Ritsuko Nakayama
| Ritsuko Nakayama | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Kanji: 中山律子 Spaced hiragana: なかやま りつこ |
| Born | October 12, 1942 |
| Height | 1.62 m (5 ft 4 in) |
| Bowling Information | |
| Affiliation | JPBA |
| License no. | 2, Class 1 |
| Rookie year | 1969 |
| Dominant hand | Right |
| Wins | 33 |
| 300-games | 2 |
| High series | 824 (268, 257, 299) |
Ritsuko Nakayama (中山 律子? Nakayama Ritsuko, born October 12, 1942) is a former professional bowler. She was born in Kusatsu, Gunma, Japan. She later moved to Kagoshima which is her parents' hometown. Nakayama became a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association in 1969, representing Tokyo Tower Bowling Center.
During her professional bowling career, Nakayama accumulated 33 wins. She attained the number-one rank among JPBA female bowlers in 1969 (avg. 197.6) and 1970 (avg. 199.2), and was ranked among the top-three from 1969 to 1973.
On August 21, 1970, Nakayama rolled a perfect 300 game on Japanese national television, becoming the first woman ever to perform the feat in any television market. (It took nearly 27 years before Michelle Feldman rolled the first American television 300-game in 1997.) She rolled the game during a tournament match, aired on the bowling show Ladies Challenge Bowl (October 1969 to March 1975,) at Fuchū Star Lanes. By the end of 1970, she earned the Japan Professional Sports Award for outstanding achievement.
Because of her 300-game, Nakayama became very famous in Japan, and would eventually boost the sport of bowling. In 1970, she appeared in a shampoo commercial, and also had a song written about her, titled Sawayaka Ritsuko-san (さわやか律子さん). She was a guest judge for the 21st NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen (1970), as well as a guest presenter for the 13th Japan Record Awards (1971). In 1971, TBS aired the Japanese television drama , the storyline covering an office lady who joins the company bowling club and competes with other clubs. Both Nakayama, as well as Rie Ishii appeared in the drama series as themselves.
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