Japanese actress Haruna Kawaguchi (川口春奈) and Japan national team defender Ko Itakura (板倉滉) have announced their marriage, revealing on Instagram on August 2 that the couple is also expecting their first child.
Kawaguchi, 31, shared the news directly with fans, confirming that she and Itakura, 29, who currently plays for Dutch club Ajax, had registered their marriage. The announcement highlighted the distance the pair have navigated in their relationship, with reports noting the two have been based more than 9,000 kilometers apart, split between Japan and the Netherlands. In her message, Kawaguchi wrote that the couple hopes to build “a home filled with mutual support and laughter.”
The news drew an outpouring of support online, with the story generating over 160 comments on the original report and thousands of responses to an accompanying reader poll, in which “wishing them lasting happiness” was the top reaction among fans, followed by hopes for “a warm household” and “a healthy baby.”
Who are Haruna Kawaguchi and Ko Itakura?
Haruna Kawaguchi is a Japanese actress who has been a familiar presence in Japanese television dramas and film for over a decade. Ko Itakura is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for both the Japan national team and Dutch club AFC Ajax, having spent much of his career competing in Europe.
No further details on wedding plans or the expected due date have been made public.
Author’s Comment
I’m a sucker for a good long-distance love story, and 9,000 kilometers between Japan and the Netherlands is about as long-distance as it gets. Japanese entertainment coverage loves to treat celebrity dating like a crime scene, but here’s a couple who kept things quiet, did the work, and dropped a wedding and a pregnancy announcement in one tidy Instagram post. Give me an athlete flying home between matches over the usual scripted ‘we’ve been friends for a long time’ line any day of the week. Congratulations to them both — and to whoever on Kawaguchi’s team decided a Monday morning was the moment to make everyone’s timeline a little softer.
