GLOBALIZATION, NATURALIZATION AND IDENTITY: The Case of Borderless Elite Athletes in Japan

This article seeks to draw attention to the phenomenon of the so-called `borderless athletes' who transcend ethnicity or national borders in the sporting world. This approach applies Fukuoka's (1993) conceptual framework to clarify how the identities of these `global' athletes are defined and accepted within Japan. In general, the article focuses on the naturalization of `sports stars' in Japan in terms of governing bodies and sports associations. In particular the study examines the case of Canadian-born players in Japanese ice hockey, the strengthening of nationalism in the case of soccer star Waguner Lopes and the role of the media. Overall, the article addresses the assimilation of particular foreign athletes as a result of globalization into the Japanese sporting world and their subsequent transformation within local Japanese culture.