Kanako Kobayashi
Japan international rugby union player
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kanako Kobayashi (born 13 November 1998) is a Japanese rugby union player. She plays at center for Japan's women's national rugby union team.
| Born | 13 November 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 1.62 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 70 kg (154 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Early career
Kobayashi started playing as a nine year old because there was a rugby pitch near her home in Fujisawa.[1] Her parents were also rugby fans and always encouraged her.[1] She had earned a coveted spot at a high school renowned for producing rugby players in Shimane Prefecture, she then joined Nippon Sport Science University in Tokyo, which also happened to have the strongest women's team in Japan.[1]
Professional career
In 2021, Kobayashi became the fourth Japanese woman to play professionally in England. She signed a one-year contract with the Exeter Chiefs, she joined them straight from the Yokogawa Musashino Artemi-Stars in Japan.[2][1] In her first season, she scored four tries in 16 appearances and helped Exeter win the Allianz Cup.[3][4] She missed the entire 2022–23 Premier 15s season due to a serious knee injury.[3][4]
Kobayashi returned to Exeter for the 2023–24 Premiership Rugby season.[5]
International career
Kobayashi was named in the Sakura fifteens tour of Europe in 2019, and made her test debut in the draw with Italy on 16 November.[6][7][8]
In 2021, she was named in Japan's squad for their Autumn Test series in November.[9] She was named on the bench for the test against Wales, but started in the matches against Scotland and Ireland.[10][11][12]
On 10 September 2023, Kobayashi scored a try against Fiji in the first test of the Taiyo Seimei Challenge Series; she also made an appearance in the second test.[13][14] She was then named in the Sakura fifteens side for the inaugural WXV 2 tournament that was held in South Africa in October.[15][16] She was in the starting line up in the opening match against Italy, and was moved from inside to outside-centre against Samoa for the second round.[17][18] She was then injured in the final match against Scotland in the 26th minute.[19]
She was named in the Sakura fifteens squad for their tour to the United States in April 2025.[20] She featured for the Sakura's again when they trounced Kazakhstan 90–0 in their opening match of the Asia Rugby Championship a month later, she scored her sides first try.[21]
On 28 July 2025, she was named in the Japanese side to the Women's Rugby World Cup in England.[22][23]