He joined the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Tokyo and the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico city, Mexico.

Kamamoto was the first Japanese league superstar, being the Japan Soccer League's top scorer 6 times with his club Yanmar Diesel, the forerunner to today's Cerezo Osaka. Upon retirement he became a manager and went across town to the local rivals, Gamba Osaka. Later, he became a member of the House of Councilors.

Kamamoto has been a politician since 1995 and the vice chairman of the Japan Football Association since July 1998.

Club statistics

^[4][5]

Club performance			League		Cup		League Cup		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Japan			League		Emperor's Cup		J. League Cup		Total
1967	Yanmar Diesel	JSL Division 1	14	14	3	7	-		17	21
1968			14	14	3	5	-		17	19
1969			12	10	3	7	-		15	17
1970			14	16	3	5	-		17	21
1971			14	11	3	5	-		17	16
1972			14	11	4	5	-		18	16
1973			16	17	2	0	-		18	17
1974			18	21	4	3	-		22	24
1975			17	9	3	2	-		20	11
1976			18	15	3	2	1	0	22	17
1977			18	20	4	4	3	2	25	26
1978			18	15	3	4	3	4	24	23
1979			18	7	3	2	2	1	22	11
1980			18	10	2	0	3	2	23	12
1981			18	11	2	0	0	0	20	11
1982			8	1	0	0	0	0	8	1
1983			2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
1984			0	0	3	0	0	0	3	0
Country	Japan		251	202	48	51	12	9	311	262
Total			251	202	48	51	12	9	311	262

National team statistics

^[1][6]

Japan national team
Year	Apps	Goals
1964	4	1
1965	3	3
1966	7	6
1967	5	11
1968	10	12
1969	0	0
1970	6	3
1971	6	8
1972	8	15
1973	3	2
1974	5	5
1975	7	5
1976	16	9
1977	4	0
Total	84	80

Honours

• Summer Olympics football top scorer : 1968
• Japanese Footballer of the Year (7): 1966, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1981
• Japan Soccer League Top Scorer (7): 1968, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1976 (on his own), 1978 (shared with Carvalho).
• Japan Soccer League Best Eleven (14): 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981.
• Japan Soccer League Assists leader (2): 1973, 1975
• Japan Soccer League Star Ball Award (5): 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972
• Japan Soccer League Fighting Spirit Award (1): 1968
• Japan Soccer League 100 goals Award: 1974
• Japan Soccer League 200 goals Award: 1981

References

1. 80 days to go – With 80 goals in 84 appearances, Kunishige Kamamoto is Japan’s all-time leading goalscorer. (FIFA.com)
2. Kunishige Kamamoto - Goals in International Matches
3. "Top 10 Japanese Athletes". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
4. "Kamamoto, Kunishige". National Football Teams. Retrieved 2011-07-17.
5. KAMAMOTO Kunishige. Japan National Football Team Database
6. Japanese Soccer Personalities - Kunishige KAMAMOTO

External links

• Kunishige Kamamoto – FIFA competition record
• Japan Soccer Archive: Biography and action photos