The former ASICS chairman joins the brand’s founder as the only Japanese nationals to hold the federation’s highest honorary title – a distinction earned across two presidential terms and 17 years of WFSGI engagement.
Motoi Oyama, former chair of ASICS Corporation, has been appointed Honorary President of the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI), the global association representing the world’s leading sporting goods manufacturers. The appointment was confirmed at the WFSGI General Assembly in Boston in April 2026.
The honor places Oyama in rare company. He is only the second Japanese national to receive the title. The first was ASICS founder Kihachiro Onitsuka, who built the brand Oyama spent much of their career leading.
Oyama’s relationship with the federation spans more than a decade. Oyama served two terms as WFSGI President, from 2011 to 2014 and again from 2020 to 2022, with a period as Vice President in between. That sustained engagement, rather than a single term, is what the Honorary President designation formally recognizes.
Oyama’s career at ASICS ran from 2008 to December 2025. Oyama joined the executive leadership as Representative Director and President, later adding the Chair role, and held senior oversight positions through retirement. The years from 2017 to 2022, when Oyama simultaneously served as Chair, President, and CEO, coincided with a period of significant international expansion for the Japanese footwear and apparel group.
For the industry, the appointment signals continuity and recognizes Oyama’s dual legacy as a federation leader and as the executive who expanded ASICS’s global footprint and helped make the company a model for its associates.
