Rate My Professor Hiroaki Taniguchi

Hiroaki Taniguchi serves as an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Economics at Asahikawa City University since April 2023, where he primarily teaches sports health science and physical education practical courses. He earned his Master's degree in Adapted Physical Activity through the Erasmus Mundus program from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium and the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences in February 2013. Prior to his current role, Taniguchi was a Lecturer at the Center for Liberal Education and Learning at Sophia University from April 2018 to March 2023. He has also been a part-time lecturer at Bunkyo University since August 2016. His extensive career in sports for people with disabilities includes serving as Secretary General of the specific non-profit activity corporation Japan Disabled Skiers Association from January 2017 to March 2018, participation in the High Performance Support Project at Japan Sport Council from October 2015 to December 2016, and as a teacher at Hokkaido Bibai Yogo School, a special support school, from April 2013 to September 2015. Earlier, he worked as an alpine skiing coach at the National Sports Center for the Disabled from October 2004 to September 2010, Gould Academy from October 2003 to September 2004, and Bates College from October 2002 to September 2003.

Taniguchi's academic interests center on the integration of sport organizations for people with impairments, changes in the sport environment for those with disabilities, para sports, adapted physical activity, Paralympics, sport organizations, and inclusive society, all within the field of sports science. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles, including lead-authored works such as "Integration of disabled and non-disabled sports organization in Netherlands and training environment of Paralympic athletes: Interview survey from umbrella organization program managers and Paralympic national team coaches" in the Japanese Journal of Adapted Sport Science (2022), "Gender and age group differences in the effect of perceived nonverbal communication on communication ability and coaching evaluation in Japanese student athletes" co-authored with Takashi Shimazaki and Masao Kikkawa in the International Journal of Sport Communication (2021), and several studies on intellectual disability sports, para alpine skiing coaching, and organizational aspects of disability sports in countries like Denmark, Norway, and Australia. In recognition of his coaching expertise, Taniguchi was awarded Coach of the Year by Snow Sports New Zealand in July 2009.