With the remarkable success of Japanese athletes at the Olympics and World Cups, sport climbing has become one of the sports Japan proudly showcases to the world, and its popularity continues to surge domestically. As the climbing scene expands and more Japanese climbers rise to compete on the world’s biggest stages, there is also a growing movement toward “second careers,” where athletes pioneer new possibilities for the next generation while continuing to contribute to the development of the sport.

One such figure is professional free climber Akiyo Noguchi, who achieved unprecedented accomplishments as one of Japan’s long-standing world-class athletes. She capped off her career with a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before retiring from competition. Today, she continues to break new ground as a pioneer in her post-competitive career.

In this special interview, we spoke with Noguchi—who has not only excelled during her active years but also continues to lead in her second career. With her youth bouldering competition, “AKIYO’s DREAM with RYUGASAKI,” set to take place next month in her hometown of Ryugasaki City, we delve into her current activities, reflect on her extensive competitive career, and explore the messages she hopes to share with young climbers, as well as her vision for the future.

Having led the competition scene as a top athlete for over a decade, where does Akiyo Noguchi stand now after retiring from competition?

— After retiring from competition following many years as a top athlete, what are you currently focusing on?

I retired from competition in the summer of 2021, the year of the Tokyo Olympics. After that, I married climber Tomoa Narasaki, and two years later, in 2023, I gave birth to our daughter.

Today, I am a mother to one child and support my husband as his partner, while also working to promote the sport I love—climbing—through organizing competitions, events, and trial sessions.

Even after retiring from competition, my passion for climbing itself hasn’t changed. I still stay active as a climber, going outdoors to climb on natural rock, and regularly training on a private wall at my family home.

— Aside from supporting your partner, Tomoa Narasaki, and promoting climbing, are you mainly focusing on free climbing as a climber now?

Yes, that’s right. During my competitive years, I was fully focused on competitions, so I didn’t have much freedom to visit natural rock sites I wanted to climb or to challenge high-difficulty routes. But now, after wrapping up my support for my husband’s Paris Olympics journey and with my child starting daycare, I’ve been able to make more time for my own climbing again.

Last December, I visited Siurana in Spain for the first time in ten years to climb on natural rock. Being there made me realize once again how much I want to push my limits further—taking on higher-grade routes that I couldn’t complete during my competitive career.

— So even after retiring from competition, your drive to challenge your limits hasn’t changed.

Yes. The essence of climbing isn’t just about competition rankings or the grade of a route. No matter my age, I want to continue growing through climbing. I’ve truly felt that the more effort you put in, the more you can push beyond your limits. That’s why I’d be really happy if I can achieve even more on natural rock than I did before.

— Your life stage has changed with your marriage to Tomoa Narasaki and the birth of your daughter. What kind of changes have you experienced?

Up until now, my life was completely centered around myself. I dedicated all my time to my own climbing, and the people around me—my family, sponsors, trainers, and coaches—also gave their time to support my goals.

But now, my life has shifted to focus more on my husband’s competitions and raising our child. As a result, the priorities for how I use my time—including climbing—have changed significantly.

Balancing my roles as a supportive wife, a mother, someone who promotes climbing, and still pursuing my own climbing as a professional free climber is definitely not easy. However, I feel that maintaining this balance is extremely important for me.

— Since retiring, your activities have expanded, including media appearances. Have you discovered anything new through these experiences?

Through my work in the media, I’ve realized that my perspective has changed greatly compared to when I was still competing. What I feel most strongly now is the value of the connections I’ve made through various opportunities beyond climbing.

I’m deeply grateful for the relationships I’ve built—both with new people I’ve met through these activities and with those who supported me during my competitive career. All of these connections have truly shaped and supported what I’m doing today.

— You’ve been involved in various work both inside and outside the climbing scene. Do you have any recent ways to relax?

Lately, the thing I enjoy most—with my husband included—is traveling with our child. Because of our work, we often have competitions or events on weekends, so it’s not easy to spend time together on weekdays or weekends.

We can’t travel very frequently, but we usually aim for about two family trips a year, one in summer and one in winter. We haven’t gone on a trip yet this winter, but I want to show our child snow. Once my husband’s competition, scheduled in three weeks, is over, we hope to go on a trip. Since our child is only 1 year and 8 months old, we’re thinking of a short trip, like a one-night, two-day stay at a ski resort accessible by car.

— Looking back on your competitive career, what would you like to share?

What I most want to convey is the importance of reflecting on—and aligning with—the reasons you want to succeed in climbing, adjusting them as times and circumstances change.

— What do you think was the key to maintaining your strength as a top athlete for so many years?

Even after retiring, I’m often asked by active climbers about mental aspects of competition, and recently someone asked me about maintaining motivation, which gave me a chance to reflect on it again.

Motivation is a very fluid thing. Relying on motivation alone, it’s possible to keep competing for 5–6 years, but sustaining a career for 10–20 years is much harder. I started climbing at age 11, began competing in international competitions at 16, and my final event, the Tokyo Olympics, was when I was 32.

So my competitive career spanned about 20 years. Throughout that time, I always reflected on the purpose of my climbing and the reasons I wanted to win, adjusting them according to my age, my goals at the moment, and changes in the era. That made it very clear to me why I wanted to push myself and why I wanted to win.

Thanks to that clarity, even when I won World Cups or became annual champion, I didn’t settle—I could set even higher goals. Probably also due to my personality, I’ve always been competitive, not just in competitions but in everyday training. Even when I achieved results, I didn’t relax; I kept applying pressure to myself and stayed ambitious throughout my career.

— You mentioned that you have a competitive nature. What mindset allowed you to keep setting high goals and achieving results without ever feeling fully satisfied?

I think part of it was that I genuinely enjoyed the process of training toward my goals. But like many athletes, I especially loved the version of myself that was winning or giving my all. I always focused on making the effort to stay that “best version” of myself.

Additionally, I’ve always admired athletes who work hard every day, even in a gritty, behind-the-scenes way, while remaining humble. I wanted to embody that ideal athlete in my own way, and that thought motivated me throughout my career.

— I see. While pursuing your goals with such passion, you must have faced frustration when results didn’t come. How did you overcome those challenges?

Of course, every loss was painful, but the hardest moments were when I didn’t understand why I lost. If it was due to a lack of skill or insufficient effort, I could accept it. But when I had done everything I could and still didn’t win, it was difficult to reconcile, and I experienced a lot of inner conflict.

I also competed during a time when I didn’t have a coach, so I had to learn and improvise on my own. That left gaps in understanding my weaknesses or how to improve certain areas. Over time, as younger climbers emerged and rules changed, I realized that sometimes I couldn’t solve everything by myself. In those moments, I sought coaching, incorporated physical training beyond climbing, and understood that I needed to adapt my thinking and values in order to continue progressing.

— Having competed for so long and witnessed many changes in the scene, it seems you were able to calmly assess what you needed at each stage and adapt accordingly.

Yes. I think being able to flexibly change with the times is the most important thing—but at the same time, it’s also the part I least wanted to accept. There were periods when I felt that if I didn’t make significant changes myself, it would be very difficult to keep up. I’m really glad I was able to adapt in those moments.

Over nearly 15–16 years of competing in World Cups and World Championships, I experienced situations where what was considered “correct” or best practice changed with the times. What had been my successful strategies or the widely accepted “right way” at one time would sometimes become outdated or even completely opposite in the next era.

During those shifts, I learned that to continue winning, I had to stay one step ahead of the evolving scene and the younger generation. For example, when a teenage athlete would take three steps forward, I had to ensure that even in my 30s, I could take four steps through extra effort, preparation, and strategy. Maintaining this mindset was essential to staying competitive throughout my career.

Thoughts on her first-ever youth bouldering competition: “AKIYO’s DREAM with RYUGASAKI”

— Can you tell us how you came to host this competition?

Since my competitive days, my hometown of Ryugasaki City in Ibaraki Prefecture has been supporting me. Starting this year, we began an initiative called “Ryugasaki: A Town for Sport Climbing”, and this youth competition, “AKIYO’s DREAM with RYUGASAKI”, serves as the kickoff event for that project. My vision is to hold this tournament annually for many years. In the future, we aim to host the Japan Cup, Japan’s largest competition, next year, and eventually an international-level competition.

The idea for this tournament came from combining two motivations: first, my desire to nurture the next generation of climbers and spread my love of climbing; and second, my wish to bring many people to my beloved hometown, Ryugasaki. These two goals together led to the creation of this competition.

— As a world-class climber producing this event, what aspects are you particularly focused on?

Yes. Youth competitions are often seen as lower in level compared to adult competitions, both in terms of venue presentation and scale. I wanted to change that perception and create an event with a world-class atmosphere, so we’ve been preparing with that in mind.

Most youth competitions in Japan have been held on existing walls in climbing gyms or public facilities. This time, however, we are constructing walls from scratch at the New Life Arena in Ryugasaki City specifically for the event.

This approach is unprecedented for a youth competition. We also hope that this event will inspire participants to reach the world stage. To reflect that, the walls for this tournament are modeled after those used in last year’s World Cup, recreating the same environment. I also hope that local children from Ryugasaki and Ibaraki who watch or participate in the competition will have life-changing experiences through this event.

While this competition is officially sanctioned by the Japan Mountaineering and Sport Climbing Association, it does not serve as a selection event for the Youth World Championships. This allows the tournament to have a high degree of freedom as I envisioned. Ultimately, I hope it becomes a prestigious and well-known event for youth climbers—one they strive toward all year as a major goal in their climbing journey.

— Will you continue this youth competition in the coming years?

Yes, we are definitely looking forward to holding the second edition of this tournament. Over time, it could also evolve into a competition for adults after starting as a youth event. Another major goal for me and Ryugasaki City is to build a large-scale climbing facility within the city. Currently, there isn’t a climbing gym in Ryugasaki, which is why we constructed temporary walls in the arena for this event. Ultimately, I hope to create a facility that can host any competition and attract athletes from around the world.

— What kind of participants do you hope to see in this competition?

Anyone who has their own climbing gear can participate. Of course, we expect high-level youth climbers who compete internationally, but there are also kids just starting out, for whom this event will be their debut competition. I hope all youth climbers who love climbing feel welcome to join and enjoy the experience.

Expanding the climbing scene while exploring new possibilities for climbers – that’s the mission behind this event.

— What do you hope to do for the next generation who will carry the future of climbing?

Since retiring from competition, my second career has involved activities that were not very familiar or easily imagined for former climbers. By pursuing these varied activities, I hope to expand the options available for current athleteswhen they think about their own second careers. In this way, I want to continue demonstrating new possibilities for climbers.

— Specifically, what kinds of activities do you plan to continue?

This is my first time organizing a youth competition of this scale, so my immediate goal is to make this event a successand use it as a foundation for future editions. Beyond hosting competitions, my initiatives—like developing the next generation of climbers and constructing climbing facilities—mostly cannot be achieved alone. I plan to collaborate with city and prefectural officials, local companies, and climbing organizations to involve more people and ensure these projects succeed.

— Regarding the future of “AKIYO’s DREAM,” what are your goals?

My aim goes beyond just holding competitions; I want to expand the climbing scene overall, and I intend to lead these efforts personally. Doing this in my beloved hometown of Ryugasaki is particularly important to me. I hope to make Ryugasaki a climbing hub, a central part of the vision for “AKIYO’s DREAM.”

— Are there activities you especially want to focus on for youth climbers?

Because of my long experience as a competitive climber, I believe I can share lessons and insights, including from my failures, with aspiring youth climbers. I want to help nurture young athletes who are passionate about climbing, using my own experiences to guide and inspire them.

She aims to be the kind of person who inspires others to think, “I want to be an athlete or climber like Akiyo Noguchi.”

— Could you tell us what you ultimately hope to achieve in your life?

Ultimately, when I look back on my life and the activities I’ve pursued, I want to continue doing things that I can feel proud of—choices I can stand by and feel satisfied with. Beyond my active career, in my second career, I hope to become someone whom many climbers and athletes, both in and outside of climbing, can say, “I want to be an athlete or climber like Akiyo Noguchi.”

― What kind of person are you aiming to be as “Akiyo Noguchi”?

That’s a tough question, but I want to be someone people can respect. As a mother, I hope my child will feel proud to have me as their mom. And of course, I want to be someone my husband feels grateful for—someone he’s glad to have married and received support from. If I can achieve that, it would truly make me happy.

— Lastly, is there anything you would like to say to the youth climbers, including those participating in this competition?

When I say, “From this competition to the world!” it’s not meant to set an intimidating bar, but to show that everyone has a chance. Even if you haven’t been climbing for long, or if this is your first competition, if you love climbing and are interested in competing, I want you to participate.

Already, we have entries not just from Ibaraki and across Japan, but also from China and the U.S. Although this is the first edition, I hope that by the end of the event, participants will say, “I want to do this again next year!” and that youth climbers from around the world will see this as a recurring, meaningful competition.

The competition takes place on March 15–16, and both days are free to watch, so even if you’ve never seen or tried climbing, I hope you’ll come to the venue and enjoy it with us.

— Finally, do you have any message you would like to share with the youth climbers, including those competing in this tournament?

Everyone has their first competition during their youth, and there will be times when results don’t go your way. But the steps you take toward your goals and dreams, the effort you put in—they are all being seen and appreciated by your family and those close to you. Over time, as you keep striving, more people will cheer for you, and they will celebrate your efforts and achievements. So never give up, and keep challenging yourself.

This is true not only for climbing but for any sport: the more effort you put in, the more your world and possibilities expand. I hope many children will take on challenges, and I sincerely wish that even just one child can feel their own potential through “AKIYO’s DREAM.”

Akiyo Noguchi – Profile

She first discovered free climbing during a family trip to Guam when she was in fifth grade elementary school. Just one year after starting climbing, she won the All Japan Youth Championship. She then went on to achieve outstanding results in numerous domestic and international competitions, becoming the first Japanese athlete to win the Boulder World Cup in 2008. She also achieved the remarkable feat of winning the overall World Cup title four times (2009, 2010, 2014, and 2015), while recording a total of 21 World Cup victories throughout her career.

At the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which marked both the culmination of her career and the final stage of her competitive journey, she won a bronze medal. Following the Olympics, she retired from professional competition and became a professional free climber. Today, she is dedicated to promoting the sport of climbing by sharing the knowledge and experience she gained throughout her career.

text and interview by Daiki Hatakeyama