TheFinalSprint.com - Track & Field, Marathons, Racing News, Training Advice, Elite Athlete Blogs, Interviews, Podcasts, Videos and More! - TheFinalSprint.com is the Premier Destination for Track & Field, Marathon, Cross Country, Olympic and Road Racing Enthusiasts.

Lead Stories: Saturday, September 6, 2008

ASICS chairman Kihachiro Onitsuka has passed away

Posted October 2nd, 2007 at 9:30 AM by Mickey Katz

Section: News & Results, Gear & Apparel, Running Shoes

ASICS Corporation chairman Kihachiro Onitsuka died on Saturday September 29 of heart failure in a hospital in Kobe, Japan. He was 89.

Mr. Onitsuka was born on May 29, 1918, in Tottori Prefecture in western Japan. Concerned at the sight of the nation’s youth after World War II, he made it his mission to inspire young people and chose the world of sports as a means to fulfill his goal.

In 1949, he started Onitsuka Co. Ltd., the first sports shoe company in Japan. Using many creative ideas, he released epoch-making products.

In 1977, ASICS Corporation was formed through a merger of Onitsuka Co. Ltd, G.T.O. Co., an equipment manufacturer, and Jelenk Co., a sports apparel manufacturer. Mr. Onitsuka became the president and aimed to diversify the business to be more competitive on the global sporting goods market.

In 1992, he became chairman of ASICS Corporation, a position he held until his death. Today ASICS is the fifth largest sports goods manufacturer, making products not only for Olympic Gold medalists, but also ordinary people who do sports to keep up a healthy lifestyle.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink