Ai Otomo (44), a former member of Japan’s national volleyball team and a bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympics, announced her divorce via her Instagram on October 1. Her husband is judoka Hiroyuki Akimoto; she wrote, “Not long after the start of 2026, I got divorced,” and “I’ve agonized and thought about this a great deal, and arrived at this decision.” Otomo married beach volleyball player Tatsuki Yamamoto in 2006 and had a daughter with him, then divorced and remarried Akimoto, with whom she had three more children. On 5ch, discussion centered on the height difference between her ex-husbands and current husband, and on the parentage of her volleyball-playing eldest daughter, Miku Akimoto.
Former Japan volleyball national team member Ai Otomo announces divorce: “I’ve agonized and thought about this a great deal, and arrived at this decision”
Ai Otomo (44), a former member of Japan’s women’s national volleyball team and bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympics, updated her Instagram on the 1st, announcing that she has divorced judoka Hiroyuki Akimoto.
Otomo opened her post with, “To everyone who has always supported and warmly watched over me,” reporting that “not long after the start of 2026, I got divorced.” She shared her feelings, writing, “I’ve agonized and thought about this a great deal, and arrived at this decision.”
Re: #39 I think she should be free to live how she wants, but will round three be with some guy who's about "1 Hide" tall? lol (a joking height unit based on X Japan's famously short guitarist Hide)
41AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:36
Kind of a bummer — I used to watch the kids on the "Don-mai" videos.
48AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:39
Divorced again? When's the next remarriage coming? What a "wagamama body" she's got (slang for a striking, curvy figure, from a comedian's old catchphrase).
50AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:40
What's going to happen if this sends Miku into a slump?
51AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:40
Only the eldest daughter is from the first husband — kids two through four are Akimoto's.
53AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:41
1000 pennies says she remarries within a year.
55AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:41
No idea why they split, but athletes probably just aren't cut out to be homebody husbands. Guess it comes down to her not having a good eye for men. Then again, maybe it's the other way around.
56AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:42
44, huh. That stings. I used to really like Ai Otomo.
57AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:42
What's going to happen with the eldest daughter's surname? Is she just going to keep using the name of someone who's now a total stranger — no blood tie, no in-law tie, nothing?
58AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:42
If they'd beaten Brazil back then, her life might've turned out differently… nah, probably not.
77AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:48
>The eldest daughter, Miku Akimoto, is currently active on Japan's national volleyball team.
There's no way a 13-year-old makes the national team, so she's got to be the first husband's kid, right?
Still, she's had four kids, so the Japanese public ought to be grateful for her contribution to fighting the birthrate decline. Divorce isn't really seen as a negative thing these days anyway, so if the chance comes up, I really hope she remarries again and has even more kids.
81AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:52
Re: #77 > She married beach volleyball player Tatsuki Yamamoto in 2006, and gave birth to her first daughter that August.
It's right there in the article. Can't believe there are people who can't even read the source.
82AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:53
I was just thinking she's been getting a lot of work lately, and now this.
92AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:57
Re: #82 Yeah, she's been popping up everywhere riding on her daughter's fame. Her makeup game was strong too — she looked like a gorgeous "jukujo" (a mature, glamorous older woman), so I kind of had a feeling something was off.
83AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:53
Always wondered about this — what actually gets better by getting divorced?
89AnonymousOct 1, 2026 10:57
Re: #83 Probably feels refreshed after splitting from her husband?
111AnonymousOct 1, 2026 11:04
Re: #83 The real question is whether you yourself could live with someone you hate.
Background and key points of the discussion
Ai Otomo served as captain of Japan’s national team at the 2012 London Olympics, contributing to the bronze medal win. She married beach volleyball player Tatsuki Yamamoto in 2006 and had a daughter with him, but later divorced; she then remarried judoka Hiroyuki Akimoto and had three more children with him. This latest announcement marks her second divorce. In the thread, some initially mistook her eldest daughter, Miku Akimoto — now drawing attention as a volleyball national team prospect — for being too young for the squad, assuming “no way a 13-year-old makes the national team”; but replies corrected this, clarifying she was born in 2006 to Otomo’s first husband and shares no blood relation with the current husband. Since the news lands during a period when Otomo had been appearing on TV more often, some comments speculated about her home life, though she has not disclosed the specific reason for the divorce.
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