Four Japanese athletes who won the bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics Ski Nordic Combined Group were awarded medals on the night of the 18th.
Japan reached 4th place in the first half of the jump at the Ski Nordic Combined Group held on the 17th, and reached the cross country in the second half.
The race was the 4th final runner, and the composition was such that 3 teams of Japan, Germany and Austria competed for 2nd and 3rd place.
Japan was finally overtaken by Germany in a fierce battle, but finished in 3rd place and won the bronze medal.
Japan has won the medal for the first time in 28 years since the gold medal at the 1994 Lillehammer tournament.
The medal award ceremony held at the Medal Plaza in Beijing on the night of the 18th was attended by four members, Akito Watabe, his younger brother Yoshito, Hideaki Nagai and Ryota Yamamoto. ..
When the four received the medals, they hung around their necks and praised each other.
After the award ceremony, Akito Watabe, who also won the bronze medal in the individual large hill of the ski Nordic combined, said, "The medal itself is the same as the individual competition, but you can share the joy as much as the number of teams, and it is better than the individual competition medal. I'm so happy many times. "
His younger brother, Zento, said, "I'm happy to be able to put a medal on the neck of Akito, who has been pulling the team for a long time."
Nagai said, "I received the medal and realized it. It's a medal filled with the thoughts of the whole team."
And Yamamoto said, "The first thing I want you to see the medal is my deceased father, so I want to tell you that I got the medal at the grave. I couldn't give back as a form, so it's a really good opportunity. I got it. "