Ichiya Kumagai
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| Country (sports) |
 Japan
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| Born |
10 September 1890 Ōmuta, Fukuoka, Japan |
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| Died | 16 August 1968 (aged 77) Ōmuta, Fukuoka, Japan |
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| Height | 1.66 m (5 ft 5 1⁄2 in) | |||||||||
| Turned pro | 1913 (amateur tour) | |||||||||
| Retired | 1921 | |||||||||
| Plays | Left-handed (1-handed backhand) | |||||||||
| College | Keio University | |||||||||
| Singles | ||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No. 7 (1919, Karoly Mazak) | |||||||||
| Grand Slam Singles results | ||||||||||
| US Open | SF (1918) | |||||||||
| Team competitions | ||||||||||
| Davis Cup | F (1921Ch) | |||||||||
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Medal record
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Ichiya "Ichy" Kumagae (熊谷 一弥 Kumagai Ichiya?, 10 September 1890 – 16 August 1968) was a Japanese tennis player and the first Japanese Olympic medalist.
Kumagae was born on 10 September 1890 in Ōmuta, Fukuoka Prefecture. He attended Keio University. In 1913, he, along with other members of the Keio University Tennis Club, pushed for the abandonment of soft tennis (which had been introduced into Japan in 1878) in favor of lawn tennis, which was popular internationally. Kumagae was sent to play in the 1913 Far Eastern Games held in Manila, marking the first overseas competition for a Japanese tennis player. He reached the singles semi-finals and the doubles finals, and his form was subsequently influenced by United States champion Bill Johnson, whose short stature had earned him the moniker "Little Bill".
Kumagae went on to win both singles and doubles at the 1915 Far Eastern Games in Shanghai. In 1916, he travelled to the United States with Hachishiro Mikami to compete in the U.S. National Championships, marking the first participation of a Japanese in one of the Grand Slam tournaments. Kumagae spent a total of three months in the United States, during which he competed in 60 tournaments. He won the singles title at the Newport Casino Invitational, defeating Bill Johnston, the 1915 U.S. National champion, in the final in five sets. He did not lose a single match on a clay court, and lost only four matches on grass courts, rising to the U.S. rank of No. 5. Kumagae would go on to reach as high as No. 3 in the U.S. rankings in 1919. He was ranked World No. 7 for 1919 by Karoly Mazak.
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