Shingo Kunieda, who retired last year from his legendary wheelchair tennis playing career, has embarked on a new journey as a coach in the United States in a bid to make his sport as big as it possibly can be.
In January, Kunieda traveled to America to develop junior athletes on an invitation from the United States Tennis Association in his hopes that a wheelchair tennis boom there could invigorate the sport around the world.
"If America starts producing one top player after another, there is a chance it will lift the entire sport. I want to create that transformation," Kunieda said recently.
After retiring from his playing career, Kunieda made public appearances and tried his hand at media work as a way of taking on new challenges to fill the void left by his "sense of loss."
But as he groped around for the next stage of his life's journey, in the back of his mind Kunieda had the words of a longtime supporter.
Tadashi Yanai, the founder and CEO of Fast Retailing Co., the parent company of the Uniqlo clothing empire, had told him, "Those things you're doing are side jobs. You should find something that will be the nucleus of your true occupation."
So Kunieda, who for some time had wanted to improve his English, looked into going to the United States, where the USTA wanted him for his know-how, and he is now working with junior players in Orlando, Florida.
"What I enjoy the most is that instant when my advice makes a difference," Kunieda said.
Last year, he worked at the Japan Open men's and women's championships as the wheelchair tennis section's tournament director.
If there is one place in the world Kunieda might make the biggest difference in that future, it might be the United States, where the big capital sports attract can move mountains.
"This (job) might only be for one or two years, but I want to do all that I'm now capable of," he said.
