Bulls surprise with new head of athletic performance
Ipponsugi worked with director of rugby Jake White at the Brumbies as well as at Toyota Verblitz.
Hitoshi Ipponsugi will head up the athletic performance department at the Bulls. Picture: Supplied
The Bulls announced on Monday they have appointed Hitoshi Ipponsugi as the union’s new head of athletic performance.
Ipponsugi, affectionately known as Ippon by his peers, studied sports coaching and exercise science at the University of Canberra and it was in this time, as an intern with the Brumbies, that he first got to know Jake White, the Brumbies’ former coach and the current Director of Rugby at the Bulls.
In 2013 he moved back to Japan, the country of his birth, where he worked in performance, strength and conditioning, with the Kobota Spears, the Mitsubishi Dynaboars and then Toyota Verblitz in 2017, where he teamed up with White again.
“Ippon-san is a visionary and the top of his field in my opinion, and we are honoured to have him join our system,” said White.
“As our head of athletic performance he will lead our esteemed team of conditioners and trainers, and be responsible for the overall conditioning and performance of our players. The most significant part of his role will be to ensure that the conditioning of the players seamlessly compliments the style of rugby we want to play at any given time.”
Ippon and his family spent the festive season in Pretoria, settling into their new home. He officially started on 1 January 2021.
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