Events in the year 2002 in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Incumbents

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Akihito Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is a member of the Imperial House of Japan who reigned as the 125th emperor of Japan from 1989 until 2019 Japanese imperial transition, his abdication in 2019. The era of his rule was named the Heisei era, Hei ...

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Junichiro Koizumi Junichiro Koizumi ( ; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a Japanese retired politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) ...

( L–Kanagawa) * Chief Cabinet Secretary:

Yasuo Fukuda is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2007 to 2008. He was previously the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history, serving in that role from 2000 to 2004 under Prime Ministers Yoshirō Mori an ...

(L–Gunma) * Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

Shigeru Yamaguchi Shigeru (written: , , , in hiragana or in katakana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, a Japanese architect *, a Japanese voice actor *, Japanese karateka *, Japanese sport wrestler *, Japanese socialist ...

until October 30,

Akira Machida Akira Machida (町田顯 ''Machida Akira'', October 16, 1936 – April 5, 2015) was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Japan from 2002 to 2006. He was born in Shimonoseki, Japan. He first began his career in 1959, when he was appointed as a ...

from November 6 * President of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

: Tamisuke Watanuki (L–Toyama) * President of the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers (Japan), House of Peers. If the t ...

Yutaka Inoue Yutaka is a masculine Japanese given name. Written forms Yutaka can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *豊, "bountiful" *裕, "affluence" *穣, "fertile" *温, "warmth" The name can also be written in hiragana ゆた� ...

(L–Chiba) until April 22, Hiroyuki Kurata (L–Chiba) *

Diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

sessions: 154th (regular, January 21 to July 31), 155th (extraordinary, October 18 to December 13)

Governors

Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...

Masaaki Kanda is a Japanese politician who served as governor of Aichi Prefecture in 1999–2011. A graduate of Chuo University, he served as mayor of Ichinomiya is a Japanese language, Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the hig ...

*Akita Prefecture:

Sukeshiro Terata is a retired Japanese politician who served as the governor of Akita Prefecture from 1997 to 2009. Early life Terata is a native of Ōmagari, Akita and graduate of Waseda University. Political career Terata was first elected to the post of ...

Aomori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori (city), Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is border ...

Morio Kimura Morio (written: , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese singer-songwriter and actor *, Japanese anime director *, Japanese karateka *, Japanese actor *, pen-name of Sokichi Saitō, ...

*Chiba Prefecture:

Akiko Dōmoto was the governor of Chiba Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders ...

*Ehime Prefecture:

Moriyuki Kato was a Japanese politician who served as the governor of Ehime Prefecture. He was first elected in 1999 and held the position until he was defeated by Tokihiro Nakamura in 2010. A native of Yawatahama, Ehime and graduate of the University of Tok ...

*Fukui Prefecture:

Yukio Kurita Yukio Kurita ( ''Kurita Yukio''; 6 April 1930 – 17 May 2024) was a Japanese politician. An independent, he served as governor of Fukui Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Fukui P ...

*Fukuoka Prefecture:

Wataru Asō was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who served as the Governor of Fukuoka from 1995 to 2011.Eisaku Satō was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1964 to 1972. He is the third longest-serving Japanese prime minister, and is ranked second by longest uninterrupted service. Satō is best remembered for securing the return ...

*Gifu Prefecture:

Taku Kajiwara Taku may refer to: Places North America * the Taku River, in Alaska and British Columbia ** Fort Taku, also known as Fort Durham and as Taku, a former fort of the Hudson's Bay Company near the mouth of the Taku River ** the Taku Glacier, in A ...

*Gunma Prefecture:

Hiroyuki Kodera is a common masculine Japanese given name. Written forms Hiroyuki can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: extensive, good fortune, spacious. , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . It is written in hir ...

* Hiroshima Prefecture: Yūzan Fujita *

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

Tatsuya Hori is a Japanese politician. He was director of the Hokkaidō-Kitami University. From 1995 he served as governor of Hokkaidō for two terms totalling 8 years. He was chairman of the board of Sapporo University. He was associate professor at Tokyo ...

*Hyogo Prefecture:

Toshizō Ido is a Japanese politician and the 48th - 52nd governor of Hyōgo Prefecture in Japan. He became the Governor of Hyōgo Profecture in 2001, a position he held for 5 terms over 20 years. He is a native of Tatsuno, Hyōgo and graduate of the Uni ...

Ibaraki Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Ibaraki Prefecture has a population of 2,828,086 (1 July 2023) and has a geographic area of . Ibaraki Prefecture borders Fukushima Prefecture to the north, ...

Masaru Hashimoto is a Japanese politician who was the governor of Ibaraki Prefecture from 1993 to 2017. Life Masaru Hashimoto was born on 19 November 1945 in Tōkai, Ibaraki Prefecture. He is a graduate of the University of Tokyo, and joined the Ministry o ...

Ishikawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 Square kilometre, km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Pr ...

Masanori Tanimoto is a Japanese politician who was the governor of Ishikawa Prefecture between 1994 and 2022, serving seven terms in total. Early life and political career Tanimoto was born in April 16, 1945. He graduated from Kyoto University Faculty of Law in ...

*Iwate Prefecture:

Hiroya Masuda is a Japanese politician, government official, and business executive. He was Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications from August 2007 to September 2008, and has served as the president and CEO of Japan Post Holdings since January 2020. ...

*Kagawa Prefecture:

Takeki Manabe is a Japanese politician who was the 43rd governor of Kagawa Prefecture in Japan, serving three terms from 1998 until 2010. In 2009 he announced he would not contest the 2010 election and was succeeded by Keizō Hamada is a former Japanese p ...

*Kagoshima Prefecture:

Tatsurō Suga Tatsurō, Tatsuro or Tatsurou (written: , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese singer *, Japanese football player *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese sumo wrestler *, Japanese baseball ...

Kanagawa Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

Hiroshi Okazaki is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 7- dan. Shogi professional Promotion history The promotion history for Okazaki is as follows: * 6-kyū is a Japanese language, Japanese term used in modern martial arts as well as in Japanes ...

*Kochi Prefecture:

Daijiro Hashimoto is a politically independent former governor of the Kōchi Prefecture who served from 1991 to 2007, with an intermediate resignation in 2004 to test support after a scandal alleging transactions between his campaign aide and a construction compan ...

Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture t ...

Yoshiko Shiotani was the governor of Kumamoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuok ...

Kyoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Kyoto Prefecture has a population of 2,561,358 () and has a geographic area of . Kyoto Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the northeast, Shiga Prefecture ...

: Teiichi Aramaki (until 15 April)

Keiji Yamada is a Japanese politician and former Governor of Kyoto Prefecture. A native of Hyōgo Prefecture and 1977 graduate of the University of Tokyo, he had worked at the Ministry of Home Affairs since 1977 and served as the vice governor of Kyoto Prefe ...

(starting 16 April) *Mie Prefecture: Masayasu Kitagawa *

Miyagi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...

: Shirō Asano *Miyazaki Prefecture: Suketaka Matsukata *

Nagano Prefecture is a Landlocked country, landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,007,682 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture ...

: ** starting 15 July: Yasuo Tanaka ** 16 July-5 September:

Shuichi Abe is a Japanese politician and the current governor of Nagano Prefecture, assuming office in 2010. In 2014, he was re-elected for another four-year term as the governor of the prefecture.Yasuo Tanaka *Nagasaki Prefecture:

Genjirō Kaneko is a Japanese politician and member of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), Liberal Democratic Party. Kaneko served as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan), Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from October 2021 to ...

*Nara Prefecture: Yoshiya Kakimoto *

Niigata Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,131,009 (1 July 2023) and is the List of Japanese prefectures by area, fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area ...

Ikuo Hirayama was a Japanese Nihonga painter and educator. Born in Setoda, Hiroshima, Setoda-chō, Hiroshima Prefecture, he was famous in Japan for Silk Road paintings of dreamy desert landscapes in Iran, Iraq, and China. Biography In 1952, he graduated fro ...

*Oita Prefecture:

Morihiko Hiramatsu was a Japanese politician who was governor of Ōita Prefecture from April 1979 to April 2003. He is best known for initiating the One Village One Product movement in the prefecture, which was later followed by various other countries. Early li ...

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...

: Masahiro Ishii *

Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the Okinawa Islands, the Sakishima Islands, and the Daitō Islands—spread across a maritime zone approximately 1,000 kilometers east to west an ...

: Keiichi Inamine *

Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nara ...

: Fusae Ōta *

Saga Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of roughly 780,000 and has a geographic area of . Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasaki Prefect ...

: Isamu Imoto *

Saitama Prefecture is a Landlocked country, landlocked Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (January 1, 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 Square kilometre, km2 ( ...

Yoshihiko Tsuchiya Yoshihiko is a masculine Japanese given name. Written forms Yoshihiko can be written using different combinations of kanji characters, such as: *義彦, "justice, elegant boy" *義比古, "justice, young man (archaic)" *吉彦, "good luck, el ...

Shiga Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,398,972 as of 1 February 2025 and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to th ...

: Yoshitsugu Kunimatsu *Shiname Prefecture: Nobuyoshi Sumita *Shizuoka Prefecture: Yoshinobu Ishikawa *Tochigi Prefecture:

Akio Fukuda is a Japanese politician of the Constitutional Democratic Party and a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Imaichi, Tochigi and graduate of Tohoku University, he joined the city government of I ...

*Tokushima Prefecture: Toshio Endo (until 27 April);

Tadashi Ōta Tadashi (Kanji: 正, 禎, 忠, 荘, 匡史, 理 Hiragana: ただし), Japanese masculine name, may refer to : *, the first aikido master to live and teach in the west *, Japanese manga story writer, novelist and screenwriter *, Japanese basketball ...

(starting 28 April) *

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Shintarō Ishihara was a Japanese politician and writer, who served as the Governor of Tokyo from 1999 to 2012. Being the former leader of the radical right Sunrise Party, later merged with Toru Hashimoto's Japan Restoration Party out of which he split his f ...

*Tottori Prefecture:

Yoshihiro Katayama is a former Japanese politician who served as the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications in the Kan Cabinet from September 2010 through to September 2011. He was the governor of Tottori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, pref ...

*Toyama Prefecture: Yutaka Nakaoki *Wakayama Prefecture: Yoshiki Kimura *Yamagata Prefecture:

Kazuo Takahashi , ring name , is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist. A professional competitor from 1993 until 2013 (and then once again in 2018), he competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, Pancrase, RINGS, K-1 HERO'S, and World Victory Road ...

*Yamaguchi Prefecture: Sekinari Nii *Yamanashi Prefecture: Ken Amano

Events

January

*January 15:

UFJ Bank UFJ, which stands for the United Financial of Japan, is used in the former companies of UFJ Bank, UFJ Group, and UFJ Holdings. These related institutions disappeared after the merger of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi and UFJ Bank in 2005. UFJ Bank ...

founded via the merger of the Sanwa Bank, Ltd., the Tokai Bank, Ltd. and Toyo Trust and Banking Co., Ltd. *January 29: Prime Minister Koizumi fires Foreign Minister

Makiko Tanaka is a Japanese politician. She is the daughter of former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka and his official wife Hana. Early life Tanaka attended high school at Germantown Friends School in the United States and graduated from Waseda University. She ...

February

*February 1:

Yoriko Kawaguchi is a Japan, Japanese politician. Born in Tokyo, she holds a BA in international relations from the University of Tokyo, and an MPhil in economics from Yale University, where she became a member of President's Council on International Activities. ...

is appointed foreign minister; her previous portfolio of Environment Minister is assumed by

Hiroshi Oki is a common masculine Japanese given name. It can also be transliterated as Hirosi. Written forms Hiroshi can be written using different kanji characters. Here are some examples: *浩, "wide expanse, abundance, vigorous" *弘, "vast, broad, w ...

. *February 19: U.S. president

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

addresses a joint session of the Diet.

March

*March 7:

Futoshi Matsunaga is a Japanese serial killer who both defrauded and tortured his victims in what is collectively known as the Kitakyūshū Serial Murder Incident (). Matsunaga was convicted of six counts of murder and one count of manslaughter between 1996 and ...

and

Junko Ogata is a Japanese serial killer who acted as an accomplice to serial killer Futoshi Matsunaga. Early life and murders Ogata was born in Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, and grew up in a wealthy family. She was Matsunaga's schoolmate in high school, but ...

are arrested for confinement of a 17-year-old girl. They are arrested for seven murders later.

April

*April 1:

Mizuho Bank is the integrated retail and corporate banking unit of Mizuho Financial Group (; ). It is one of the largest financial services company in Japan with total assets of approximately $1.9 trillion USD in 2023, and considered one of Japan's three ...

founded. *April 1: Domestic Violence Prevention Act becomes effective. *April 21 **

E231 series The is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type used for commuter and outer-suburban services operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Japan since 2000. Design Trains were manufactured by Tokyu Car Corporation, Kawasaki Heavy In ...

trains are introduced on the

Yamanote Line The Yamanote Line () is a railway Circle route, loop service in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It is one of Tokyo's busiest and most important lines, connecting most of Tokyo's major stations and urban centres ...

in Tokyo. **Koizumi visits

Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Emperor Meiji in June 1869 and commemorates those who died in service of Empire of Japan, Japan, from the Boshin War of 1868–1869, to the two Sino-Japanese Wars, First Sino-Japane ...

. *April 22: The new official residence of the Prime Minister opens next to the old one in Nagatachō, Tokyo.

May

*May 31: The World Cup Korea/Japan 2002 begins.

June

*June 11:

Solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs approximately every six months, during the eclipse season i ...

visible throughout Japan. *June 24:

Chiyoda ward , known as Chiyoda City in English,
." ''City of Chiyoda''. Retrieved on December 28, 2008. is a ...

in Tokyo bans smoking while walking in public. *June 30 **The World Cup ends. **

Izumi Garden Tower The is a 201 m (roughly 659 ft) high-rise building in the Roppongi district of Tokyo. The tower features a hotel, apartments, a fitness center, offices, shops and restaurants. When construction was completed in 2002, the tower was the tal ...

is completed.

August

*August 30: The last

Mazda 626 __NOTOC__ Year 626 (Roman numerals, DCXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 626 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent ...

rolls off the production line after 23 years. Its successor, the 6, enters production on October 1.

September

*September 17: Koizumi visits

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

;

Kim Jong-il Kim Jong Il (born Yuri Kim; 16 February 1941 or 1942 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from the death of his father Kim Il Sung in 1994 until his death in 2011, when he was ...

admits to the North Korean abduction of Japanese citizens.

October

*October 15: Five Japanese abductees return from North Korea.

November

*November 1 – Renesas Technology, as predecessor of

Renesas Electronics is a Japanese semiconductor manufacturer headquartered in Tokyo. The name "Renesas" is a contraction of "Renaissance Semiconductor for Advanced Solutions." The company was established in 2002 as Renesas Technology through the merger of the semi ...

was founded.

December

*December 1 **

Tōhoku Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line that runs through the more sparsely populated Tōhoku region of Japan's main island, Honshu. Operated by the East Japan Railway Company, it links Tokyo in the south to Aomori in the north, with ...

extension to

Hachinohe Station is a railway station operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Hachinohe, Aomori, Japan. Lines Hachinohe Station is served by the high-speed Tōhoku Shinkansen line between and , and forms the starting point of the Hachinohe L ...

opens. **

Saikyo Line Saikyo may refer to: *Saikyō Line, a Japanese railway line in the Tokyo metropolitan area *''Saikyō Maru ''Saikyō Maru'' (西京丸) was a steamship that was built in 1888 in Scotland for Japanese merchant service. She was requisitioned for ...

and

Rinkai Line The is a railway line in Tokyo, Japan. It is the only line operated by the third-sector company Tokyo Waterfront Area Rapid Transit. It connects central Tokyo to the artificial islands of Aomi and Odaiba. The line is served by some trains on ...

extensions to Osaki Station open, allowing through service. **

Iwate Ginga Line The is a railway line in Japan operated by the "Public-Private_Partnerships_In_Japan, third sector" publicly and privately owned operator Iwate Galaxy Railway Company. It connects Morioka Station in Morioka, Iwate to Metoki Station in Sannohe, ...

and

Aoimori Railway The is a regional rail line in Aomori Prefecture, Japan that is operated by the Aoimori Railway Company. It connects Metoki Station, the terminal station of the Iwate Galaxy Railway Line, to Aomori Station, the terminus of several rail lines ...

begin operations.

The Nobel Prize

Masatoshi Koshiba was a Japanese physicist and one of the founders of neutrino astronomy. His work with the neutrino detectors Kamiokande and Super-Kamiokande was instrumental in detecting solar neutrinos, providing experimental evidence for the solar neutrino ...

: 2002

Nobel Prize in Physics The Nobel Prize in Physics () is an annual award given by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for those who have made the most outstanding contributions to mankind in the field of physics. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the ...

winner. *

Koichi Tanaka is a Japanese electrical engineer who shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2002 for developing a novel method for mass spectrometric analyses of biological macromolecules with John Bennett Fenn and Kurt Wüthrich (the latter for work in N ...

: 2002

Nobel Prize in Chemistry The Nobel Prize in Chemistry () is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outst ...

winner.

Births

*March 11: Yūhi Nishidate, pfofessional baseball pitcher *March 25:

Rio Sasaki is a Japanese child actress from Saitama Prefecture, Japan. She is a part of the Himawari Theatre Group. Filmography Movies * (2008) * (2008) * (2009) * (2009) * (2010) * (2010) * (2010) * (2016) TV dramas * (2008) * (2009) * (2009 ...

, child actress *April 2:

Yuito Obara Yuito Obara (Japanese: 小原唯和, born April 2, 2002) is a Japanese actor and fashion model. He was a finalist in the ''28th Junon Superboy Contest''. Career He entered the world of entertainment after becoming a finalist in the Junon Sup ...

, actor *July 14:

Kosei Fujita is a Japanese Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a member of The Mighty Don't Kneel stable. He is a former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, IWGP Junior Heavyw ...

, professional wrestler *July 19:

Sōta Fujii is a Japanese professional shogi player ranked 9- dan. He is the current holder of the Kiō, Kisei, Meijin, Ōi, Ōshō, Ōza and Ryūō titles, and a former holder of the Eiō title. He is the youngest person to be awarded professional st ...

, professional shōgi player *July 21:

Rika Kihira Rika Kihira (; born 21 July 2002) is a Japanese figure skater. She is a two-time Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, Four Continents champion (2019, 2020), the 2018 2018–19 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, Grand Prix Final champion, ...

, figure skater *September 7:

Nao Kosaka is a Japanese singer, model, and actress. She is a member of the Japanese idol girl group Hinatazaka46 and an exclusive model for the fashion magazine ''Non-no''. Career On August 13, 2017, Kosaka passed the auditions for new members of Keyakiz ...

, idol, model, actress and member of the Japanese girls idol group

Hinatazaka46 is a Japanese idol group produced by Yasushi Akimoto. The group was established as a subgroup of Sakurazaka46, Keyakizaka46 named Hiragana Keyakizaka46 on 30 November 2015, and was renamed and spun off into its own group on 11 February 2019. ...

*December 20:

Yuuna Sugiyama is a Japanese child actress, who also records on Universal Music Japan. Biography Sugiyama was born in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. In 2009, Sugiyama debuted on the Tokyo Broadcasting System drama, ''Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kōen-mae Hashu ...

, actress and singer

Deaths

*March 8:

Sanji Hase , better known by the stage name , was a Japanese voice actor and the father of Macross star Arihiro Hase. He died of lung cancer on March 8, 2002, at the age of 66. At the time of his death he was a free agent, but he had been previously represe ...

, voice actor *April 10:

Yuji Hyakutake was a Japanese amateur astronomer who discovered Comet C/1996 B2, also known as Comet Hyakutake on January 31, 1996, while using 25×150 binoculars. Hyakutake graduated from the Kyushu Sangyo University as a photography major and started work ...

, amateur astronomer *May 13:

Morihiro Saito Morihiro Saito (斉藤守弘 ''Saitō Morihiro'', March 31, 1928–May 13, 2002) was a teacher of the Japanese martial art of aikido, with many students around the world. Saito's practice of aikido spanned 56 years, from the age of 18, when he ...

, aikidoka *May 16:

Shoichi Arai Shoichi Arai (荒井昌一 ''Arai Shōichi'') (December 19, 1965 – May 16, 2002) was a Japanese professional wrestling promoter. Arai ran Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling from 1995 until its closure in 2002. Career Arai started with FMW as a ...

, professional wrestling promoter *May 24:

Toshihito Ito (February 16, 1962 – May 24, 2002) was a Japanese actor and member of the Tokyo Sunshine Boys theatrical troupe. He was born on February 16, 1962, in Niigata, Japan. Biography He performed on stage, and on television in series such as ' ...

, actor *May 25:

Genichi Kawakami was the president of the Yamaha Corporation from 1950 to 1977, and again from 1980 to 1983. He is often credited with the international success of Yamaha and was also widely influential as a community music educator. Born in Hamakita, Kawakami ...

, president of Yamaha Corporation from 1950 to 1977 *June 13:

Hideo Murata was a Japanese rōkyoku and enka singer. He took part in the Kōhaku Uta Gassen 27 times. Murata was born as a son of rōkyoku singer and . However, he was immediately adopted by and became his stepfather. His real name was . He studied rōk ...

, rōkyoku and enka singer *June 15:

Hideo Murota was a Japanese actor who specialized in playing villains and tough guys. In 1957, he signed a contract with Toei Studio and appeared in over 1000 films. He won the Best Supporting Actor award at the Yokohama Film Festival for his role in ''Origi ...

, actor *September 12: Mitsuo Ikeda, wrestler *October 12:

Nozomi Momoi was a popular and prolific Japanese AV idol. She appeared in over 100 movies, appearing in up to ten releases per month. (contains nudity) She was murdered at the age of 24. Life and career Early life Nozomi Momoi was born in Tokyo on Septemb ...

, AV idol *November 15:

Sohn Kee-chung Sohn Kee-chung (; ; August 29, 1912 – November 15, 2002) was a Korean Olympic athlete and long-distance runner. He became the first Korean to win a medal at the Olympic Games, winning gold in the Marathon (sport), marathon at the Berlin Oly ...

, marathon runner *December 15:

Mr. C.B. Mr C B (Japanese language, Japanese : ミスターシービー, April 7, 1980 - December 15, 2000) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing#Japan, Japanese Triple Crown in 1983. He was the first Tri ...

, thoroughbred racehorse *December 21: Prince Takamado *December 28:

Koreyoshi Kurahara (31 May 1927 – 28 December 2002) was a Japanese screenwriter and director. He is perhaps best known for directing ''Nankyoku Monogatari, Antarctica'' (1983), which won several awards and was entered into the 34th Berlin International Film ...

, screenwriter and director

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2002 In Japan Years of the 21st century in Japan

2000s in Japan