Biography

Yabiku become 1st-ever wrestler, and 2nd athlete overall, from southern islands of Okinawa to qualify for Olympics by securing top-2 finish at Asian qualifying tournament...Fulfilled Olympic quests denied parents. Father Tamotsu was Asian bronze medalist and 2-time national champion in Greco, but was injured during final domestic qualifying for 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Mother Naomi was nationally ranked javelin thrower...Started wrestling at age 4 but did not shine until teens...Was world junior bronze medalist in 2013, 5th in 2015...5-time national champion...Appeared at 3 senior world championships (highest finish 13th in 2018)....Studied science of weight reduction at Nippon Sports Science University graduate school.