Looking Back on Japan’s First Foreign National Team Coach: The Story of Gary Sato

This article will focus on the appointment and dismissal of Gary Sato, the first foreign head coach of the Japan men’s national volleyball team.

Sato’s appointment was a highly anticipated event, but his tenure ended in a shocking dismissal after just one year. He was let go because the team didn’t produce results, but was this the right decision?

I lacked sufficient knowledge about him, so I read many articles to understand his story.

Reference articles (in Japanese):

Gary Sato’s Vision: “Smart Volleyball”

His coaching philosophy was summed up by the term “Smart Volleyball.” This meant a style of play that aims to make the best decision and execute the optimal play for any given situation in the game.

For example, what do you do when a triple-block completely shuts down your attack course?

• Not-So-Smart Volleyball: Take a reckless, all-or-nothing swing.
• Smart Volleyball: Identify the weakest blocker and aim for a block-out with a controlled hit.

That was the essence of his approach.

Sato’s vision was also “smart” in its pursuit of rationality. He aimed to teach world-standard tactics and skills and incorporate them into practice and matches.

Here’s a quote from an interview with veteran player Tatsuya Yoneyama, who was coached by Sato:

“In terms of tactics, skills, and practice methods, he knows the world standard. While we were confused at first, I can honestly say that Gary’s way of doing things was making me better, little by little—both with my serve reception and my hitting form. So, I don’t think what he was saying was wrong.”

This suggests that even some of the team’s veterans who had been on the national team for a long time supported Sato.

Let’s also look at an interview with Shunsuke Chijiki, the youngest player on the team at the time:

“People often say we can’t win by doing what the rest of the world is doing, but I’ve recently started to think that’s wrong. Japan isn’t even doing what the world is doing. We have to be able to do what the rest of the world considers standard first. After that, we can think about our own original style.”

This shows that in 2013, the players themselves felt that Japanese volleyball was not up to world standards.

Sato, who had extensive experience as an assistant coach for national teams around the world, aimed to implement a world-standard blocking system and use data analysis to devise tactics, pushing his “smart volleyball” philosophy forward.

What Should We Learn from the Dismissal of Gary Sato?

Unfortunately, Sato was dismissed after a very short tenure of just one year. While I don’t know the full story behind his dismissal, I have thought about what we can learn from this event.

Great Change is Painful and Takes Time

The players on the national team are the best in Japan, with years of accumulated skills and experience. It is unreasonable to expect them to master completely new tactics and skills in just one year.

This is because the process of adopting a new approach involves, to some extent, invalidating what they have built up until that point. I can imagine that it would take a great deal of pain and energy for players with high pride and a long track record of success to reject their past methods and embrace something new. (At the same time, the articles I read suggest that many players were trying to follow Sato despite their struggles.)

A Top-Down or Bottom-Up Revolution?

The dismissal of Sato made me consider whether a major revolution should be a top-down or bottom-up process.

In this case, it was a clear attempt at a top-down revolution. However, because the organization only evaluated short-term results, it seems that a valuable year was wasted.

▶︎A Top-Down Revolution

It’s pointless to say “what if,” but if they had endured for just two more years under Sato’s system, a great shift might have occurred. A winning result on the world stage could have led to his “smart volleyball” philosophy spreading all the way down to the bottom (e.g., elementary school players) in a top-down revolution.

▶︎A Bottom-Up Revolution

Let’s imagine another “what if.” What if Sato became the head of youth development, dedicating himself to training beginners and the coaches who work with them? If the coaches at the bottom could teach players the skills and principles Sato envisioned, many excellent players would emerge.

This is the idea of a world-class coach taking on the responsibility of a bottom-up revolution. If this happened, players wouldn’t need to be “re-taught” when they are called up to the national team.

Having been involved in coaching at the elementary, junior high, and high school levels myself, I can honestly say that I am not confident I fully understand “world standards.” If the coaches at the bottom knew these standards and applied them to youth coaching, the whole system could be transformed.

Top-level coaches tend to be drawn to coaching national teams. But what if we made a radical shift and had a world-class coach dedicate their efforts to youth development?

I believe it could lead to a revolution beyond anyone’s imagination.