Kanako Yonekura : Cinderella Girl

With an especially dramatic victory, Kanako Yonekura became the first Japanese in 28 years to take a gold medal in the women's badminton singles event.

Yonekura had to face extremely tough competition, but she succeeded against all odds in defeating the world champion from China in the quarterfinals and the third-placed player in the world, also from China, in the final match.

It was a glorious performance, worthy of an Olympic triumph, and the spirited Yonekura became the Cinderella girl of Bangkok. After the final match, Yonekura remarked that she had put everything into the game. Her victory was proof that Japanese athletes, who are said to be weak under the pressure of major events, can succeed if they go for it.

Now sports fans are keeping their attention on Yonekura and the rest of the Japanese squad as they begin preparing for the summer Olympics to be held in Sydney in 2000.