All Japan Badminton Championships
All Japan Badminton Championships is the premier annual badminton tournament in Japan. Organized by the Badminton Association of Japan, it is held in December and serves as the primary selection event for the Japanese national team for the upcoming season. The tournament is open to Japan's top-ranked professionals, university students, and high school athletes who qualify through regional or category-specific preliminaries.
History
The All Japan Badminton Championships was established shortly after the creation of the Nippon Badminton Association in 1946. The inaugural All Japan Championship was held on 8–9 May 1948, at the Second Normal School Women's Department Gymnasium in Tokyo. The first champions were Junichi Oka in men's singles and Taki Nakamura in women's singles. Mixed doubles was included as a discipline from the very first tournament, with the pair of Hiroko Oka and Isamu Mori taking the title.The tournament is traditionally held annually. However, the official edition numbering contains an anomaly dating back to 1962. To adjust the tournament schedule to align with the fiscal year, the association held two championships in a single calendar year: the 15th edition and the 16th edition.
Eligibility
Athletes who meet any of the following criteria are eligible to participate:- Those who placed in the top 8 in the previous year's tournament.
- Those who placed in the top 16 at this year's All Japan Members Badminton Championships.
- Those who placed in the top 4 at this year's All Japan Teachers' Badminton Championship.
- Those who placed in the top 4 at this year's All Japan High School Badminton Championships.
- Those who placed in the top 4 at this year's All Japan Junior Badminton Championships.
- Those who are ranked within the top 16 in the Japan National Ranking announced after this year's Japan Ranking Circuit Tournament.
- Those nominated from each region.
- Nippon Badminton Association recommenders.