Eri Yamada

Biography

A legendary softball player from Japan, Yamada won two Olympic gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, while also taking home a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. Yamada joins the Rebels with 24 years of experience as a player and a coach, most recently serving as an assistant coach for the Japanese national softball team. Prior coaching experience included a stint as an assistant coach at Tsukuba University and as a player-coach for Japanese professional side Denso Bright Pegasus. Yamada's playing career spanned 20 years, which included 18 years with Japanese side Hitachi Sundiva. Yamada also spent time in the United States as a member of both the Chicago Bandits and Dallas Charge of the now defunct National Pro Fastpitch (NPF). Yamada concluded her playing career with Denso for two seasons. Over her playing career, Yamada took home 13 medals across the Olympic Games, Women's Softball World Cup and the Women's Softball Asian Cup, including the aforementioned two Olympic gold medals, one gold medal in the world championship and four Asian championship titles.