Winner of the Bachelor's in the USA Scholarship 2023 by educations.com

Meet Koto Imahori, the winner of the Study a Bachelor's in the USA Scholarship 2023!

Koto has been awarded $5,000 towards her tuition for a Bachelor’s degree at New York University in New York City, New York.

Koto, from Japan, was inspired to pursue sports psychology after her experiences training as an athlete in both Japan and the United States. She wants to use her degree to positively impact Japan's sports coaching and athlete training culture.

Koto's background

Koto trained in track and field from a young age, with the goal of pursuing a career in sport. She experienced firsthand the extreme pressure and unhealthy practices used to motivate and train athletes in Japan. Koto found that the pressures and methods of training athletes in Japan led to issues like eating disorders, abuse, and suicidal ideation. In high school, Koto decided to transfer to the United States where she hoped to be able to train in a healthier, more supportive environment.

How Koto chose her country of study

Koto transferred to an international high school in Wisconsin, where she continued to train in track and field and competed in the US State Track Championships. The sports training and coaching environment in the USA was much healthier than what Koto had experienced in Japan, and she overcame an eating disorder and competed in a healthy way. The challenges of studying abroad and learning a new language also showed Koto that she could thrive outside of her comfort zone. Her experience as a student-athlete in the USA inspired her to pursue a degree in sports psychology. Koto will start her degree this autumn at the New York University in New York City.

How Koto plans to become a globally-minded leader

Training as an athlete in both Japan and the USA has given Koto insight into the importance of sports psychology. Specifically, she sees that Japan does not usually include sports psychology or sports nutrition as a profession within its sports industry, which allows unhealthy training and coaching practices to proliferate. Koto wants to study sports psychology so that she can return to Japan and help to train a new generation of athletes with healthy, science-supported methods.