Mako Urushizaki

is a Japanese former badminton player and current coach. She competed in the women's singles for the San-in Godo Bank corporate team and was a member of the 2019 Japan national B team. During her professional career, Urushizaki won two international titles in 2019—the Swedish Open and the Dubai International—and was a runner-up at the 2018 Akita Masters, a BWF World Tour Super 100 tournament. She retired from her playing career on 31 March 2022, due to an injury. Following her retirement as a player, Urushizaki transitioned to coaching and currently serves as a coach for the Japanese national U-16 team and co-founded the Akua Badminton Club.

Early life and career Mako Urushizaki was born in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. She attended Fuji Junior High School and Itami Kita High School. From 2011 to 2015, she studied sports science at the University of Tsukuba. While at the university, she was part of the women's team that won the 2014 All Japan Intercollegiate Championships, and she also placed third in the singles event.

Career Following her graduation, Urushizaki joined the San-in Godo Bank corporate team in 2015.

Coaching career After retiring in 2022, Urushizaki pursued a coaching career grounded in academic research. In March 2024, she completed a master's degree at the University of Tsukuba through the National Leading Coach Training Program, where her graduate studies involved research into coaching science. From April 2022 to March 2024, she also served as the head coach for the university's women's badminton team. She coached the team to a national title at the 2023 All Japan Intercollegiate Championships and mentored a player who was selected for the Japan national team.

In 2024, Urushizaki co-founded the Akua Badminton Club to further promote the sport.

Achievements BWF World Tour (1 runner-up) The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.

Women's singles Year Tournament Level Opponent Score Result Ref 2018 Akita Masters Super 100 Sayaka Takahashi 11–21, 21–13, 18–21 Runner-up

BWF International Challenge/Series (2 titles, 2 runners-up) Women's singles Year Tournament Opponent Score Result Ref 2016 White Nights Neslihan Yiğit 16–21, 15–21 Runner-up 2017 Finnish Open Shiori Saito 8–21, 10–21 Runner-up 2019 Swedish Open Asuka Takahashi 23–21, 21–19 Winner 2019 Dubai International Rituparna Das 23–21, 21–17 Winner BWF International Challenge tournament BWF International Series tournament