Yukio Shimomura facts for kids
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Yukio Shimomura | ||
| Date of birth | January 25, 1932 | ||
| Place of birth | Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Empire of Japan | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1948–1949 | Shudo High School | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1950–1961 | Toyo Industries | ||
| National team | |||
| 1955 | Japan | 1 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1964–1970 | Toyo Industries | ||
| 1972–1974 | Towa Real Estate | ||
| 1979–1980 | Japan | ||
|
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Yukio Shimomura (下村 幸男, Shimomura Yukio, born January 25, 1932) was a famous Japanese football player and coach. He was born on January 25, 1932. He played as a goalkeeper for Japan's national team. Later, he also became the coach for the Japan national team.
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Playing for Clubs
Yukio Shimomura was born in Hiroshima. After finishing high school, he joined his local football club, Toyo Industries, in 1950. He played as a goalkeeper for this team.
His team did very well in the Emperor's Cup, which is a big football tournament in Japan. They came in second place in 1954 and 1957. In 1954, it was the first time a team from a company reached the Emperor's Cup final. Yukio Shimomura stopped playing football in 1961.
Playing for Japan's National Team
Yukio Shimomura played his first game for the Japan national team on October 9, 1955. They played against the team from Myanmar.
In 1956, he was chosen to be part of the Japanese team for the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. However, he was the reserve goalkeeper. This means he was a backup player and did not get to play in the games. The main goalkeeper was Yoshio Furukawa.
Becoming a Coach
After he stopped playing, Yukio Shimomura became a coach. In 1964, he started coaching his old club, Toyo Industries.
In 1965, Toyo Industries joined a new league called the Japan Soccer League. Under Shimomura's coaching, the team won the very first championship in this league in 1965. He led his team to an amazing "golden era." They won the league championship five times: in 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, and 1970.
He also led the club to win the Emperor's Cup three times: in 1965, 1967, and 1969. He stopped coaching Toyo Industries in 1970.
In 1972, he became the coach for another team, Towa Real Estate. This team was promoted to the second division of the Japan Soccer League. He coached them for three seasons until 1974.
Coaching Japan's National Team
In 1979, Yukio Shimomura was chosen to be the manager for the Japan national team. He took over from the previous manager, Hiroshi Ninomiya.
However, the team did not qualify for the 1980 Summer Olympics after the 1980 Asian Olympic Qualifying Tournaments. Because of this, he resigned from his role as national team manager.
National Team Games Played
Here is a table showing how many games Yukio Shimomura played for the Japan national team.
| Japan national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Games Played | Goals Scored |
| 1955 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 |
Awards and Recognition
- Japan Football Hall of Fame: Yukio Shimomura was added to the Japan Football Hall of Fame in 2015. This is a special honor for people who have made a big impact on football in Japan.
