is a

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

er and manager. He played for the Japan national team.

Club career

Imanishi was born in

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui h ...

on January 12, 1941. After graduating from Tokyo University of Education, he joined his local club Toyo Industries (later ''Mazda'') in 1963. In 1965, Toyo Industries joined new league

Japan Soccer League , or JSL, was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League. JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professional ...

. The club won the champions for 4 years in a row (

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

–

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

). The club also won

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

and

1969 Emperor's Cup Statistics of Emperor's Cup in the 1969 season. Overview It was contested by 8 teams, and Toyo Industries won the championship. Results Quarterfinals *Keio University 2–4 Furukawa Electric *Hosei University 1–6 Toyo Industries *Rikkyo Univ ...

. He retired in 1969. He played 42 games in the league. He was named as part of the Best Eleven in

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

National team career

In December 1966, Imanishi was selected for the Japan national team prior to the

1966 Asian Games The 1966 Asian Games (), also known as the V Asiad, were a continental multi-sport event that was held from 9 to 20 December 1966, in Bangkok, Thailand. A total of 142 events in 16 sports were contested by athletes during the games. Taiwan and Isr ...

. On December 10, he debuted against

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He played 3 games for Japan.Japan National Football Team Database
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Coaching career

After retirement, Imanishi became a manager for

Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...

Teruo Nimura is a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. Club career Nimura was born in Kyoto on May 2, 1943. After graduating from Waseda University, he joined Toyo Industries in 1966. The club won Japan Soccer L ...

's successor in 1984. This season was the first season the club was relegated to Division 2. He promoted the club to Division 1 in 1986. In 1987, he resigned as manager and was succeeded by Hans Ooft. However, the club was relegated to Division 2 again in 1988, and Imanishi returned to the club. Imanishi promoted the club to Division 1 in 1991 and he resigned in 1992. From 1994, he worked for the

Japan Football Association The Japan Football Association (JFA, ) is the governing body responsible for the administration of football, futsal, beach soccer and efootball in Japan. It is responsible for the national team, as well as club competitions. History The organisat ...

until 2002. He also served as president at

FC Gifu Football Club Gifu, abbreviated as is a Japanese football club based in Gifu, Japan. They play in the J3 League, the third tier of Japanese professional football. They also run a reserve team that play in the Tōkai Adult League Division 2. Hi ...

from 2008 to 2012.

Club statistics

National team statistics

Awards

Best Eleven:

References

External links

*
Japan National Football Team Database
1941 births Living people University of Tsukuba alumni Japanese footballers Japan men's international footballers Japan Soccer League players Sanfrecce Hiroshima players Asian Games medalists in football Asian Games bronze medalists for Japan Footballers at the 1966 Asian Games Japanese football managers Japanese football chairmen and investors Hibakusha Men's association football defenders Medalists at the 1966 Asian Games Association football people from Hiroshima {{Japan-footy-defender-1940s-stub