Elite athletes are admired by many. We marvel at their physical abilities, drive, dedication and grit. To manage under the pressure, they must have extraordinary mental abilities to push forward when the chips are down. Resilience – the ability to persevere and overcome setbacks is something we often observe in athletes and can learn from athletes. In challenging times, we all need to learn resilience and focus on what we can control, take responsibility, accept imperfection, and view setbacks as opportunities.

Listen to three Olympians, who are part of the EY Women Athletes Business Network (WABN). Learn how the competitor’s mindset might be used in personal and professional settings. The athletes will share how they have overcome adversity through resilience and offer inspiration.

Date and Time

U.S. — Thursday, March 18, 2021 @ 5:00 – 6:00 pm (Pacific Time), 8:00 pm-9:00 pm (Eastern Time)

JAPAN — Friday, March 19, 2021 @ 9:00-10:00 am (Japan Time)

Price

FREE!  (Zoom link will be sent upon registration)

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Agenda

5:00-5:05 — Opening Remark Tracy Gopal | Member of the Board, Japan Society of Northern California & Founder, Third Arrow Strategies.

WABN Introduction Video (1 min)

5:05-6:00 — Panel discussion of women athletes with Q&A (40 min Panel, 15 min Q&A)

• Mirai Nagasu | Two-time Olympian & Medalist, Figure skater, US National Champion
• Yumi Tomei | Olympian, Former Japan national team Soccer player
• Rika Saito | Olympian, Japan Weightlifting national champion
• Janelle Sasaki, Moderator, EY Global Women Athletes Business Network Leader

6:00-6:05 — Closing and Networking Takahide Akiyama | President, Japan Society of Northern California

Our Amazing Speakers 

Mirai Nagasu | Two-time Olympian & Medalist, Figure skater, US National Champion

Figure skater and Olympic medalist, Mirai was born and raised in California and began skating at the age of 5. She was one of the youngest competitors to win a USA national title in 2008. At the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, she won a bronze medal in the team event and made history by becoming the first American woman to land a triple Axel in the Olympics. She placed 4th at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

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Rika Saito | Olympian, Former Japan Weightlifting national champion

Rika began weightlifting when she was 15 years old and spent 13 years as an athlete. She placed 6^th at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (women’s light heavyweight category) and won the All Japan Weightlifting Championship 6 times. She also won a bronze medal at the World Junior Weightlifting Championship in 2001. Currently, she is a member of the Athlete Commission for the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

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Yumi Tomei | Olympian, Former Japan national team Soccer player, Pass & Go Co., CEO

Yumi is a former soccer player who played for the Japan national team, for which she served as the captain. She was a member of Japan for 1995, 1999 World Cup and 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She played mainly as the defender and won the All Japan Championships twice. She played 43 games and scored 6 goals for Japan. She studied at Juntendo University Graduate School in 2009 and received Ph.D. in 2014, and became an Associate Professor at Kanto Gakuen University, Faculty of Business Administration, in April 2017. Also, she is the CEO of a consultant company.

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Moderator:  Janelle Sasaki | EY Global Women Athletes Business Network Leader, Women. Fast forward Committee member

Champion of women athletes and entrepreneurs. Prominent voice of the Women20 Japan digital inclusion agenda. Transformative leader. Global talent advisor for C-suite and businesses.  Janelle Sasaki leads the strategy and initiatives of EY Global Women Athletes Business Network (WABN) for women athletes and entrepreneurs. She is passionate about addressing the needs of businesses to find diverse talent and women athletes on realizing their leadership potential in the business world.  Janelle’s background includes providing innovative branding and human resources solutions to multinational organizations for over 18 years. She served as a consultant at EY Japan People Advisory Services focusing on diversity and inclusion (D&I), global talent management and work style innovation. She frequently addresses these topics at international conferences on these subjects.  Janelle leverages her more than 10 years of experience as a former competitive gymnast to address the challenges facing women in the 21st-century.

Generously supported by

EY Women Athletes Business Network (WABN) supports female athletes who have outstanding leadership potential and provide guidance on their transition into the business world.  The purpose of the program is to inspire the next generation of business leaders and entrepreneurs and fulfilling our purpose of building a better working world.