By Joel Fitzpatrick,
As Japan flew past its previous best single-games Olympic gold medal total with its 17th on the eighth day of the Tokyo Games, its female athletes were hauling their share of the load. By the end, the women carried the day.
Japan won gold medals in 14 women's, 12 men's events and one mixed event, and of the 58-medal total, female-only events resulted in 30 podiums.
This is quite a shift for Japan as compared to previous games and poignant considering what took place at the head of the Olympic organizing committee.
Sexist remarks by the original organizing committee president, Yoshiro Mori, caused an outcry and led to him being replaced in February by Seiko Hashimoto, a 1992 women's 1,500-meter speed skating bronze medalist.
The episode brought gender issues to the forefront of discussions around Japan's hosting of the event.
Since 2004, Japan has seen no more than 48 percent of its Olympic medals won by female athletes at a single games, and in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 the percentage fell to 43.9 percent, the lowest over the period, according to Gracenote Sports.
In comparison, the United States and China -- the only two nations to finish above Japan on the Tokyo Games medal table -- had more than 50 percent of medals coming from women in Brazil, with China leading the way with 58.6 percent.
That trend has continued in Tokyo, at least with gold medals. Twenty-two of China's 38 gold medals, or almost 58 percent, were won by women and for the United States the figure is 23 of 39.
Japan developed a strong contingent of female medal contenders for its home games, athletes like four-time tennis Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and world No. 3-ranked badminton player Nozomi Okuhara, neither of those panned out, but many others did.
Swimmer Yui Ohashi became the first female summer Olympian from Japan to win a pair of gold medals at the same games, while Japan's female judo contingent contributed four, one short of the most ever at a single games.
The softballers also chipped in while table tennis' Mima Ito delivered mixed doubles gold. Skateboarders Sakura Yosozumi and Momiji Nishiya made history as the first women to win Olympic titles in their disciplines.
And despite Japan Olympic Committee President Yasuhiro Yamashita giving up his organization's long-held goal of 30 gold medals in Tokyo due to coronavirus uncertainty, the total proved realistic.
Medal opportunities for men and women were almost equal at the Tokyo Games, a much-touted achievement in 2021.
Japan can thank the increased output of its female athletes for delivering its record gold and total medal totals.
